SIMON & GARFUNKEL
"Like a bridge over troubled water I will ease your mind"
General Rating: 2
ALBUM REVIEWS:
HIT PACKAGES:
The greatest American folk duet of all time, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel
never seem to have a chance to become my personal cup of tea, but, nevertheless,
my respect for them and adoration for some of their music is tremendous.
The first one of them could turn out a great song, and the second one could
really sing it (although it did not seem to work vice versa: Simon's singing
abilities are just OK, and Garfunkel couldn't put two chords together,
at least as far as I know). Taken together, it worked, though, and even
if they never made a revolution in folk like colleague Bob Dylan, who cares?
They did some good music.
And do not think that one acoustic guitar was all they used. Nah. They
could rock on as well, having acquired that fat old electric sound already
back in 1965. Well, perhaps 'rock on' is a bit too strong an expression
to use in their case. Unlike Bob, they never seemed to feel exactly at
home with the electric guitars. Bob's decision to go electric was a carefully
thought out, elaborately executed plan; Simon & Garfunkel decided to
go electric only after an electric re-arrangement of their timeless classic,
'Sounds Of Silence', which they had nothing to do with, hit the big time.
And throughout the next four years, electric arrangements were mostly used
sparsely: a bit more in 1965, a bit less since then. Even so, they did
enough 'rocking' stuff to earn themselves a place in the Rock'n'Roll Hall
of Fame - at least, according to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame itself.
They did some trippy experimental things with vinyl, too - sometimes Beatlish,
sometimes Stonish, sometimes Pink Floydish (and I do mean that - just listen
to 'Save The Life Of My Child'), sometimes good, sometimes bad, but overall
these guys had brains - unlike... err... Joan Baez, maybe? OK, never
mind, let's just change subject... Anyway, some of their stuff stinks nevertheless,
as much as I hate to say that. Simon's strength, as it at least seems to
me, was not in creating wonderful melodies, but rather in creating melodies
wonderfully adapted to their singing style; any time a S&G song does
not accentuate the mighty singing it just passes on unremarked. That way,
there's a lot of true filler on most of their records, and for this there
is no pardon. For this they get an overall rating of 2, and just don't
despise me - I know what I'm talking about... they're good lads still.
Very influential, too: I'll be the first to admit that most of the good
elements present in classic soft-rock owe something to these guys' efforts.
The problem is, for me it's a clear case when the disciples superate the
masters: I'd take Crosby, Stills & Nash over anything Simon
& Harpoonkel have done any time of day or night. Yeah, in a certain
way they defy classification, just like the Beatles refuse to be classified
under any strict pigeonhole and thus earn even more glory and recognition.
Are Simon & Girlfunkel rock? Are they folk? Are they folk, folk-rock,
folk-pop, pop-rock, whatever? That's a serious question to ponder upon.
On the other side, the Beatles defied classification because they kept
inventing genre after genre and exploring rock's potential to the deepest
depths. Simon & Gurfinkel never did that. To me, they have always seemed
to be painfully making their way through genre conventions, not exactly
knowing which way to turn. On one hand, they wanted to be sissy folky traditionalists;
on the other hand, they wanted to write original songs, independent of
generic folk melodies; finally, they wanted to experiment, because whoever
in the Sixties did not want to experiment? Result? A curious mess:
often, I get the impression that these guys managed to record something
totally opposite to what was the initial plan, and sometimes (more often)
they just didn't manage to record exactly what they wanted, and sometimes
they didn't even know what they wanted.
I know I'm getting a bit too misty here, but try to understand me: to me,
most of their records are divided into black and white. I either LOVE a
Simon & Growlfundler song or I HATE a Simon & Arghfinkler song.
For me, there's rarely any middle ground, and I'm just trying to find an
explanation for that. Take the Byrds, for instance. In their prime, the
Byrds never actually released a bad song - many of them are dreary and
somewhat boring, but they're always tight, melodic and consistent. Why?
Because in case of need, the Byrds were always able to stick to their 'folk-rock'
formula and it worked: at the worst, the songs were just derivative, but
enjoyable in any case. Not so with Simon & Gearplunker. They mostly
ditched the 'traditionalist' formula and engaged in tons of 'creative experiments'
with song structures, harmonizing and various gimmicky guitar and production
effects that were, well, more often un- than successful. I hate that kind
of approach. At least, when you're playing prog rock and doing this, your
arrangements will always be complicated and tricky enough to leave some
hope. But trying to 'experiment' with just a couple acoustic guitars? Man,
you need to be more than a Bob Dylan to do that, and these guys were just
a Simon and a Garfunkel...
Okay, now before you get ready to execute me with your flaring eyes, I'll
say that there's still a rather large bunch of absolute S&G classics
that I totally adore and am ready to be stranded with on a desert island.
Like I said, these are mostly the tunes where they fully exploit the potentials
of their angelic harmonies; but not necessarily. Come with me and let me
introduce you to some of their work now: what good are groundless meditations
if they're not backed up with examples?
Unfortunately, I still haven't got neither their all-acoustic, folkie debut
album, nor the classic Bridge Over Troubled Water (although you
might guess I heard a lot of it, and a good chunk of it is available on
Collection), so in no way am I able to highlight all the different
stages in their career, but I'm trying to get these as well. I promise
they're coming!
