Simon and Halee returned to the Hit Factory studio in New York City to edit the material. Simon flew several South African musicians to New York to complete the record three months after the Johannesburg sessions. The sessions resulted in "You Can Call Me Al" and "Under African Skies". Simon began writing lyrics at his home in Montauk, New York, while listening to the recordings. The process was slow, but he determined he had sufficient material to begin rerecording the tracks. He played the tracks backward to "enhance their sound", interspersing gibberish to complete the rhythms.