Paul Simon was "inspired" greatly by African "highlife" music on Graceland. Some people dismiss it as plagiarism, but I actually think Paul was actually influenced greatly by a sound he hadn't heard before, and legitimately tried to recreate it and introduce it to a western audience. Having watched a few interviews with him, he meant Graceland to be, as you say, a "tribute to musical roots".

I personally don't care if it was plagiarism or not, as it introduced me to a bunch of artists I otherwise wouldn't have known, such as Prince Nico Mbarga and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.