What do YOU think about Simon & Garfunkel? Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Natty Bokenkamp <yttan11@hotmail.com> (19.05.2000)
I greatly enjoy your page, and I appreciate the immense effort in compiling
such a definitive collection of folk and rock artists. However, I could
not read your review of Simon and Garfunkel without feeling slightly homicidal
urges. I may be a S&G freak, but you don't really seem to have gotten
the idea at all. You might try listening to Bridge Over Troubled Waters,
which is by far their greatest achievement as a duo. And if they are 'the
greatest folk duo ever', why do they only merit a 2?
Also, I don't think you should dismiss Paul Simon's solo work as 'commercial
crap'. Have you ever even listened to Graceland? Some of his stuff
was bad, admittedly (One Trick Pony, The Capeman), but the Concert
in Central Park album does not give the best impression of his songs.
Thanks for allowing me to vent.
[Special author note: ooh...
Fan comments can be very biting sometimes. You try to break your head and
come out with a lengthy essay on an artists advantages and flaws, and all
you get in response is 'you don't really seem to have gotten the idea at
all'. What if I just wrote in bold letters 'SIMON AND GARFUNKEL SUCK
AND IF YOU LIKE THEM YOUR A MUTHAHFUCKIN JERK!' At least that would
save some time and spare some useless thinking processes.]
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (05.06.2000)
I've always liked these guys, and have always really respected Paul
Simon as a composer, but some of the rabid fans confuse me. The album Bridge
Over Troubled Water, for example, leaves me feeling cold. And Simon's
Graceland is really one of his weaker solo albums - the world music
on there is very sloppy and formulaic. I far prefer Hearts And Bones"
on which it sounds like Paul took a LOT of time to write the songs.
And you know me - I would never use an argument like "you just don't
get it!" What I would choose to say is "I don't get it - as to
how you can ignore the sheer compositional genius present on these albums."
However, unlike the two other guys who e-mailed you on them, I can understand
why you don't like them too much. They're not fantastic, they're just good.
I would probably give them a three (I would give a lot of artists three,
though), but it would definitely be a low three. I do like Paul Simon's
solo stuff better - keep in mind, though, that I also like solo Sting better
than the Police.
Philip Maddox <slurmsmckenzie@hotmail.com> (07.07.2000)
I got these guys' collected output in a box set (appropriately title Collected Works), and I pretty much liked all of it. Simon and Garfunkel could really harmonize with each other, and Simon could write some classic songs - just off the top of my head, i can think of 'I Am A Rock', 'The Boxer', 'Bridge Over Troubled Waters', 'Scarborough Fair', 'Homeward Bound', 'The Sounds Of Silence', 'Mrs. Robinson', and probably a bunch more I just can't remember right now. Their albums did have a bit of filler, not to mention how short they were - less than 30 minutes apiece in some cases! However, I even like most of their filler, as the singing is usually beautiful enough to elevate so-so material to a higher plane. The complaint about "short albums" goes away too when you get all 5 of their albums on 3 CDs. I'd rate 'em a bit higher - I really dig these guys, and certainly dig them more than Crosby Stills and Nash. CSN is really good, but these guys deliver more classics per mile if you ask me. I swear, a GREAT Simon and Garfunkel song can really move me - 'The Boxer' in particular makes me feel all weepy. Give 'em something like a 4 from me. Too bad they broke up - Paul's solo albums were good, but not as good as when he was with Garfunkel. And Art's solo albums? Sure, I'll buy those at about the same time I build up a Roger Daltry solo collection, which is to say, never.
Mike Mannheim <mm1701@yahoo.com> (15.07.2000)
These guys are my favorite band in the world, mostly because they were
the first band I ever grew attached too. There's something about Simon's
lyrics that really affects me, I just can't explain it. For a duo with
only five studio albums, they created an astounding number of classic songs,
or near classics.
As for Simon's solo career, it really shouldn't be dismissed. He continues
to grow as a songwriter with each passing album, reaching his peak in the
late '80s with Hearts and Bones and Graceland (but he never
burned out, at least not yet). He's been very consistent, none of his albums
are below par, save for maybe One-Trick Pony, which is an extreme
case anyway, since he was absorbed in the production of his film. I don't
know about his other fans, but I thought The Capeman was good.
Year Of Release: 1966
Record rating = 10
Overall rating = 12
A few misguided stinkers here, and the classic style isn't quite
worked out yet, but overall - the filler is minimal.
Best song: I AM A ROCK
This is often dismissed as a hastily assembled collection of half-penned
songs thrown out onto the market after the success of the electrified take
on the title track, but I confess that it is currently my best bet for
a Simon & Garfunkel record. It has that raw, energetic feel that makes
some of the songs (especially the more rockin' ones) sound closer to you
and more personal and inviting than the polished feel of the numbers off
Parsley and the ensuing records. For sure, there is some filler
on this record. Actually, filler material couldn't but be present on the
album: the boys just took a first step towards the tricky world of 'rock'
values, so this is what Subterranean Homesick Blues was to Bob Dylan:
a careful treading of water, with successes and missteps running along
with each other. Unlike Dylan, though, Paul Simon always had a better understanding
of (or, to be more exact, a more accurate approach to) melody, so the twelve
songs on this album boast about a million more chord changes and harmonic
features than all Dylan albums put together (well, I know that's exaggerating,
but I do it intentionally to let you get the difference).
