Paul Simon believes Bob Dylan didn’t do his song justice: ‘I certainly didn’t like his version as much’
Of all the 1960s’ biggest American acts, Simon and Garfunkel remained a steady presence on the Billboard charts while largely eschewing the countercultural trends of the day.
Shaped by the folk revivalism early in the decade, S&G soared through the years with a string of stirring and wide-eyed numbers teeming with gospel energy, afforded extra elegiac energy from Art Garfunkel’s immaculate vocals. Untouched by psychedelia, S&G seemed to chart a course away from the roots rock counter to the era’s pop lysergia and close the 1960s with their most dramatic and evocative offering yet.
Released ten months ahead of 1970’s Bridge over Troubled Water, ‘The Boxer’ saw Paul Simon pour biblical musings and the analogy of a seasoned boxer holding out in life’s ring as a vehicle to protect himself from the critical slings and arrows he perceived to have withtook at the time. Melding a unique balance of folk rock and thunderous, orchestral seizure—complete with one of the most famous reverb snares in music—’The Boxer’ would endure as one of S&G’s most loved works.
One such fan was Bob Dylan. Having branched out of his Greenwich Village days as one of the era’s most celebrated songsmiths, Dylan presaged the roots rock wave by dropping a string of blues and country-indebted albums right at the West Coast hippy peak. This rustic musical trend would continue into 1970’s Self Portrait, a wieldy double album packed with live cuts and cover songs, met with critical bewilderment upon its release.
Among takes on Gordon Lightfoot, Cecil A Null, and The Everly Brothers, Dylan takes an affectionate stab at ‘The Boxer’. Dialling down the original’s pomp, Dylan offers a breezy but sincere rendition that dwells in the ramshackle spirit of his roots phase, affording Simon’s lyrics the clarity to carry the song some distance.
It must’ve been a surprise. Only a few years earlier, Simon and Dylan had a petty spat after an infamous show in New York’s Gerde’s Folk City. Displeased with ‘A Simple Desultory Philippic (or How I Was Robert McNamara’d into Submission)’, the satirical lampoon of Dylan’s dense songwriting style, the latter tipped up to the show and reportedly snickered throughout S&G’s hushed set, triggering a frosty glare from Simon.
Simon expressed a diffidence regarding the cover. “I certainly didn’t like his version of ‘The Boxer’ nearly as much as I like the Simon and Garfunkel version,” Simon candidly revealed to Rolling Stone in 1972. “I think that’s one of the best things that we ever did, although I thought the fade-out ending was too long. Aside from that, I like the song a lot, and I like our record of it. Aside from the fact, I was flattered to have Bob Dylan sing one of my songs”.
Despite his critical wobble, Dylan was still a lauded titan of popular music in 1970, and there’s surely no greater gesture from any artist than a cover of one of your works. Bygones became bygones, Simon and Dylan taking to the stage together for the US Summer of 1999 tour, and memorably playing ‘The Sound of Silence’ together.
Never Miss A Tale
The Far Out Bob Dylan Newsletter
All the latest stories about Bob Dylan from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.