Paul Simon

This article is about the musician; for other Paul Simons, see Paul Simon (disambiguation).

Simon & Garfunkel

In early 1964, Simon and Garfunkel got an audition with Columbia Records, whose executives were impressed enough to sign the duo to a contract to produce an album. Columbia decided that the two would be called simply "Simon & Garfunkel," which, according to Simon, was the first time that ethnic names (both Simon and Garfunkel are of Jewish descent) were used in pop music .

Related Topics:
1964 - Columbia Records

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Simon & Garfunkel's first LP, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., released on 19 October 1964, consisted of a set of twelve songs in the folk vein, five of them written by Simon. The album initially flopped, but radio stations on the east coast of the USA began receiving requests for one of the songs on the LP that Simon wrote called "The Sound of Silence". Simon & Garfunkel's producer, Tom Wilson, overdubbed the track with electric guitar, bass, and drums, and released it as a single that eventually went to #1 on the pop charts in the United States. Simon had gone to England after the initial failure of Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., and there had pursued a solo career, releasing the album The Paul Simon Song Book in the United Kingdom in 1965, but he returned to the USA to reunite with Garfunkel after "The Sound of Silence" began to enjoy commercial success. Together they recorded several influential albums, including 1966's Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme, and Bridge Over Troubled Water (1970). Simon and Garfunkel also contributed extensively to the soundtrack of the 1967 film The Graduate (starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft). They recorded an early version of "Mrs. Robinson" specifically for the film; other songs by the duo were also used in the film.

Related Topics:
Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. - 19 October - 1964 - The Sound of Silence - United States - England - The Paul Simon Song Book - United Kingdom - 1965 - USA - 1966 - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme - Bridge Over Troubled Water - 1970 - 1967 - The Graduate - Dustin Hoffman - Anne Bancroft

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Simon pursued solo projects after the duo released their very popular album Bridge Over Troubled Water. Occasionally, he and Art Garfunkel would reunite, such as in 1975 for their Top Ten single, "My Little Town". In 1981, they reunited for the famous concert in Central Park. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.

Related Topics:
Art Garfunkel - 1975 - 1981 - Concert in Central Park

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In 2003, he reunited, again, with Garfunkel when Simon and Garfunkel received Grammy's lifetime achievement award. This reunion led to the U.S. tour, the acclaimed "Old Friends" Concert series, followed by a 2004 international encore, which culminated in a free concert at the Roman Coliseum. That final concert drew 600,000 people--100,000 more than attended Paul McCartney's concert at the same venue, one year earlier.

Related Topics:
2003 - 2004 - Paul McCartney

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