A couple of numbers are still purely acoustic, and they're good, still
retaining their 1964 folkish feel: 'April Come She Will' is a moving, beautiful
ballad, and 'A Most Peculiar Man' has a curious Byrds-ey feel to it (yeah,
like in 'He Was A Friend Of Mine'). The song is credited to P. Simon, of
course, but the melody is purely traditional, and the lyrical subject,
about an outcast who finally turns on the gas, is rather cliched as well.
And that's good - remember what I said about how these guys were good when
they didn't mess around with the solid folkie formula? Yep. I don't really
get 'Kathy's Song', though, but that's just me - I wouldn't want to argue
that this song, based around some simplistic strumming and a not-too-convincing
vocal melody, is boring, because it might not seem so to you; neither do
I get the instrumental 'Anji' (the only cover on here) which sounds nice
but is kinda pointless. Probably more of the stuff that the two dudes were
practising in their college days, but releasing it on this record is kinda
strange. After all, Simon ain't a great guitarist, now is he? Our money
is on the vocals!
The main effort, however, is placed on marrying their old style to rock
instruments, and it mostly works. Mostly, because 'Blessed' is a horrendous
piece of shit, starting with a mess of distorted guitars as if it were
proto-acid rock and then suddenly turning into a reinterpretation of the
Mountain Sermon. It rambles, shakes and almost falls apart, has thoroughly
generic lyrics and, well, it's just lame. Sometimes I simply get the feel
that it's just Simon & Garfunkel screaming 'DUDES! WE'RE ELECTRIC!'
loud and proud in our faces. So what? Big fat hairy deal, I say. But that's
about the only real complaint: 'Leaves That Are Green' is one more beautiful
ballad with an impressive use of the harpsichord, and 'Somewhere They Can't
Find Me' is bouncy, upbeat, and memorable, with an equally impressive use
of the brass section. And the other four songs are all tiny little gems,
their combination certainly equalling the four gems on Parsley discussed
below. The title track is one of their most famous, and the reworked electric
version that adds vocals from Wednesday Morning 3 A. M. is amazing.
It has a certain mystical feel to it, emphasized by the echoey ringing
guitars and heavenly Art vocals, and even if you might certainly call it
pretentious, I don't really care. 'Richard Cory' is an aggressive social
protest song, based on some old poem by somebody who goes uncredited, on
which Simon almost sounds like an energetic, sardonic young Roger Daltrey
(well, which he really was at the time). 'We've Got A Groovey Thing Goin''
is their most successful attempt at a full-fledged rocker (saym, isn't
it curious to hear rock'n'roll sung by angelic voices, not that Chuck Berry
rasping?) And 'I Am A Rock' is a totally shattering ode to misanthropy
that not only has the best lyrics on the whole record ('I am a rock/I am
an island/And a rock feels no pain/And an island never cries'), but also
has the most complex and unpredictable melodic twists, going from a seemingly
acoustic ballad to a majestic pop rocker.
While this is certainly not a quintessential record for our favourite duo
- I admit that they were only beginning to find their style on here, a
process that ended with the following album - it is by far the most tolerable
by anybody. There are enough sweet acoustic passages on here to satisfy
a folk lover, but this is their most rockin' effort as well, since after
this record they started really 'balancing' the 'rockin'' stuff. And no,
I'm not saying that they rocked harder than anyone, or that their rockin'
stuff is generally preferable to the 'quiet' stuff; don't get me wrong,
I'm just saying that as time went by and they got more serious, they started
to make their melodies more and more 'experimental' which is rather hard
for me to take. Here, there's no 'experimentation' within a couple of miles
to be found, and oh man, is that really a groovey thing goin'. And no,
I'm not saying that 'experimentation' is bad in general; don't get me wrong,
I'm just saying that Simon & Garfunkel's experimentation sucked!!!
Sometimes.
And, dang it, there's just so many good songs on here! Not to mention that
the CD version adds a live recording of 'Homeward Bound' (the studio version
can be found on Parsley). Buy this today, you won't be disappointed.
Blessed you be if you mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Adam Harrington <arharrin@midway.uchicago.edu> (15.05.2000)
All too often, Simon and Garfunkel are dismissed as highbrow folk rockers
whose only redeeming value are their harmonies and Simon's poetry -- which,
incidentally, are beyond comparison. Anyone who listened to Sounds of
Silence in its entirety would be immediately converted; this is not
just plain music that doesn't move out of the folk rock genre that Bob
Dylan had already gained control over years earlier anyway. This borders
on a concept album.
Simon and Garfunkel are definitely not light folksy types -- they had a
lot of dark stuff. And every last track on this album, whether you'd classify
it as "filler" or not, has a darker tone. Right off the bat,
the title track seems to deal with some kind of alienation -- they are
talking to the darkness about people who are out of touch with reality.
There are three songs that use Simon's brilliant poetry to describe the
otherwise cliched subject of lost love, including "We've Got a Groovey
Thing Going" While it is more upbeat, it fits in fine with the dark,
alienated concept of the album; yes, it is a little happier, and it does
bear the comment "just for fun" on the LP notes, but it is still
in the minor key and it still deals with a rather unhappy subject -- albeit
in simpler terms than "Kathy's Song" and "Leaves that are
Green." Simon's writing indicates that he is alienated from everything
-- he is alone watching pebbles in brooks, writing songs that don't work
out, and even being forced to withdraw from society after committing a
crime. And judging by the cynical "Blessed," he has been alienated
from his faith too.
