# Third instalment dedicated to Simon and Garfunkel: today we're discussing "Bridge Over Troubled Water".

Following the success of "Bookends", Simon found himself turning down offers from various directors to write their film scores. Garfunkel, meanwhile, secured his first acting role in the film "Catch-22" (1970), further straining the already difficult relationship with his musical partner, who was convinced he could continue writing songs even without the former's contribution. Due to delays caused by the film's shooting schedule, the duo's fifth album therefore experienced a troubled genesis, but was nevertheless completed towards the end of 1969. Roy Halee was once again at the production helm, supporting Simon and Garfunkel's vision of a new sound incorporating styles such as R&B, gospel, jazz and world music. For the first time, the album's liner notes included the names of the musicians involved in the recordings, the "Wrecking Crew": Fred Carter Jr. on guitars, Hal Blaine on drums, Joe Osborn on bass and Larry Knechtel on keyboards. The latter deserves credit for the magnificent gospel piano played on the title track, a romantic ballad in which Garfunkel's voice emerges in all its splendour. The title of the song, as well as the style of the arrangement, was inspired by "Mary Don't You Weep" by the gospel group The Swan Silvertones, which declares in its lyrics "I'll be your bridge over deep water, if you trust in my name". We find Andean influences in the subsequent "El Cóndor Pasa (If I Could)", whilst in "Cecilia", Simon irreverently writes about an unfaithful young woman who invites her lover to bed whilst her partner is in the bathroom, singing lightheartedly over a rhythm with Afro-Hispanic flavours. As in "Homeward Bound", a track from the duo's third album, "Keep The Customers Satisfied" also recounts the longing for home during the exhausting touring period. Characterised by a Latin jazz style, "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" revisits the early years of Simon and Garfunkel's career and seems to somehow predict their future separation. The sound then returns to a more typically folk style with "The Boxer", a song about the misadventures of a young man living in poverty and solitude in the Big Apple, which cost the team over 100 hours of work across various recording studios and unexpected locations such as St. Paul's Chapel in New York. The cheerful rock 'n' roll of "Baby Driver" briefly lifts the atmosphere, but Simon's sense of isolation returns in "The Only Boy Living In New York", written during the months spent away from Garfunkel whilst he was busy filming in Mexico. The reggae style of "Why Don't You Write Me?" anticipates Simon's experimentation in his solo career, whilst the farewell of "Bye Bye Love", a cover of an Everly Brothers hit, brings us back to the duo's origins. In the finale, the olive branch metaphor of "Song for the Asking" keeps open the possibility of reconciliation between the two, which in fact, apart from a few occasions in the following years, such as the Concert in Central Park in 1981 and the world tour in 2004, would never truly come. The success of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" was global: number one in the charts in 10 countries, with total sales unbeaten from 1970 to 1972. At the Grammy Awards, the duo collected numerous prizes, but critics hesitated to define it as their best work, considering it less impactful than the previous "Bookends". A brief tour of England followed the release, after which the personality differences between Simon and Garfunkel forced them to announce their separation.

We conclude this journey with the most successful song from this timeless duo, which boasts covers by countless artists including Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin and Johnny Cash. Happy listening!