Bridge Over Troubled Water | Our Top 20 NYC Albums

I did not know what to expect when I clicked that play button. To me, it was just another assignment to complete but soon enough, that very assignment turned into an experience. Listening closely to the voices of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel for the first time immediately captivated me into an emotional trance. I was taken aback by the beauty and power of music made long before I was born. How could I have ignored such a timeless gem for so long? I owed it to myself- no, owed it to them- to give the duo the proper recognition they deserved. One song after another, Paul Simon’s lyrics garnered my concentration and deepened my musical taste. I have never experienced such simple, catchy music with a lyrical depth confronting complex and serious issues. Any of Simon’s songs could either be listened to in leisure or with purpose and with such versatile music like this, it was no surprise that the musician rose from a national phenomenon into a global superstar.

I am only one among millions of people worldwide who are still transfixed by Paul Simon’s poetic compositions that reflects his signature dense and subtle style of intellectual music. This is mainly due to how Simon’s musical poetry is capable of transcending generations as timeless music relatable to anyone no matter the time period or geography. If today’s world is still captivated by the seventy-four year-old’s music, society in the 70s, during the peak of the duo’s career, was absolutely beguiled by their performances. Simon managed to capture the essence of New York City society during that time and used it in his works to reflect his life and culture. The landscape of songwriting was introduced to a fresh new style with Simon’s lyrics portraying the solitude and isolation of an outcast in New York City. This very music was responsible for bringing him to new international heights

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Within Simon’s arsenal was his flexibility towards adapting to other genres and styles of music. It would surely be an insult if one were to simply call the musician a folk rock singer as Simon proved otherwise time and time again of his versatility through his songs such as his titular hit “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. When listening to it for the first time, there is a sense of an uplifting beat that gradually grows to reach a climatic finish. A Catholic vibe rings through this gospel-inspired music as well. This was because Simon was partly inspired by the Swan SIlverstones, an America gospel music group. This very song became their signature hit of the album, praised for its spiritual essence that was captured by the piano’s melody and Simon’s harmonious lyrics. It was his first among many departures from the labeling folk art genre and ventures into new and different musical tastes (Rock Hall)

Another song that quickly rose to be just as popular, if not more so, was the first song on the second side of their album “The Boxer”. This was another homage and portrayal of New York City life in the sixties that the duo was already so accustomed to. A variety of different instruments were pitched and played in the song such as guitars, harmonicas, flutes and tubas (Janovitz). This combination of instruments collided to create a synchronized, powerful tale of a “classical New York Story of a small-town boy beaten down by the big city” (Village Voice). Important to note, the song was never recorded in one place as the duo endured a long, grueling, over 100 hours of production in several places from Nashville, Tennessee, to their home base in Columbia Records as well as Columbia University (Village Voice).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMrYvFTfIGI

The remaining songs on side two complete the album’s list. Known for its happy tunes and up-tempo beat (Bennighof 47), “Baby Driver” draws inspiration from the Beach-Boys like style and consists of pseudo words. “The Only Living Boy in New York” is another recalling to the city life and features the audio-visual effects “with its mix of strumming acoustic guitars, start-and-drop drums, and a far-off wall of harmonies”. Garfunkel recalls how the “aahs” recorded in the song came from them screaming in an echo chamber and having their voices lowered to a soft pitch (Eliot 39). In “Why Don’t You Write Me”, Simon continues the trend of experimenting with different genres by using elements of reggae music to which he would continue to use for his solo career. The only song in the album that was not written by Simon was their cover for “Bye Bye Love” by the Everly brothers and featured the audio effects of having the audience’s clapping during a concert recorded. Their last number “Song for the Asking” was meant to portray an accord between the duo in the hopes of a prosperous future together. Unfortunately, this turned out not to be the case as tension within the duo were on the rise to tear them apart (Janovitz).The album went on to immediately receive universal praise and quickly hit the top spots for billboards across the United States and parts of Europe. The incorporation of multiple genres such as R & B, gospel and jazz became a critical cornerstone for the album’s success and the positive reviews that followed. The Times in 1993 awarded the album a number twenty spot on their official “The Vultures 100 Best Albums of All Time” (The Times), while Rolling Stone’s Peter Puterbaugh was astounded by the “reassurance and solidarity that Simon wrote as a vehicle for Garfunkel’s golden tenor” (Puterbaugh) and gave the album a perfect rating. To little surprise, the album won a wealth of awards from the prestigious Grammy’s such as Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Despite the critical receptions, it was the mainstream popularity that boosted the album to new heights. Simon and Garfunkel stood in stark contrast to the traditional, blaring rock that swept through the country at the time, making them stand out as a unique group known for their New York City soul music.

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One question might rise from the duo’s reliance on reflecting so much of New York City through their album and that is whether the duo appropriated the city’s culture. The textbook definition of appropriation is generally defined as taking something for one’s own use without the owner permission. To say that Simon and Garfunkel are stealing from their own city for the intentions of profit and fame would a be a rather vague accusation. The duo was born and raised in New York and, as such, became a part of the very society they were portraying through their music. It would be a challenge for them to produce music notinfluenced by New York City than anything else of their own tastes. Rather than appropriation, this album stands as homage and appreciation to their home city. Just like how other New Yorkers want to show appreciation for their city, Simon and Garfunkel mean to do the very same through their own craft. The duo’s love for the city was proven countless times such as their significant 1981 concert within Central Park where they played to over a half a million New Yorkers. Their dedication to their birthplace brought New York together like a “big city suddenly sitting down on the grass” (Giodarno). If anything, Simon’s work could be described as a form of spatial appropriation with the City’s permission. When viewing appropriation from this, less negative standpoint, Simon was simply becoming a product of the mood and atmosphere of the cultural and physical space that he occupied while producing the album. The very same isolation and solitude Simon channeled through his album would continue when the duo split one last time after the album’s release.

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