The concept has its limits, I suppose -- there are third-person songs here,
but both -- right next to each other -- deal with men who commit suicide.
(N.B. "Richard Cory" was a turn of the century poem by Edwin
Arlington Robinson; I haven't seen the CD, but the LP has a note "with
apologies to E.A. Robinson"). So these third-person songs uphold the
dark tone just fine. No, this is not lightweight folk pop. It is as dark
as your typical Pink Floyd album.
Which brings me to "I Am A Rock." Did you ever notice something
about this song? It is about the exact same thing as Pink Floyd's The
Wall; Pink himself could be singing it! It even contains the line "I've
built walls." In fact, I was just listening to this album the other
night, and while I'd never made that connection before, I was so stunned
by the similarity in subject matter between the respective song and album
that I had to put The Wall on when it was over.
What a way to end it. Alienation from everything in the surroundings to
the point where the environment is silenced, and feeling a need to hide,
followed by a break about suicide, then back to alienation ("April
Come She Will" ends with the line "a love once new has grown
old," which fits right in to the stuff on the first side of the album)
to the point where the speaker, Simon himself or whoever he's personifying,
ends up in the same situation as Pink in The Wall. I guess this
shows that you don't have to be a burned out rock star like Pink to end
up needing a wall to withdraw from society, because Simon is writing this
from the perspective of the everyday man.
A perfect 10 for the album, no questions asked.
Kenyon <kenyon@csinet.net> (01.08.2000)
Not bad a-tall. If you take it song by song, it really comes up lacking,
but as a whole I like it."April Come She Will" is a very pretty
little song, and "A Most Peculiar Man" is very well-done. The
melody, though simple, works really well for the lyrics - fairly inconsequential
til the end, when, whoops, he kills himself - the pretty little melody
is a startling contrast to that. I also really like "Kathy's Song,"
although the live version on Greatest Hits is better. And I'm really
beginning to think that I'm the only person on this whole goshdanged planet
who likes "Blessed." Granted, the shouted lyrics are a bit ugly,
and it didn't really need to be electric, but I do like the lyrics. It's
just so bitter. "Leaves That Are Green" is pretty, and "I
Am a Rock" just kicks some ass.
BUT....the rest of them kinda bite, in their own special ways. "Richard
Cory" is just dumb, and I have a bit of a problem with the track order
- two suicide songs in a row? And when one of them is vastly inferior to
the other? That's just crazy. "Somewhere They Can't Find Me"
starts off nicely, but then the lyrics get stupid when he starts talking
about how he robbed the liquor store. And has anyone noticed that this
is just a rewrite of "Wednesday Morning, 3 a.m."? Speaking of
rewrites, if you listen to "Anji" close enough, you can hear
the hooks for just about every single other song on the album. I've read
reports that Paul was obsessed with "Anji" for quite a while,
so it kinda makes sense that he would take bits from it and make songs
out of them. I thought that was neat, even though I really don't like the
song.
And since when does the CD have a live version of "Homeward Bound"???
Mine certainly doesn't.
Bob Josef <Trfesok@aol.com> (29.08.2000)
The album tapped into the restlessness and post-adolescent angst of
60's teenagers, but it was wrapped in gorgeous singing (mostly by Garfunkel)
and catchy, if unusual, melodies (this is where I disagree with your assessment
of S & G, George). Otherwise, how could an album filled withsongs about
suicides and alienation be such a massive hit?
The remixed version of the title track really caught them off guard, so
I don't think our boys sound quite as comfortable with fuller band arrangements
as they would in the future. But I do like "Blessed" -- the discordance
(well, for Simon and Garfunkel, it's discordant) fits in with the alienation-from-religion
theme in the lyrics. By the way, it's kind of weird that a couple of nice
Jewish boys from Queens would use so much Christian imagery in their music
(check out the 1st album for more examples).
There's certainly a fair amount of filler here-- "Anji," which
is pleasant but unnecessary, the silly "We've got a Groovy Thing Going"
and the overmelodramatic "Somewhere He Can't Find Me." Evidently,
deadlines forced Simon to rewrite an older song when he fell short of material.
And "Kathy's Song" would have been better if Art had sung it,
but I guess Paul wasn't about to give a song about his current girlfriend
to anyone else. But still, the album stands as a group of songs about post-adolescent
end of innocence and observation about the darkness in human relationships.
That makes it a lot less dated than the social protest stuff on the first
album.
Year Of Release: 1966
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 11
Fifty percent unsurpassed vocal harmonies and fifty percent bland
acoustic strumming.
Best song: THE 59TH STREET BRIDGE SONG (FEELING GROOVY)
Just what I was talking' 'bout in the opening paragraph. Wonderful,
classic gems mixed with boring filler that makes you go to sleep - even
though this is one of their strongest efforts. It's really incredible how
exactly half of this stuff does NOTHING or, well, so little for
me and exactly the other half is among the most BRILLIANT, 'eartwarming,
luxuriant acoustic folk/folk-rock ever written; not to mention one
good rocker and one bad rocker. Count me crazy, but so it absolutely
is.
The best stuff here is all built around brilliant, often moving vocal harmonies.
