Simon and Garfunkel - Old Friends
Simon and Garfunkel were responsible
for some of the most interesting and influential music of the 1960s, and are still cited amongst musicians as inspirations until this day. The duo was made up of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, who became friends in high school and become writing and performing together. They had an early hit, released under another moniker (Tom & Jerry), which was very much a teen-pop sort of tune, but by the early '60s, they had become interested in folk music, along with much of the US. Unfortunately, their single The Sound of Silence didn't do well initially, but after being spruced up with a rock arrangement, it became a number 1 hit, propelling the friends to fame.
Listen to Old Friends by Simon and Garfunkel here.
This song is from the duo's
1968 album, Bookends. The album's title is a reference to a line in this track, which tells the story of two 'old friends', sitting together in silence, enjoying one another's company, and remembering old times. The tune is beautiful, and shows how much Simon was evolving as a songwriter. Though the basic chords used are all diatonic to the key, his ear for more complex sounds was growing, incorporating more 7ths and extended chords, along with adding more complex rhythmic structures to his progressions. Simon was constantly pushing him to learn more about music theory and practice technique, and with each release became a more impressive player and writer.
