The heart of the rules in 3e is so clean, simple, and consistent that it is extremely easy to pare down. I think a very workable basic set of rules could fit on 2-3 pages, and only use the books as reference material to inspire the DM.
The key issue is one of setting expectations. If you prefer a simpler style of game tell your players you want to play a home brew system. If you like to stick with some of the base D&D mechanics call it a "home brew d20 style system but it is not d20(tm)".
Or maybe you should play a slimmed version of classic BRP? Or FUDGE?