The nostalgic, strangely tender 'Homeward Bound' demonstrates the two dudes
really know how to make the best of time signature changes, with
the melancholic verses wonderfully alternating with that upbeat, optimistic
chorus. Simon's vocals are especially pretty on here. Then there's the
notorious album opener - the incredibly complex and breathtaking 'Scarborough
Fair/Canticle' (the title of the album is taken from its refrain), which
is without a doubt one of the most gorgeous arrangements of a traditional
folk song ever. The pretty guitar, the majestic harpsichord, and, above
all, the incredible twists and twirls of the vocal harmonies, combine to
really make this one of the duet's visit cards. In fact, I can hardly remember
any other song in the 'pop/rock' field, apart from a couple Beach Boys
tunes, that would carry this experimentation with multiple-layered vocal
harmonies further than they do here. Surely they shouldn't even try playing
this live!
Art particularly shines on the short ballad 'For Emily, Whenever I May
Find Her'. This one, I think, fully illustrates my theory: I don't even
see any interesting melody on here, just sap. But Garfunkel's angelic
vocals are worthy just for the sake of hearing them alone, and transform
what could just prove to be a mediocre passable tune in the hands (and
in the chords) of a less vocally talented guy into one of the most beautiful
love anthems ever recorded. All these songs count. They all score. They
all rule. They all make me say: 'Hey! What WONDERFUL singers!' None the
more so, however, than on the fantastic '59th Street Bridge Song' where
they manage to create an absolutely wonderful, mystique, charming and slightly
ridiculous atmosphere which makes me just feel happy like a little boy.
The subtitle 'Feelin' Groovy' hits the bullseye - if there's anything groovy
in the world, it's that song. In all, the best stuff on here is quite worthy
of comparison with Sounds Of Silence, maybe even overshadows it.
Alas, the other tracks surrounding these gems are mostly somewhat.. err..
somewhat lame, I guess. Well, I somehow favour the Who-like rocker 'A Simple
Desultory Philippic (Or How I Was Robert McNamara'd Into Submission)';
certainly the 'heaviest' piece of music the dudes ever submitted to tape,
it's almost punkish in style - a heavily distorted riff accompanies Simon's
screams about how he's been 'Mick Jaggered, silver daggered' and, well,
I don't know if he's serious and all, but it's just oh so funny to hear
the little dude let his hair down a little and go for an angry Dylanish
protest delivery, sung in a perfect Roger Daltrey-imitating tone. Oh, and
there's plenty of Dylan references in the lyrics, too. Plus, he says 'folk
rock' in a very important tone as he ends out the song. Funny.
Recently I also discovered the pleasures of a couple of songs I considered
as absolute filler early on; 'Patterns', for instance, whose nagging beat
and cleverly crafted vocal melody finally managed to get to me. 'Dangling
Conversation' also turns out to be a nice ballad; incomparable to the better
stuff on here, but with some more precious vocal harmonizing - these descending
vocal lines in the verses are alone worth the price of admission. The only
thing I don't appreciate is the 'college romance' lyrics about 'and you
read your Emily Dickinson/and I my Robert Frost'; I knew the guys
were snub-nosed, but hey, no need to show this to a folk-loving audience
that cares little about Robert Frost. 'Flowers Never Bend With The Rainfall'
is also nice.
However, I simply can't say the same about 'Cloudy' or 'A Poem On The Underground
Wall' - nah! These I'd only recommend to diehard-hardcore folk lovers.
I just can't get my piece of pie out of anything like that. It's not that
they are bad - they are even listenable, and they do not draw heavily
on folky cliches (unlike, say, Dylan's early acoustic stuff); but the melodies
are not that strong ('Poem'), and sometimes practically non-existent ('Cloudy').
And the stupid fast pop rocker 'The Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine'
can only be qualified as an unsuccessful parody on whatever you like. Oh,
well. Geniality knows its limits, too. Anyway, it's not that Paul was in
a bad condition for this album - such a situation is quite normal. Every
S&G record has its 'Patterns'. A worthwhile purchase by all means,
but still, give me Sounds Of Silence over this stuff any time of
day. Hey, did I yet mention that the record finishes with a pedestrian
'anthemic' ballad with a bunch of radio news being recited in the background
(aptly titled '7 O'Clock/Silent Night')? What a dreadful way to end a record
with such an uplifting beginning.
Feelin' groovy? Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Richard C. Dickison <randomkill@earthlink.net> (17.05.99)
Now hold on there buddy, this band may not have been The Rolling Stones
or the Beatles but who else is? I really believe allot of 70's pop took
there que right here, CSNY, to the Carpenters (god did I just raise the
hair on the back of my neck there with that analogy) anyway.
They defined some of the major musical movements of the late sixties with
this sound and intelligence and this really is their defining album.
Anyway lets place them at or above The Mamas and The Papas and leave it
at that but give this album, as a first, some high marks for setting in
motion a higher level of pop music with it's folk roots still showing.
I myself went out and got that CD remaster megaset that represents most
of there work except for some live stuff and I will pull it out every now
and then. It sure beats out Joan Baez or Peter, Paul and Mary any old day.
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (19.08.99)
Hey now. Now you've made me a little angry. You're statement that "Cloudy," "Patterns," "Dangling Conversation," and "Poem on the Underground Wall" are only recommended to "diehard-hardcore folk lovers" is wrong, wrong, wrong!!!! "Patterns" isn't even a folk song!!! The melodies on all of these are incredibly strong; I'm humming "Cloudy" right now. Grrr..... See, I just got back from a road trip (to a Dylan/Simon concert, no less!) and we listened to this album on the way home. My friends and I came to the conclusion that there isn't a single weak track here, with the exception of the "Silent Night" bit, which is unfortunately a little dated. But other than that, there is NOTHING wrong with this album. Good lyrics, good tunes, good production, everything. But maybe that's just me....
