Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel. One of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s, their most famous recordings include three US number ones: "The Sound of Silence" (1965) and the two Record of the Year Grammy winners "Mrs. Robinson" (1968) and "Bridge over Troubled Water" (1970). Other hits include "The Boxer" (1969), "Cecilia" (1970) and the four 1966 releases "Homeward Bound", "I Am a Rock", "Scarborough Fair/Canticle" and "A Hazy Shade of Winter", as well as the 1968 album track "America".
Art Garfunkel (left) and Paul Simon performing in Dublin, 1982
1957 publicity photo of Simon & Garfunkel as Tom & Jerry
Simon & Garfunkel at Schiphol Airport, the Netherlands, in 1966
The group performing in the Netherlands in 1982
Folk rock is a genre of rock music with heavy influences from English folk and American folk music. Combining the elements of folk and rock music, it arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers such as Bob Dylan and the Byrds—several of whose members had earlier played in folk ensembles—attempted to blend the sounds of rock with their pre-existing folk repertoire, adopting the use of electric instrumentation and drums in a way previously discouraged in the U.S. folk community. The term "folk rock" was initially used in the U.S. music press in June 1965 to describe the Byrds' music.
Pete Seeger entertaining Eleanor Roosevelt (center), at a racially integrated Valentine's Day party.
Bob Dylan was the most influential of all the urban folk-protest songwriters.
Bob Dylan in 1963.
Folk rock musicians Simon & Garfunkel performing in Dublin