Ticket 2 Ride

For some reason, I think of Simon & Garfunkel during the holidays. It’s not a Christmas things, just a memory of listening to their music on cold winter nights, trading guitar chords with a friend and trying to be a songwriting duo.

First, 12 of my favorite Simon & Garfunkel songs. Picking 12 is tough because there are lot more than a dozen favorites. These are not ranked. Here goes:

Simon & Garfunkel

“April Comes She Will” – From Sounds of Silence, a quietly beautiful, lilting ballad, sung by Garfunkel. A mature and poignant song of the cycle of love.

“The Boxer” – A thunderous song from Bridge Over Troubled Water. Great vocal work. The song goes from gentle to powerful and back again.

“Mrs. Robinson” – From The Graduate and included on Book Ends. Joe DiMaggio never liked this song.

“Old Friends” – Another Book Ends selection. Poignant, delicate and sentimental, great string section accompaniment. As I’m older, I really get this song.

“The Only Living Boy in New York” – Also from Bridge Over Troubled Water, wonderful vocals. The arrangements on this song are brilliant and soaring.

“Frank Lloyd Wright” – Garfunkel takes the lead, his voice like velvet. From Bridge Over Troubled Waters.

“For Emily, Wherever I May Find Her” – From Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, Garfunkel sings this song. Another example of Simon’s talent for evocative imagery and Garfunkel’s ethereal voice.

“Kathy’s Song” – For his British girlfriend, Simon wrote this evocative and personal song.

“I Am a Rock” – From Sounds of Silence. A song that finally became a hit, it was an acoustic song before being electrified with band instruments and it really sails. The lyrics are about emotional isolation from the world, which as just an acoustic song resonates with more of a bitter feeling.

“The Sound of Silence” – A powerful folk ballad that was rearranged as an electric pop song and became a huge hit. Vivid, esoteric lyrics for a decade undergoing tremendous social change. This version was on Sounds of Silence.

“Scarborough Fair/Canticle” – From Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme. A popular song for choral groups, we sang this in school. Adapted from a traditional folk song, the vocal harmonies made this a crossover hit. Beautiful imagery.

“America” – The search for America was both literal and figurative in the 1960s. From Book Ends, the song infers an America that exists more in our minds than what we actually find. The song structure and arrangement is quite impressive.

“At the Zoo” – From Book Ends, this song is frequently overlooked. Bouncy and fun, the arrangement carries the sound through various tempo changes with the silly, inventive lyrics. An underrated gem.

*Surprise! It’s a baker’s dozen!

Paul Simon

This list is harder because I’m not a big Paul Simon solo fan. I like his early albums best and I’ll overlook later songs that many people like.

“Kodachrome” – Rocking, nostalgic song that recalls how we look back on our memories. Top ten song. From the album, There Goes Rhymin’ Simon.

“Duncan” – From Paul Simon, one of Simon’s most interesting songs. The lyrics tell of a wondering young man in search of himself. The music incorporates flutes and the charango, by the group Los Incas, who give the song a melancholy tone.

“50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” – From Still Crazy After All These Years. Perhaps inspired by his divorce, this was Simon’s number one hit. The song includes an inventive drum beat, something Simon could often utilize as he pursued World Music rhythms.

“Mother and Child Reunion” – From Paul Simon, this was a top five song. Reggae inspired song, it didn’t sound like anything else on the radio.

“You Can Call Me Al” – Rocking, autobiographical song. From Graceland, but really unlike the other songs on the album. Most remember the video of Simon and Chevy Chase.

“Loves Me Like a Rock” – Also from album, There Goes Rhymin’ Simon, this song climbed to number two. Very soulful.

“Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard” – From Paul Simon. Again, Simon experiments with a unique percussion sound which gives it a different sounding groove, along with the rhythmic acoustic guitars.

“Graceland” – From the album of the same name. Grammy winning Record of the Year.

“Still Crazy After All These Years” – From the album of the same name. A complex, ballad of soulful nostalgic memories. Simon uses the famous Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.

“My Little Town” – Featuring Garfunkel and James Taylor, released by all three.

“American Tune” – From There Goes Rhymin’ Simon. A song that didn’t chart very high, but it’s an important and lasting song. A song that evokes an undercurrent of weariness and battering, but still standing.

“Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” – Includes the South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Upbeat, inspiring song, from Graceland.

Art Garfunkel

To be honest, I’m a bigger fan of Garfunkel’s solo work than of Simon. It’s the voice and his ability to find songs that match his extraordinary talent. Another baker’s dozen.

“All I Know” – Written by Jimmy Webb, from Garfunkel’s debut album Angel Clare. A top ten hit. Melodic and grand, the song is a classic.

“In a Little While (I’ll Be on My Way)” – From Fate for Breakfast. This song has its moments, and it shines through too much gloss and reverb.

“99 Miles From L.A.” – Also from Breakaway. A haunting song, with a cool jazzy groove.

“Looking for the Right One” – Written by Stephen Bishop and included on Break Away. It takes awhile for this song to really cook, but it soars.

“Disney Girls” – Also from Breakaway. Written by Beach Boy Bruce Johnston, this is a superior version to the Beach Boys’ effort. Nostalgic and sentimental, it’s a beautiful song.

“Shine it on Me” – From Watermark, just another terrific song. Garfunkel goes from soft and lilting to big and soaring.

“Traveling Boy” – Written by Paul Williams and Roger Nichols, this song has an epic arrangement. Aching and cinematic, how could it not be a hit? It wasn’t, but still by favorite Garfunkel tune. Also from Angel Clare.

“Scissors Cut” – The title cut from the album. One of Garfunkel’s best performances; an aching song of fractured love.

“Crying in My Sleep” – Also from Watermark, this Webb song was destined to be a hit, but is wasn’t. The grandest song on the album, it should have been a hit.

“I Only Have Eyes for You” – Written in 1934 by Harry Warren and Al Dubin, Garfunkel’s vocals are the best of any version, but the recording is a little overproduced by Richard Perry.

“Watermark” – Another Webb composition, from the album of the same name. Poignant and gentle, Garfunkel’s voice lovingly caresses this ballad.

“Long Way Home” – An unreleased track, included on the 2012 album The Singer. Recorded during the Everything Waits to be Noticed sessions. Unlike anything he’s ever recorded. One might think Peter Gabriel penned this song. Fascinating.

“Mr. Shuck’n Jive” – From Watermark, and written by Jimmy Webb. Soulful and nostalgic, Garfunkel’s voice shines. Songs like this really suit his ability to ride a winsome melody.