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (05.06.2000)
A very pleasant little pop album. I don't hear folk on it at all - maybe "folk rock," but that's a meaningless term anyways. I really like "Patterns," and all of the hits rule (and there were a lot of 'em!), so I give this a ten. Really nice melodies!
Mike Mannheim <mm1701@yahoo.com> (15.07.2000)
"A Simple Desultory Phillipic" is based on an protest song Simon wrote in circa 1964 with the subtitle "Or How I Was Lyndon Johnsoned Into Submission." That earlier version was much more nasty, while the version on here is supposed to be comical. As for the rest of the album, this probably qualifies as their most quintessential. It has some folk, some rock and some pop. A nine.
Kenyon <kenyon@csinet.net> (01.08.2000)
The title track is absolutely beautiful. I can't even describe how beautiful it is. It just is. There are a lot of other really great ones on here, too. "Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall" is one of my favorite S&G songs - I really like the "continue to continue" lines. I also really love "The Dangling Conversation" ("I only kiss your shadow" is such a great line) and "A Poem on the Underground Wall." "Homeward Bound," "For Emily..." and "Feelin' Groovy" are all fantastic songs, but they all sound infinitely better in the live versions on Greatest Hits. All three of them are much lighter and less draggy. "Patterns" and "Cloudy" are both all right, although I'm a bit confused as to how you could say that "Cloudy" doesn't have a melody. However, "A Simple Desultory Philippic" and "The Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine" really bite the big one, and "Seven O'Clock News/Silent Night" tries really hard to be depressing but can't quite manage it. If I were giving it a letter grade, it would probably get a B-.
Bob Josef <Trfesok@aol.com> (30.08.2000)
Yes, they do attempt to make the Big Social Statement with "7'
O'clock News/Silent Night" -- more Christian imagery, contrasted with
How Horrible The World Is. I usually go bigtime for pretension, but S&G
are not Yes or even the Moody Blues. This was their worst cut to date.
Not even very clever, never mind "important."
Actually, the contrast thing works much better with the blend of the pastoral
"Scarborough Fair" and the nightmarish counterpoint "Canticle"
-- here is where they succeed where "7 and Silent" failed. And
I do think you miss the point with "Philippic" -- it's PARODY
of Dylan, not a serious attempt to imitate him. Took a little air out of
the "Bard of the 60's," but not too many noticed. I have a fondness
for "The Dangling Conversation" because my 7th grade English
teacher tried to get us to analyze the lyrics (hey, this was the 60's,
folks -- but since we all thought that "I Am a Rock" was about
an actual ROCK, she couldn't get too far with this one). It's kind of sad,
but not in a too sappy, melodramatic way. I think, though, that any Paul
Simon song with the word "Groovy" in the title should be tossed
out the window. (A group named Harper's Bizarre had a massive US hit with
a very poppy version of "Feelin' Groovy" that was even more cloying
than the original.)
I do think that Simon is growing as a melodocist, showing a lot more variety
than on the previous two albums -- there's some genuine humor here ("Philippic,"
"Pleasure Machine") [as opposed to overcutesiness] that balances
the darker tunes like "Poem" and "Cloudy," so the album
is not quite as unrelentingly depressing as Sounds of Silence. It's
not good to be too depressed all the time -- if the trend started on the
last album kept going, Simon would have turned into Roger Waters. Not a
pretty picture to contemplate.
Year Of Release: 1968
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 11
Fifty percent unsurpassed vocal harmonies and fifty percent bland
acoustic strumming.
Best song: MRS ROBINSON
A concept album, and the concept is pretty weak - based on the themes
of old love, old friends and nostalgy for the days of childhood. Like every
conceptual album, it has its worst excesses ('Voices Of Old People' for
which the boys have recorded lots of these voices talking about death and
such-like - an idea later taken on by Pink Floyd on Dark Side Of The
Moon), but, fortunately enough, the concept does not embody the whole
record, or else everybody in the world would be bored to death by the likes
of the title theme (a short uninteresting acoustic patch) or 'Old Friends'.
I can't really imagine how it is possible to love 'Old Friends', to be
sincere. The song consists, like, of two acoustic chords and a dreary marsh
of banal sappy orchestration! Even the vocal harmonies don't do much for
that one. This is where conceptuality got the better of Simon, and he actually
forgot to base a good melody around what was probably supposed to be the
album's centerpiece. And the strange experimentation with the orchestra,
whether this stuff was played live or Paul just tampered with the tapes,
doesn't do much good; after all, the song is no 'A Day In The Life'.
Fortunately, the record is not entirely conceptual, and there's
still a lot to love on it. There are several unmarred songs here, and some
are mighty gems that clearly demonstrate Simon's graduation. 'Mrs
Robinson' is among the best songs they ever did (it was written
specially for the Graduate soundtrack, and just as well as it fits
into the movie it is one of the catchiest pieces of art I've ever heard.
What were they - inspired by Dustin Hoffman?). 'America' is a half-baked,
but arrogant and welcome try at a truly anthemic song, since then covered
by God knows how many performers in the business, and Lord knows the number
needs little introduction from me. Dreamy, gorgeous and, well, all that
kind of stuff. Ya know.
