Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Simon & Garfunkel Concert Albums



1. Live from New York City, 1967

2. Live 1969

3. The Concert in Central Park (1981)

4. Old Friends: Live on Stage (2004)

Most of the following information is from Wikipedia:

1st Live from New York City, 1967 Live from New York City, 1967 is an album by Simon and Garfunkel, recorded at Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City, on 22 January 1967. The album was released on the Columbia Legacy on 16 July 2002.

The performance is noteworthy in that it is the first official live release by Simon and Garfunkel recorded in the 1960s. As it was recorded in 1967, before Simon and Garfunkel gained fame with the movie The Graduate, it features many of the duo's early hits and album tracks, such as "Leaves That Are Green", "He Was My Brother", and "For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her".

Four of the songs from this album were previously released on 1997's Old Friends box-set. However, one track from that set, "Red Rubber Ball," was not included in this release, thus leaving it somewhat incomplete.

Unlike their other official live albums, The Concert in Central Park and Old Friends: Live On Stage, this recording features Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel performing alone. As may be expected for a live performance from 1967 the sound is somewhat primitive by today's standards. Nevertheless it's important for the reasons set forth above.

Track listing
"He Was My Brother" –3:21
"Leaves That Are Green" –2:57
"Sparrow" –3:06
"Homeward Bound" –2:39
"You Don't Know Where Your Interest Lies" –2:06
"A Most Peculiar Man" –2:59
"The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" –1:49
"The Dangling Conversation" –3:01
"Richard Cory" –3:23
"A Hazy Shade Of Winter" –2:37
"Benedictus" (Traditional, arr. Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel –2:45
"Blessed" –3:45
"A Poem on the Underground Wall" –4:45
"Anji" (Davy Graham) –2:28
"I Am a Rock" –2:57
"The Sound of Silence" –3:25
"For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her" –2:40
"A Church Is Burning" –3:43
"Wednesday Morning, 3 A. M." –3:35

2nd Live 1969 Live 1969 is a live album by Simon & Garfunkel released through Columbia Records. It consists of recently discovered live recordings captured on the duo's final tour before the release of their Bridge over Troubled Water album. Live 1969 saw initial release as a Starbucks exclusive on March 25th 2008, preceding an expected full retail release the fall. A live album of Simon & Garfunkel at their best. Not as polished as a studio album but more personality. I saw then live a year earlier at a concert at the University of Oregon.

Track listing
"Homeward Bound" (Paul Simon)
"At the Zoo" (Paul Simon)
"59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" (Paul Simon)
"Song for the Asking" (Paul Simon)
"For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her" (Paul Simon)
"Scarborough Fair" (listed as "Scarborough Fair/Canticle", but does not contain the "Canticle" section) (Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel)
"Mrs. Robinson" (Paul Simon)
"The Boxer" (Paul Simon)
"Why Don't You Write Me" (Paul Simon)
"So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" (Paul Simon)
"That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine" (Jimmy Long, Gene Autry)
"Bridge over Troubled Water" (Paul Simon)
"The Sound of Silence" (Paul Simon)
"I Am a Rock" (Paul Simon)
"Old Friends/Bookends Theme" (Paul Simon)
"Leaves That Are Green" (Paul Simon)
"Kathy's Song" (Paul Simon)

3rd The Concert in Central Park (1981) The Concert in Central Park is a live album by Simon and Garfunkel. On September 19, 1981 the folk-rock duo reunited for a free concert on the Great Lawn of New York's Central Park attended by more than 500,000 people. They released a live album from the concert the following March

A video of the concert was also released. The video contains two songs that were omitted from the live album: "The Late Great Johnny Ace" and "Late in the Evening (Reprise)". The song about Johnny Ace had been disrupted by a fan rushing the stage. However, in the recent DVD release, the song has been omitted as well.

Our first concert album. Our family wore out two cassettes of this album as our children grew up. It was a family favorite on car trips.

Track listing

"Mrs. Robinson" – 3:52
"Homeward Bound" – 4:22
"America" – 4:47
"Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" – 3:22
"Scarborough Fair" (traditional, arr. Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel) – 3:52
"April Come She Will" – 2:37
"Wake Up Little Susie" (Felice and Boudleaux Bryant) – 2:19
"Still Crazy After All These Years" – 4:04
"American Tune" – 4:33
"Late in the Evening" – 4:09
"Slip Slidin' Away" – 4:54
"A Heart in New York" (Benny Gallagher, Graham Lyle) – 2:49
"Kodachrome/Maybellene" (Chuck Berry, Russ Fratto, Alan Freed) – 5:51
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" – 4:48
"Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover" – 4:23
"The Boxer" – 6:02
"Old Friends" – 2:57
"The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" – 2:01
"The Sound of Silence" – 4:13

4th Old Friends: Live on Stage (2004) Simon & Garfunkel's Old Friends Live On Stage is a live document from their highly successful "Old Friends" reunion concert tour of 2003, with The Everly Brothers as special guests. Both the CD and DVD were released in November 2004.

The CD and DVD were taken from a series of shows at New York's Madison Square Garden in early December 2003.

Both the DVD and the double CD set include a new studio song, "Citizen of the Planet", written by Paul Simon in the 1980s and recently completed with Art Garfunkel. The DVD contains two Simon and Garfunkel songs that were omitted from the double CD set: "Keep the Customer Satisfied" and "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)". There are also two additional songs performed by The Everly Brothers, which are not included on the CD. The DVD includes a series of clips from Simon and Garfunkel's rarely-seen 1969 TV Special, as part of its extra features.

My wife, son, sister and I went to their Portland concert at the Rose Garden on this concert tour . Our daughter saw this concert tour when they appeared in in Washington DC. The Everly Brothers were a nice addition.

The Complete Song List

Act 1"Opening Montage - America" (instrumental) (DVD only)
"Old Friends/Bookends"
"A Hazy Shade of Winter"
"I Am a Rock"
"America"
"At the Zoo"
"Baby Driver"
"Kathy's Song"
"Tom and Jerry Story"
"Hey, Schoolgirl"
"The Everly Brothers Intro"
"Wake Up Little Susie" (DVD only)
"All I Have To Do Is Dream" (DVD only)
"Bye Bye Love" (The Everly Brothers and Simon & Garfunkel)
"Scarborough Fair"
"Homeward Bound"
"The Sound of Silence"

Act 2"Opening Montage - The 59th Street Bridge Song" (DVD only)
"Mrs. Robinson"
"Slip Slidin' Away"
"El Condor Pasa"
"Keep The Customer Satisfied" (DVD only)
"The Only Living Boy in New York"
"American Tune"
"My Little Town"
"Bridge Over Troubled Water"
"Cecilia"
"The Boxer"
"Leaves That Are Green"
"The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" (DVD only)

Note: the albums were not released in the order listed.