Today, Jan. 26, marks the 45th anniversary of Simon & Garfunkel's classic album Bridge Over Troubled Water, which saw the legendary folk-pop duo conclude their career with their most ambitious, eclectic, and well-written collection of songs. In celebration of this incredible album, here are its 11 songs ranked, from weakest to best.
11. So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright
Simon & Garfunkel's music tends to fall into two categories: indescribably beautiful ballads and irresistibly catchy pop songs, but "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" doesn't really fall into either category, which isn't necessarily a good thing. It's not a very catchy song, and though its bossa nova-inspired chord progression is theoretically interesting, it's too disjointed and distracting to be as thoroughly enjoyable as the duo's classic songs.
10. Song for the Asking
Although "Song for the Asking" serves as a sweet and highly effective closing track to Bridge Over Troubled Water, it could have been even more effective if Simon & Garfunkel (or in this case just Simon) had stripped down the production. The lush string arrangements work for many of the album's other songs, but "Song for the Asking" could have been more poignant had it just been Paul Simon and his acoustic guitar.
9. Why Don't You Write Me
Although "Why Don't You Write Me" starts off with a sort of bluesy, Rolling Stones-esque shuffle (I'm thinking "Tumbling Dice," even though that song came out two years later), its melody and harmonies are more reminiscent of late period Beatles, which must have been the prevailing pop music influence at the time. Between the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, you can't really go wrong.
8. Bye Bye Love
When the sound of rapturous applause greets the opening strums of "Bye Bye Love," it's initially quite jarring and even confusing. Why would Simon & Garfunkel throw a live version of an Everly Brothers cover onto an otherwise painstakingly studio-recorded album? However, it soon becomes apparent that the joyous atmosphere of the concert and the audience interaction actually makes the song, which offers a tremendously exciting glimpse of the duo at the height of their popularity in 1969.
7. Keep The Customer Satisfied
Paul Simon has never been one to scrimp on a melody, and for "Keep The Customer Satisfied," he delivers one of his most adventurous and unpredictable, leading the listener right into the middle of the chorus before they even realize where they are. The song could have easily been sung by Stevie Wonder and have been a Motown classic.
6. Baby Driver
If there's one song on Bridge Over Troubled Water that could be considered a "rock" song, it's "Baby Driver," with its ascending rockabilly bassline and relatively gruff vocal performance (emphasis on relatively). It's perhaps the single most upbeat and straight-up fun song on the entire album, particularly sing certain parts of the song are dedicated to singing nonsense syllables instead of singing actual lyrics.
5. El Condor Pasa (If I Could)
Before he ventured into South African music with Graceland, Paul Simon experimented with Peruvian folk music for "El Condor Pasa (If I Could)," an absolutely stunning adaptation of a traditional Peruvian folk song. The melody is already haunting enough on its own, but the song is produced in such a way that it sounds as if it's being sung from the top of a windy Andean mountain.
4. The Only Living Boy in New York
Although "The Only Living Boy in New York" is the angriest song on Bridge Over Troubled Water, with lyrics by Paul Simon that describe the alienation he felt during Art Garfunkel's trip to Mexico to appear in the film Catch-22, it's also, rather ironically, the album's most heavenly and relaxed song, perhaps a subconscious indication on Simon's part that he was actually relieved to be "the only living boy in New York."
3. Bridge Over Troubled Water
Although "Bridge Over Troubled Water" was recorded in 1969, it's the sort of song that's become so ubiquitous and monumental in our public consciousness that it seems like it's been around for centuries, mysteriously dropped down from the heavens instead of written by some 28-year-old guy from Queens. Even Art Garfunkel's voice seems like it came with the song from its otherworldly place of origin. The song has basically transcended Simon & Garfunkel at this point.
2. Cecilia
Paul Simon has written his fair share of incredible pop songs over the last 50 years, but the greatest and simplest of them all is "Cecilia," built around just three chords and an off-kilter drum circle loop. There's not even much to it lyrically (its use of the "down on my knees/begging you please" rhyme is particularly clichéd), but the song has such a joyous sing-along feel to it that it's impossible not to love.
1. The Boxer
"The Boxer" is the best song on Bridge Over Troubled Water because of how brilliantly it treads the line between an indescribably beautiful ballad and an irresistibly catchy pop song. It's one of the purest "folk" songs that Simon & Garfunkel ever sang, a lengthy story song overflowing with gorgeous melancholy, but its melody somehow manages to be both heartbreaking and infectious, almost immediately revealing itself to be genius.
What are your favorite songs from Bridge Over Troubled Water? Let us know down in the comments section below!