Meanwhile, it's simply not true, as some people do suggest, that all of
this album is slow and dreary and lethargic: the first side of it, almost
entirely dedicated to the 'concept', is, but the second side hides a few
somewhat more passionate gems - like 'A Hazy Shade Of Winter', a song that
boasts a level of energy and passion that could only be dreamt of on Parsley
(the only energetic song there was 'A Simple Desultory Philippic', and
it was just a groove at that). The grumbly acoustic riff, moody organ and
the duets' 'cyclic' vocal harmonies that finally end the tune on an abrupt
note are enough to make the number their second best on this album. The
song has a certain autumnal mood, indeed, like the Kinks' 'Autumn Almanac',
only here it's much more disturbing and ominous. But if it's too dark and
scary for you, 'At The Zoo' is your bet - an incredibly cool cozy little
tune that neatly ends up the record on a friendly, humorous, and fast-going
note - just what you need after such an overall depressing album. I particularly
love the line about zebras being reactionaries and antelopes being missionaries
(I wonder why?), but the lyrics are nearly all hilarious and entirely satisfying,
whatever 'satisfaction' means for you when applied to a S&G album.
Still, there are much too many flaws on this record to grant it a perfect
rating. I've originally given this an eight, but I sure was mistaken -
the beauty of 'America', the dreariness of 'Hazy Shade', the fun of 'At
The Zoo', the catchiness of 'Mrs Robinson' and the groovy innocence of
'Punky's Dilemma', another highlight which roughly corresponds to '59th
Bridge Street Song' on the previous record, are all enough to guarantee
it a nine. I guess that my main problems on here stem from the fact that
Paul and Art have blown the bubble a bit too far on this record, exploding
it with a bang on pretentious, much-too-serious filler like 'Old Friends',
'Overs' and the ridiculous 'Voices Of Old People'. Clearly, Simon is one
of those dudes that have some serious troubles when marrying solid catchy
melodies to their conceptual ambitions - it's either one or the other.
Too much emphasis is placed on the 'aural effect' side and too few put
into finding new exciting harmonies. Not that such an approach ain't at
all justified: for instance, it does result in arguably the most untypical
song they ever recorded - the feedback-drenched 'Save The Life Of My Child',
an almost prog-rock tune that has has some weird noises a la Pink Floyd
(and not the 1968 Pink Floyd - rather like the 1979 Pink Floyd!), more
tricky time signature changes, other-worldly female backup vocals in the
background, and a weird atmosphere that seems to be shouting out 'EXPERIMENT!
EXPERIMENT!' at any given particular second. I have mixed feelings towards
that one - it ain't very catchy, but it does sound impressive, at times.
I also disapprove of the fact that Art isn't given that much to bother
about on this album. Sure, Simon continues to mature as a songwriter, and
that's good, but where are those angelic vocals? There's nothing even remotely
resembling 'For Emily' on this album - hey, it could have easily passed
for a solo Simon project. Bad idea. And what's that with the depressing
album cover? Black sweaters? Art sticking his fingers in his ear? Boo.
To see how a really good conceptual album about old people should be made,
please refer to Arthur by the Kinks, a true masterpiece of the genre.
Voices of old people or voices of young people, I just need you to mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (19.08.99)
You just don't get these guys, do you? But that's okay. I'll forgive
you. I respect your taste in music and I know that it's every bit as legitimate
as mine. As for anyone else out there reading this, realize that Simon
& Garfunkel aren't really George's cup'o'tea, so go buy the albums
and decide for yourself.
Anyhoo, the only thing that's wrong with this record is "Voices of
Old People." The rest is near-perfect pop music. Sure, the first side
may be a little slow, but it's a good kind of slow. I'd never call the
title track or "Old Friends" boring. "Quiet" does not
equal "boring". A Green Day CD strikes me as boring, and those
are usually quite loud. Speaking of loud, those noises on "Save the
Life of My Child" are freakier than RuPaul. You didn't even mention
"Punky's Dilemma" or "Fakin' It," both great songs.
Once again, I'm not seeing any of the "filler" you keep referring
to. It's a fantastic album!!!! I think I'll listen to it right now!!!
Michael Mannheim <mm1701@yahoo.com> (24.05.2000)
I didn't like this album very much when i first heard it, but it seems to have grown on me over time. 'Voices of Old People' was off-putting at first, but then one day I payed close attention, and discovered that I find it entertaining, either because (a) it's so damn funny to listen to of (b) it's really creepy knowing you are hearing the voices of dejected old people who have now been dead for 30+ years. I usually go with (a). The only thing that I don't like about this record is 'Overs', which is just a lead-in to 'Old People' anyway. It happens to be one of the few S&G songs (or Paul Simon songs, for that matter) I can't stand. The rest is perfect: the meoldies, harmonies, lyrics, in the singer/songwriter vein, sort of like Nick Drake. Give this another listen, you'll find you like it more every time.
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (05.06.2000)
I can do without the dumb sound collage, but the rest of the music is really creative. And experimental - they're trying to do as many musical styles as possible, and it works, especially on the acid rock "Save The Life Of My Child" and the gorgeous sappy balladry "Old Friends." The pop songs are the best, though - although "At The Zoo" has never done much for me, "America" and "Hazy Shade Of Winter" are phenomenal. And "Mrs. Robinson." A nine.
