“I suppose an artist takes the
elements of his life and rearranges them and then has them perceived by others
as though they were the elements of their lives.” – Paul Simon
This
year Simon added the latest in a long list of honors and awards to his resume’
when he was named by Rolling Stone
Magazine as one of the 100 greatest musicians who ever lived. That came on the heels of being named one of
the 100 greatest songwriters and as the first recipient of the Library of
Congress’s Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
But,
of course, those awards pale in comparison to Time Magazine’s naming him one of the “100 People Who Shaped The
World.” Not too bad for the son of
immigrant parents who grew up playing stickball in the New York streets. While most people believe he started his musical
career in the early 1960s, his musical life really began in 1952 at age 11 when
he and neighbor Art Garfunkel first performed together. By age 12 they had “a neighborhood hit” with
his song “The Girl for Me” (perhaps the only song by an 11-year-old enshrined
in the Library of Congress).
That
led to hundreds of songs – among them multiple Grammy Award winners and mega-hits
like “Sounds of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson,” “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary &
Thyme,” “Homeward Bound,” and, of course, “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” He
also wrote a number of hit songs for other artists, like “Red Rubber Ball” for
the Cyrcle and “Someday One Day” for The Seekers.
To
pick just a couple Simon songs would be like trying to select two from a
sweeping display case of the world’s best candies. So, here are links to two – one with Garfunkel and one
from his solo years – as tasty “starter” treats – “My Little
Town;” and “Still Crazy After All These Years.” Enjoy.
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