That Paul Simon is still delivering poetic pop pearls nearly 50 years after composing "Hey Schoolgirl" comes as little surprise to his staunchest fans.

Critics and consumers anticipated a literate and tuneful "Surprise," Simon's first album since 2000's "You're the One." The singer, however, was less certain about the outcome.

"I'm much more judgmental these days," he says. "Finishing a song is more satisfying now because I'm grateful, whereas when I was 28, I expected it. Now if I find something to say, and I say it in a way that I think is artful and true, I'm relieved I wasn't frustrated or stymied. When I was younger, I just said whatever I had to say. I ask myself now: Do I deeply believe that?"

At 64, generations beyond his first hits, other questions nag him.

"Will anybody get it?" Simon says. "Am I just talking to myself? You have to put that aside."

"Surprise," recognized for its "stellar songwriting" (Entertainment Weekly) and "thrilling return to form" (The Guardian), bowed at No. 14 in Billboard with a respectable 61,000 copies sold. The 11-track collection includes peace hymn "Wartime Prayers," the Oscar-nominated "Father and Daughter," and songs that dwell on family, faith and mortality.

"I'm trying to be as honest as I can expressing myself musically and lyrically, editing out what might be considered obscure but not trying to oversimplify or be condescending," Simon says.

"And then I have to let go, even if I don't immediately understand the words. What I meant eventually reveals itself. You can be too familiar with the process, which I've been doing since I was 15. Sometimes, instead of manipulating the craft, you have to just be the vessel through which some sort of inspiration will flow."

Before the Iraq invasion, Simon penned "Wartime Prayers," then met with avant-garde artist Brian Eno in London to discuss a marriage of electronics and guitar pop.

"We spent some time in his studio and decided to combine our visions," Simon says.

"Surprise" was recorded in London, New York and Nashville, with contributions from Herbie Hancock and Bill Frisell.

Simon's signature melodies and poetic language are more deeply engraved. And they were usually the final components.

"I start with the rhythm," Simon says. "It's drums first, then I go to key to sound to guitar to the form of the song to the beginning of the melody. As the melody begins, so do the words. ... I write backward."

The songs get road-tested starting Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio, first stop on a 21-date tour. Simon may return in the fall, if audiences respond — and if he and his wife, Edie Brickell, can synchronize their domestic and professional itineraries. She'll be doing live dates with her band, The Bohemians, who release "Stranger Things," their first album in 16 years, on July 25.

A restless musical explorer, Simon hasn't stayed in one place since forging a duo with childhood pal Art Garfunkel. His place in history was assured 40 years ago with "Sounds of Silence" and reaffirmed 20 years ago with "Graceland." And yet, despite recently being anointed one of the 100 heroes and pioneers "who shape our world" by Time magazine, he's unsure of his place in modern music.

"Once you go away for a bit, you wonder who people think you are," he says. "If they don't know what you're up to, they just go by your history. I'm so often described as this person that went to other cultures, which is true, but I never thought of it that way. I suspect people are thinking, 'What culture did you go to?' But this record is straight-ahead American."