Kenyon <kenyon@csinet.net> (01.08.2000)
Much better than the last one! The only track I always skip is "Voices of Old People," because I've always thought its inclusion on the album was just a bit too pretentious, and it annoys me. "Save the Life of My Child" is really cool - anybody else noticed the part where you hear the opening of "The Sound of Silence" in the background? I always thought that was a cool effect. "America" is another personal favorite, and of course "Mrs. Robinson" is just a terrific song. I actually like the Bangles' cover of "A Hazy Shade of Winter" better than the original, though. I'm kind of ashamed of myself for that, but oh well.
Bob Josef <Trfesok@aol.com> (04.09.2000)
"Save the Life of my Child" is the only S&G track where
they are able to balance their attempts at experimentation with Simon's
melodic gifts. It's quite the production -- surreal, but accessible. And
as for the rest of the album, they do an even better of balancing darker
themes ("Fakin' it" , "Hazy Shade") with lighthearted
humor ("Punky," "At the Zoo"). And with "Mrs.
Robinson," they do it within one song!!
"Fakin' it" is one their best songs -- one of their most neglected
singles. I read one review which said that "Punky's Dilemma"
is full of sexual innuendo, which makes me like it more than I used to,
but I'll be damned if I can find them!! I'd love an explanation...
Paul Simon's opinions is that S&G's albums got better as they went
along. I must agree. Of course, I must add my voices to those who agree
that "Voices of Old People" is a total waste of time. Fortunately,
they gave up on this sort of silliness for their final album.
Year Of Release: 1982
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 11
A pleasant reunion concert that could even work as a greatest hits
live collection if not for some crappy solo Simon stuff.
Best song: shucks.
A groovy record. Paul and Art parted ways (or should I say 'paul-arted
ways' instead! Ha! Ha!) in 1970, and were living pretty happily without
each other until they reunited for a concert and a live record (rumours
had it that they would go on recording, but Paul 'accidentally' wiped out
Garfunkel's vocals off the next record, so I guess there won't be any reunion
concerts any more) that pretty much summed up their entire career and more.
The thing that puts me off about the record is that about half of it consists
of Simon's solo material, and, while the collaborative hits are undeniable,
the quality of his solo material is, er, random at the least. There are
some good humour numbers ('Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard'), some
good nostalgic hits ('Still Crazy After All These Years'), some menacing,
not uninteresting rockers ('Fifty Ways To Leave Your Lover'), some boring
Bookends-style ravings ('American Tune', a shameless rip-off of
his own 'America' that is also here), and some commercial crap ('Kodachrome'
- yuck!) Whatever. I'm just not a specialist over Paul's solo career -
I know he's had his ups and downs, but I also guess they're represented
on this album somewhat equally. Also, the oldies' covers on here are also
out of the picture ('Maybellene'????)
Can't deny the hits, though: the most important thing is that the voices
and the harmonies are still there, as demonstrated by the terrific versions
of 'Bridge Over Troubled Water', 'Feelin' Groovy', 'Scarborough Fair' and
'Homeward Bound'. 'The Boxer' doesn't come off as good, but it's still
enjoyable, and for some reason they've also decided to include some forgettable
filler ('April Come She Will'; 'Old Friends'), but it's not the worst filler
I've ever heard. The backing band is solid, the crowd noises don't usually
get in the way, the mix is near-perfect - what else would you expect? Not
mentioning the fact that this is a 2-record set pressed onto one CD, so
it's also quite an economic buy (especially if you find it cheap). I'm
satisfied, anyway. You?
P.S. Now that I finally got Sounds Of Silence, I would like to make
a correction: 'April Come She Will' is a gorgeous ballad. It's just
that this live version didn't let me know this fact. Apologies.
April come she will mail her ideas
Your worthy comments:
Natty Bokenkamp <yttan11@hotmail.com> (19.05.2000)
And how can you say that 'American Tune' is a rip off of Paul's song America. If you were actually listening, you might notice that the two songs are entirely different, with completely different themes and sounds to them. I will say that I find 'America' to be a better song, mainly due to the incredibly poetic lyrics which are only accentuated by their lack of rhyme, and because of Garfunkel's incredible vocal arrangement.
Year Of Release: 1997?
Awesome! Everybody needs a collection like this if he doesn't want to
spend his money on everything! Me, I only keep it because I haven't been
able to lay my hands on about half of their output (yet), but even so,
the song selection is near perfect! Okay, they could have easily dropped
'Old Friends' for as much as I care, but 'Homeward Bound'? 'Feelin' Groovy'?
'Scarborough Fair'? 'America'? 'Mrs Robinson'? Yeah, I know it's impossible
to imagine a Simon & Garfunkel hit collection without these chunks
o' gold, but you never know what to expect of these crazy record companies.
The early material includes the forgettable, but nice title track from
1964's Wednesday Morning 3 A. M.; the magnificent misanthropic 'I
Am A Rock'; 'Sounds Of Silence', of course, and here you'll also get your
'Bridge Over Troubled Water', 'Cecilia', 'Boxer'... ooh man, these are
the songs! The songs! What a pity they also had to pull out such
a lot of crap along the way - the Great Consistent Album of S&G has
yet to come out (yes I did listen to Bridge Over Troubled Water),
and, seeing as the guys aren't in a particular haste about it, we'll hardly
get a chance to witness that phenomenon. So, in the meantime, get your
dough out and buy this collection (or one from a million of others). And
what a cool, almost impressionistic album photo!