Sounds Of Silence

Their sometimes rocky relationship led to their last album, Bridge Over Troubled Water, being delayed several times due to artistic disagreements.  Bridge over Troubled Water was at last released on January 26, 1970.  Its title track, featuring Garfunkel's soaring vocals, was a massive hit and one of the best-selling records of the decade, staying No. 1 on the charts for six weeks and remaining on the charts for far longer.  At the 1971 Grammy Awards, the album and single were named Album of the Year and Record Of The Year, respectively.  They also won awards for Best Engineered Record, Best Contemporary Song, Song Of The Year, and Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists. In 1970 they went their separate ways with Art Garfunkel spliting his time between acting and recording solo and collaboration albums, to mixed reviews.  Garfunkel appeared in two Mike Nichols films: Catch-22 (1970), in which he played a supporting role as the 19-year old naive Lieutenant Nately, and Carnal Knowledge (1971), a co-starring role in which he played the idealistic character Sandy.  His role as Sandy won him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 1972.

Paul Simon continued writing and went on to a very successful solo music career, recording several classic albums, including There Goes Rhymin' Simon, Still Crazy After All These Years, and his most highly celebrated solo album, Graceland, collaborating with the Zulu choir Ladysmith Black Mambazo, among others. Paul Simon has earned 12 Grammys for his solo and collaborative work, including the Lifetime Achievement Award.  In 2001, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in 2006 was selected as one of the 100 People Who Shaped the World  by Time magazine.  Among many other honors, Simon was the first recipient of the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in 2007.  In 1986, Simon was awarded a Honorary Doctor of Music Degree from Berklee College of Music, where he currently serves on the Board of Trustees.

Simon & Garfunkel have, at times, reunited to perform and sometimes tour together.  They have done so in every decade since the 1970 breakup, most famously for 1981's The Concert in Central Park, which attracted more than 500,000 people, making it the 7th-most attended concert in the history of music.  In 2004, they were ranked No. 40 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.

And the people bowed and prayed to the neon god they made. And the sign flashed out its warning, in the words that it was forming. And the signs said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls. And whisper'd in the sounds of silence.

Wanderin' Spirit
December, 2013
"Sounds Of Silence"

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