Elton with Olivia Newton-John at the gala opening of 'Grease' 1978
"Simon and Garfunkel had dinner one night, then played charades. At least, they tried to play charades. They were terrible at it. The best thing I can say about them is that they were better than Bob Dylan. He couldn’t get the hang of the ‘how many syllables?’ thing at all. He couldn’t do ‘sounds like’ either, come to think of it. One of the best lyricists in the world, the greatest man of letters in the history of rock music, and he can’t seem to tell you whether a word’s got one syllable or two syllables or what it rhymes with! He was so hopeless, I started throwing oranges at him. Or so I was informed the next morning, by a cackling Tony King. That’s not really a phone call you want to receive when you’re struggling with a hangover.
‘Morning, darling - do you remember throwing oranges at Bob Dylan last night?’
Oh God."
-Elton John
Wednesday, January 02, 2019
No I didn't buy this when it came out as a single but we listened to the album avidly when it broke over here. . . . . this is in a list of classic pop songs of all time for sure, check the production values and structure of this truly wonderful song. Anything that becomes so classic it is cliché must have done something right. It is so ingrained as to be in the public domain somehow. Ask anyone from these generations and they would know it . . .
On this day in music history: January 1, 1966 - “The Sounds Of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 2 weeks (non-consecutive). Written by Paul Simon, it is the first chart topping single for the Queens, NY folk/rock duo. Simon writes the song in early 1964, and is originally released on Simon & Garfunkel’s debut album “Wednesday Morning, 3 AM”. The acoustic based ballad, along with the album attracts little attention upon its initial release. Sometime later, a Boston area DJ begins playing “The Sound Of Silence” off the album and receives a positive reaction. Word of this gets back to executives at Columbia Records, who think the spare acoustic song could become a hit, if the song had more instrumentation on it. While in the studio recording Bob Dylan’s classic “Like A Rolling Stone” (on June 15, 1965), producer Tom Wilson asks some of Dylan’s musicians to stay behind and record one more track. Wilson overdubs electric guitar, bass and drums on to Simon & Garfunkel’s original multi-track of “Silence”. Released as a single in September of 1965, “Silence” begins making in roads on US radio. Entering the Hot 100 at #80 on November 20, 1965, it quickly climbs to the top of the chart six weeks later. After one week at number one, it is pushed back to number two for two weeks by The Beatles “We Can Work It Out”, then regaining the top spot for one more week on January 22, 1966. The song is also prominently featured in Mike Nichols film “The Graduate” in 1967, along with several other Simon & Garfunkel songs. The single is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 2004. In 1980, the band Rush make a sly reference to “Sounds” in their song “The Spirit Of Radio” with the lyric, “For the words of the profits were written on the studio wall, concert hall, and echoes with the sounds of salesmen”. “The Sounds Of Silence” is certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
So from yesterday's posting over at Behind The Grooves, Jeff Harris' wonderful blog (if a tad America-centric) comes this. . . . Now I didn't buy this when it came out but I think my brother did and through the folk club circuit we realised 'Homeward Bound' was written whilst sat on Widnes railway station (there was even a plaque!) and while Steve my brother found this exciting it made me angry If ever there was a claim to fame for a place, it is written in a song where someone wishes they are almost anywhere else. A working class suburb of Liverpool, we lived there when I was about 5 or six before moving down south but it holds a special place in my memory, tough uncompromising and grim in certain aspects, I have visions of the back garden greensward that looked like a Monet painting! (sic) That it wasn't anything like that is now a given and that Simon sat on the little railway station in the urban sprawl outside Liverpool wishing he was on his way home rather than a solo tour of the folk clubs of Britain haunts me still . . . . . the rest of the album was mesmerising and astonishing vocally, listen to 'Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme' and wonder at the purity of the voices . . . . .
On this day in music history: October 10, 1966 - “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme”, the third album by Simon & Garfunkel is released. Produced by Bob Johnston, it is recorded at Columbia Studios in New York City from December 1965 - August 1966. Their first full album since breaking through with the revamped and remixed version of “The Sound Of Silence” in late 1965, many of the songs are written while Paul Simon is traveling through the UK by himself in the Fall of 1965. Several are re-recorded by the duo (including “I Am A Rock” and “Patterns”, and later “Kathy’s Song”) after Simon records his solo project “The Paul Simon Songbook”, not released in the US until 1981 on the box set “Collected Works” and reissued again on CD in 2004. The album is proceeded by the single “Homeward Bound” (#5 Pop), also written during Simon’s trip to England in 1965. The full length is met with critical and commercial success upon its release, and is widely regarded as one of Simon & Garfunkel’s best albums. It yields several classics including “Scarborough Fair/Canticle” (#11 Pop) (released as a single belatedly in 1968 when it is featured in “The Graduate”), “The Dangling Conversation” (#25 Pop) and “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)”. The album is remastered and reissued on CD in 2001 with two bonus tracks. An exhaustive search through Sony Music’s archives is conducted for the original first generation master tapes, which had been misfiled and lost for years. The classic title is also reissued on vinyl by Sundazed Records in 2008. “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme” peaks at number four on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 3x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.
