Troubled Waters

Today I was listening to 'Keep the Customer Satisfied' a lot during work. It kept me going and I felt understood(?)

During my search for the lyrics google suggested I should take a look at the meaning of the lyrics as well, so I did. I read a few interpretations, some serious, some somewhat less serious, one read: "It's probably about anal sex. Most songs are." There was one comment I found interesting and made me think. A part of the comment was: "...By the end, Paul Simon was chafing under the expectations to keep turning out the "Simon & Garfunkel" works people had come to expect ..."

Then it hit me: Paul is basically screaming on the album 'Bridge Over Troubled Water" that he wants out, and ironically everybody LOVED it....till they realised what was said and it was happening...

....

...Obviously, I mean the split of Simon & Garfunkel...right....?

Simo...Si..S...Simon'ed?

The post "Garfunkeled".

That's not to say I don't like Paul's voice, because I really do. It's just that "Being Simon'ed" doesn't work and all the things I said about Artie's voice are just simply not true for Paul's voice.
However, his voice has a sweetness and a boy-next-door kind of quality which I like; you can easily relate to it. And of course, in the end, the signature Simon & Garfunkel sound was these two voices in sweet dissonance and from what I understood Roy Halee's magicianship.

According to the site I found this on: A gentle, surprised ginea pig

I don't know what I'm saying. Why don't you go read a good book (Artie's got a list for you) or listen some good music. I've got just the artists for you.

Source of the picture: http://www.milkandbreadvintage.com/2012/12/young-paul-simon-old-paul-simon.html

Garfunkeled

Did I listen in a different way?


It only happened this last week and it only hit me yesterday: “I’ve been Garfunkeled.”

Paul sang it in one of his early songs, a Simple Desultory Philippic, he got Garfunkeled. I’m sure he meant something else than what I’m trying to say here. I’m sure he was talking about the effect and influence Artie had on his life, whereas I’m talking about how his voice drew me in and attracts me to listen to songs over and over again. Though I’m sure Paul got Garfunkeled in the truest sense of the word too.

I was wondering if I was listening in a different way, because it happened only this week. This week I’ve been listening to ‘Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall” on a loop, because I love the harmonies and Artie’s voice when he sings ‘Soooo I’ll continue to continue…” His voice was also the reason I put ‘For Emily Whenever I May Find Her’ in the playlist, and his voice is the greatest ingredient that makes the Simon & Garfunkel sound. His voice is so unique, so recognizable, so etherical; it really does sound as if it comes straight from heaven. It gives the more upbeat and darker stuff of Paul a strange edge.

No matter how much I hate writing this down, Artie’s voice really was something else, something really good and attractive.

You might wonder why I hate to write it down. You might not. It won’t stop me from explaining. I hate to write that down, because I believe Mr. Garfunkel needs no more lift up into the heavens; his wings might melt.

Anyway, that is what I mean with being ‘Garfunkeled’.

Have you been Garfunkeled yet?

Song for the Asking...

Of course after a day or two of bitching about both Simon and Garfunkel, about how unpleasant and personally undeveloped they are, I find articles and interviews in which they’re both all considerate, charming and they’re basically behaving like angels.


Last Tuesday I received the special edition of the album Bridge Over Troubled Water due to its 40th anniversary a couple of years ago. In that special edition is also a DVD with two interesting lengthy things on it: 1) Songs of America and 2) The Harmony Game – the Making of Bridge Over Troubled Water. Both give a rare and close insight into the Simon & Garfunkel carousel around the time of the making of the above said album. Both gave me a fuzzy (happy) feeling.

And of course the music.

For the last few weeks (8 of them?), every other day, I’ve been adding songs to my “Simon & Garfunkel” playlist on my phone. Every other week I managed to get obsessed over another song. I’m keeping track to: First two weeks: Sound of Silence. Weeks 3 to 7: Cecilia slowly trailing off. Weeks…now: Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall, might already be changing into “Keep the Customer Satisfied”. This is a new kind of obsession I’ve never had before. Interesting. No, wait, that’s another lie.

All colours of Simon & Garfunkel are available to me. It ranges from the nasty to the heavenly sweet to the mild indifference. From the extraordinary affectionate to a mild hate and deep disappointment. From outrageously joyful to an intense sadness and everything inbetween. And with me being obsessed and rather sensitive to these moodswings, it’s a rollercoasterride that’s taking me to highs and lows. I swing from being very happy to being very angry. That’s what they’re doing to me right now.

Fine…I’ll deal with it.

Definately not "Tours"...

In an earlier post I wondered if there was a tab "Tours" on the Simon & Garfunkel website. I was obviously wrong: "No, they do not have a tab "Tours" on their website. It's just the one "Tour"." However, they also seem dubious about it, or optimistic?

...and Flowers never bend in the rainfall....

For my mind is in a state of new obsession, I’m blogging surprisingly little. I had some ideas for posts, but most have left me already. Evaporated! …Poof…!


There are a lot of things I can say about either Paul Simon, or Art Garfunkel, or both at the same time, or maybe even a combination of neither. I don’t really want to. Whatever I have to say, or have an opinion on, has been said many times, in many different ways, by many different people. I don’t feel any need to add to that pile of 50 odd years of opinions on Simon & Garfunkel, or just Garfunkel, or Simon, or neither. I’ve got nothing, or I’ve got nothing new. Case in point, this piece of text.

I can say something about the people opining about said gentleman, be it together, separately or apart. It’s been an interesting introduction in what is generally accepted as classic popular music. I can say: “All people learning about my new obsession with Simon & Garfunkel have reacted in the same way”. I can, because it’s true. Of course I also could if it wasn’t true, but then, my dear readers, it would be a lie. However, that is exactly what happened; they all said, without exception: “Oh Simon & Garfunkel, that’s good music.” Not necessarily in these exact words, but let’s not dwell on that.

They also, almost all of them, later on reacted, after I went on a bit, like this: “They’re not that good.” Actually, that really is a lie; only one person reacted like that. Another person simply explained he thought some of their stuff was a little too sweet, and another was impressed with my endurance in my obsession. Other than that, I’ve been mainly keeping it to myself.

They’re interesting to watch. It’s interesting to listen to them, and that’s not (though mainly) their music, it’s also their talk. When it comes to musicianship and music, they say a lot of sensible things and can get rather passionate and lengthy about it. When it comes to emotions, they either don’t know or spout a lot of bullshit.

I noticed I have trouble staying nice when it comes to S&G. It’s so easy to get nasty about them. It’s something about them that pisses me off. On the other hand, I’m still thoroughly enjoying their music. It’s that irony that keeps hitting me, the messages in the songs versus the way they live their lives. Other people noticed it too. Quite a few times I saw the comment: “Can’t they build a bridge over troubled water?” to do something about that “..sound of silence…” between them? Well, anyway…

What I really wanted to say is that I don’t remember hearing their music for the first time. Their existence and music seems a fact of life; something you automatically learn. I mean, at some point you learn to talk, you learn to walk and you learn that Simon & Garfunkel do harmonies.

Tours!?

Seriously!? They have a tab ‘Tours’!?!?