Simon and Garfunkel is composed of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. Paul Frederic Simon was born October 13, 1941
in Newark, New Jersey. Arthur Ira Garfunkel was born November 5, 1941 in Forest Hills, New York.
As the story goes, Paul's family moved to Forest Hills, Queens soon after he was born. Their house was three blocks away from Art's home. They both attended Public School 164, where they were familiar with each other, but it wasn't until sixth grade when they were in "Alice in Wonderland" together that they got close.
Paul heard Art singing "They Tried To Tell Us We're Too Young" at school. By the time they were 13, inspired by the Bronx duo of Robert & Johnny, and their hit "(You're Mine And) We Belong Together", they debuted at a school assembly with an a capella version of "Sh-Boom". Soon after they were singing in a street corner
doo-wop group called The Sparks, along with three other neighborhood kids. They later changed their name to The Pep-Tones, and then disbanded. They were also regularly performing at school concerts and dances. The first song they wrote was called "The Girl For Me" which they copyrighted for $5 at The Library Of Congress in 1955.
Simon and Garfunkel recorded between 1964 and 1970. Their wonderful harmonies and acoustic concerts stood in stark contrast to the rest of the spectacle that marked rock acts of the '60s. They originally gained attention as a
folk act (and some record stores continue to file their records under 'folk'), but it was Simon's songs, which frequently dealt with alienation and loneliness that seemed to strike a chord with an entire generation. By the time of the split, they were the most successful duo
in pop music history.
Since then, Simon has gone onto even greater popularity.
Also, unlike many songwriters of his era, his work has steadily gotten better and remained true to his age group, although few artists have enjoyed the cross-cultural and cross-generational acceptance that he has.
Garfunkel's solo career has also been very successful. He has recorded ten albums of material showing his tenor voice to its best advantage, appeared in five films and released a book of poetry.
Discography:
(albums in Italics, singles in quotations)
- 1964
-
Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.
- 1965
-
"The Sounds of Silence"
- 1966
-
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme
- 1967
-
Simon and Garfunkel (old Tom & Jerry recordings)
- 1968
-
The Graduate Soundtrack: "Mrs. Robinson"
Bookends
- 1969
-
"The Boxer"
- 1970
-
Bridge Over Troubled Water
- 1982
-
Concert in Central Park
sources: my knowledge, my CD Collection, World Book, and weird random facts from my brother, who is a freak