The song that found Simon and Garfunkel sharing an “identical soul”
We often forget about the magnitude of Simon and Garfunkel. This is always an unwanted curse that plagues bands who have messy breakups. When you look at the work of outfits like Pink Floyd and Fleetwood Mac, while we still constantly think of their excellent music, our minds also drift towards the fallout, what happened, what could have stopped it from happening and if reconciliation will ever be possible.
Before the fallout and before Simon and Garfunkel pursued their respective solo careers, the duo were an unstoppable force of nature. They released some of the most moving and exciting music ever made while also performing gigs to huge crowds. It’s often forgotten just how big the demand for the duo was, but their stamp on music was prominent and can still be observed today.
Paul Simon was always well aware of how big their influence was. When he was discussing the magnitude of their place in music, he admitted that he never bothered looking at bands like The Rolling Stones because he knew that he was bigger than them. “I never compare myself with The Rolling Stones,” he said, “I always was well aware of the fact that S & G was a much bigger phenomenon in general, to the general public than The Rolling Stones.”
Their stature was reflected in people who wanted to watch the band perform and album sales. For instance, they once managed to outsell Woodstock, as more fans went to watch their performance in Central Park than those who went to Woodstock. While that show may have hurt the band because of how rough the rehearsals were, it cemented their legacy as one of the greatest musical duos ever.
So, what did people love about Simon and Garfunkel? It can be boiled down to two overwhelming factors. The first is how good they were at songwriting, and the second is how well they played together and the beauty contained within their harmonisation. Both of these elements came together perfectly, and one of their tracks that highlights these factors most is ‘America’.
Released in 1968 on their album Bookends, ‘America’ contains a whole narrative about moving to the States and becoming part of the American dream. It only doesn’t rhyme, which blows many people’s minds, given that a rhyme scheme is often seen as 101 in a song; however, Simon and Garfunkel’s ability to create a compelling tune without rhyming shows how good their writing ability was.
“The entire song is prose,” said Gerry Beckley of America when discussing how much of a creative feat this track is, “There’s not one line that rhymes, and I will tell some of the best songwriters you’ve ever met that particular element, and you can see them stop and go through it in their head. We’re oblivious to that being an ingredient because we’re so involved in the story.”
The track also has plenty of great moments that highlight how good Simon and Garfunkel were at singing together. There is a very specific moment when they collectively sing, “And walked off to look for America,” where they sound more connected than ever. Simon didn’t seem too surprised at this, as he confirmed that, at that moment, the two of them had an identical soul.
“That has a real upright, earnest quality because we both have the identical soul at that moment,” he said, “We come from the identical place in our attitude, and the spine that’s holding us up, we are the same person. Same college kid, striking out.”