On this day in music history: February 28, 1970 - “Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Simon & Garfunkel hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 6 weeks. Written by Paul Simon, it is the biggest hit for the Queens, NY based folk rock duo. In mid 1969 Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel begin work on what becomes their final album. While Art Garfunkel is away working on his first film “Catch 22”, Simon and his then wife Peggy are living in Los Angeles. They rent the same house where George Harrison was inspired to write the song “Blue Jay Way” two years earlier. During the time they are living there, he writes “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on guitar, later being transcribed to piano by arranger Jimmie Haskell. The song is inspired in part by gospel singer Claude Jeter’s lyric “I’ll be your bridge over deep water if you trust in me”. Paul works with a group of studio musicians in L.A. that includes keyboardist Larry Knetchel, bassist Joe Osborn, drummer Hal Blaine and percussionist Gary Coleman. Simon initially writes the song with only two verses, but adds a third at the suggestion of Garfunkel and co-producer/engineer Roy Halee. Released on January 26, 1970, the single is an immediate smash. Entering the Hot 100 at #49 on February 7, 1970, it rockets to the top of the chart only three weeks later. The single wins two Grammy Awards including Record and Song Of The Year in 1971. An iconic song of the era, “Bridge” is covered numerous times over the years, including versions by Aretha Franklin (#1 R&B in 1971), Elvis Presley, Linda Clifford, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson to name a few. In spite of its message of friendship and support in difficult times, it ironically marks beginning of the end of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel’s musical partnership, as the duo split in 1971. The single release is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 1998. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” is certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
On this day in music history: October 10, 1966 - “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme”, the third album by Simon & Garfunkel is released. Produced by Bob Johnston, it is recorded at Columbia Studios in New York City from December 1965 - August 1966. Their first full album since breaking through with the revamped and remixed version of “The Sound Of Silence” in late 1965, many of the songs are written while Paul Simon is traveling through the UK by himself in the Fall of 1965. Several are re-recorded by the duo (including “I Am A Rock” and “Patterns”, and later “Kathy’s Song”) after Simon records his solo project “The Paul Simon Songbook”, not released in the US until 1981 on the box set “Collected Works” and reissued again on CD in 2004. The album is proceeded by the single “Homeward Bound” (#5 Pop), also written during Simon’s trip to England in 1965. The full length is met with critical and commercial success upon its release, and is widely regarded as one of Simon & Garfunkel’s best albums. It yields several classics including “Scarborough Fair/Canticle” (#11 Pop) (released as a single belatedly in 1968 when it is featured in “The Graduate”), “The Dangling Conversation” (#25 Pop) and “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)”. The album is remastered and reissued on CD in 2001 with two bonus tracks. An exhaustive search through Sony Music’s archives is conducted for the original first generation master tapes, which had been misfiled and lost for years. The classic title is also reissued on vinyl by Sundazed Records in 2008. “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme” peaks at number four on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 3x Platinum in the US by the RIAA. Agin bought this when it came out although maybe my brother and not me, I can't recall but this album had a profound affect upon me and not least when discovering later Simon had allegedly written the wonderful song 'Homeward Bound' at Widnes train station and this was an area I knew well as a youngster having been born on Merseyside . . . . . . .it was another track that really got us going and "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)"became an anthem at the time too
On this day in music history: March 21, 1969 - “The Boxer” by Simon & Garfunkel is released. Written by Paul Simon, it is the eleventh single release for the folk-rock duo from Queens, NY. 1968 is a landmark year for Simon & Garfunkel. After “The Graduate” soundtrack, “Bookends” and their second number one single “Mrs. Robinson”, their popularity is at an all time high. In the Fall, the duo begin work on their next album. The first session for “The Boxer” takes place at Columbia Records Nashville, TN studio on November 16, 1968. The song draws from a number of sources, with Simon writing about his early struggles as a musician, persevering in spite of loneliness and the inability to make a living at his craft. Also drawing inspiration from The Bible come the lyrics about asking for only “workman’s wages” and “seeking out the poorer quarters”. The final verse depicts a boxer taking relentless beatings, but keeping his fighting spirit. An extra verse written for the song is excised before the first session. The repeated refrain of “lie-la-lie” stands in place of a final lyric that Simon simply leaves it as it is. Cutting the basic track, engineer Roy Halee records Paul playing a Martin D-18 and Fred Carter, Jr. on a 000-18 Martin, miking the musicians from multiple angles, capturing the unique sonics of the instruments and the room itself. Charlie McCoy plays bass harmonica on the track, and Curly Chalker on pedal steel guitar. Work continues at St. Paul’s Chapel at Columbia University (vocals), and Columbia’s East 52nd Street studio in New York City. Drummer Hal Blaine plays the signature “thunder clap” effect, achieved by hitting his snare, and recording the sound echoing down a hallway into an empty elevator shaft. Cut before CBS acquires their first sixteen track tape machine, the strings are recorded on a separate eight track machine. This proves to be nightmarish when it comes time to mix, with Halee “flying in” the strings eight bars at a time, then splicing the pieces together so they are in sync with the rest of the track. In all, more than one hundred hours are spent on the song before it’s completed. During the same period, the track “Baby Driver” is also recorded. Both songs are the first taste of Simon & Garfunkel’s fifth and final studio album “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. The epic five minute plus single quickly becomes a hit, after hitting the airwaves in mid-March of 1969. Entering the Hot 100 at #51 on April 19, 1969, “The Boxer” peaks at #7 on the Hot 100 on May 17, 1969. With Art Garfunkel off making his acting debut in the film “Catch-22”, another seven months go by before the duo finish recording the “Bridge Over Troubled Water” album, which is released in late January of 1970. Over the years, “The Boxer” has become one of S&G’s most enduring, popular and frequently covered songs, with versions by Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris, Neil Diamond, Bruce Hornsby and Mumford & Sons.
As near to perfect as it is possible to get IMHO this is amongst the most haunting of Simon And Garfunkel songs and a perennial favourite
