Simon & Garfunkel: In the Beginning...

You might not realize that Simon & Garfunkel broke up after their first album. Their debut was called Wednesday Morning, 3 A. M.  It was tricky getting a suitable cover shot for the record because so many expletives had been written on the subway walls that most of the photos couldn’t be used.  But while their gentle folk singing was well-executed, the album had the misfortune of coming out when the British Invasion was underway.  Simon & Garfunkel’s sweet little debut…sank like a stone after selling only 3,000 copies.

In light of the record’s failure, Paul Simon gave up on the duo and left for England to start a solo career. Art Garfunkel chose to go back to college to finish his degree. They were done working together.

But a smattering of college radio stations started playing a particular song from that debut record, and Simon & Garfunkel’s producer, Tom Wilson, took notice. Tom had produced Bob Dylan’s first four albums and had guided him to electrify his sound. Tom also couldn’t miss the success The Byrds were having playing Dylan’s songs on electric guitars. So he took that song that was getting attention on college radio and overlayed a rock band on the original recording of just voices and acoustic guitars. And the song, “The Sound of Silence,” became a #1 hit.

That success convinced Paul and Art that they just might have a future together, and the duo of Simon & Garfunkel reunited, not as folk singers, but as one of the pioneers of folk rock.