University of Virginia Library

Simon, Garfunkel
Wait Worthwhile

By Bruce Heflin

Well, it has been nearly two
years since Simon and Garfunkel
released "Bookends." In that time,
there has been practically no word
from the pair, and one began to
wonder just what the hell they were
up to. And now comes "Bridge
Over Trouble Water," and all of the
questions and doubts are answered,
with the long wait turning out to
have been worthwhile after all.

The album comes on
unbelievably strong: nearly perfect
production, musical diversity, with
technical artistry in the instrumentalization
as well as the tantalizing
yet soothing vocalization that
is characteristic of the group's every
effort. "Bridge" is a further recording
of S&yG's continued musical
progression, and it is so increasingly
rare in today's psycho plastic, super hype
music scene to find a group
that actually gains dimension with
each offering.

Varied Range

Take any cut from the album
and you have got a strong piece of
music. From the hymn-like title
song to the simulated "live" recording
of "Bye Bye Love," the Everly
Brothers' rock classic, each song has
a distinctive influence, and Simon
and Garfunkel are right at home in
everyone. There is calypso bounce
in "Cecilia" and bossa nova softness
to "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright,"
and although it may fairly be said
that other individual performers
handle each separate style more
capably, one would be hard put to
find a group that can sound so
convincingly authentic in such a
varied range.

Gentle Offerings

Their two-sided hit single of
1969, "Baby Diver" and "The
Boxer" are included in the set and
need no explication. "Why Don't
You Write Me" and "Keep the
Customer Satisfied" represent
"folk-rock" at its best. My personal
favorites on the record are the three
more gentle offerings, "El Condor
Pasa," "The Only Living Boy in
New York," and "Song for the
Asking." The former is an eighteenth-century
Peruvian ballad, rearranged
with lyrics of Paul Simon's.
"Living Boy" is, simply, one of
S&G's finest songs. And "Song for
the Asking" more or less summarizes
the feel of the entire work,
"Ask me and I will Play/All the
love that I hold inside." The feeling
gained is one of warmth, and that
seems to be the point of the album:
good, warm vibes.

'Good Friend'

The record is entitled "Bridge
Over Troubled Water" and it serves
just such a function. The album
comes on like a good friend, open
yet with an appreciable complexity.
From the visual effect of the jacket
(note the picture on the back
cover) to the sound within, Simon
and Garfunkel offer an emotion provoking
work of artistry that is
easily one of the best albums to
come along in quite a while.