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Quick Facts
- NAME: Paul Simon
- OCCUPATION: Songwriter, Guitarist, Singer, Philanthropist
- BIRTH DATE: October 13, 1941 (Age: 71)
- EDUCATION: Forest Hills High School, Queens College, Brooklyn Law School
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Newark, New Jersey
- AKA: Jerry Landis
- AKA: Paul Kane
- ZODIAC SIGN: Libra
Best Known For
American singer-songwriter Paul Simon is an influential figure in American rock music. He is best known for his long-running success as a musician.
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Simon and Garfunkel - Sound of Silence
Watch a short video about Simon and Garfunkel to find out what famous artist's studio band was used to reunite the artists and catapult them into stardom.
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Paul Frederic Simon. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 03:13, May 19, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431.
Paul Frederic Simon. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431 [Accessed 19 May 2013].
"Paul Frederic Simon." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 19 2013, 03:13 http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431.
"Paul Frederic Simon," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431 [accessed May 19, 2013].
"Paul Frederic Simon," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431 (accessed May 19, 2013).
Paul Frederic Simon [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 19] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431.
Paul Frederic Simon, http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431 (last visited May 19, 2013).
Paul Frederic Simon. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/paul-simon-9484431. Accessed May 19, 2013.
Synopsis
American singer-songwriter Paul Simon has made significant contributions to the American rock tradition. He began his career as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel with his friend and musical partner Art Garfunkel. He has won 13 Grammys, including the Lifetime Achievement Award and was selected as one of the "100 People Who Shaped the World" by Time magazine in 2006.
Early Life
Musician Paul Simon was born on October 13, 1941, to Jewish-American parents living in New Jersey. As a singer-songwriter known for his cerebral compositions, it seems only fitting that Simon's mother, Belle, was an English teacher and his father, Louis, was both a teacher and a bandleader.
Simon moved to Queens, New York, at a young age, soon meeting and befriending Art Garfunkel, "the most famous singer in the neighborhood." In fact, Simon credits Garfunkel's performance in the 4th grade talent show as his inspiration to start singing.
At Forest Hill High School, Simon and Garfunkel formed a duo called "Tom and Jerry." Occasionally performing for school dances, they pooled together $7 in 1957 to lay down the track "Hey Schoolgirl," which became a minor hit. Although the song's success landed the pair a chance to perform on American Bandstand right after Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom and Jerry decided to go their separate ways for college after they failed to produce a follow-up hit.
Simon and Garfunkel
The two reunited a few years later, however, releasing their first album, Wednesday Morning 3AM, as "Simon and Garfunkel" in 1964. Although the album was a commercial failure, it set the tone for their collaborative style: slow, analytical and antithetical to most rock 'n' roll of the time. The album also contained an acoustic version of "Sound of Silence" that would later help pave the way to broader success.
Dismayed by the failure of Simon and Garfunkel's first album, Paul Simon released a solo album, The Paul Simon Songbook, in 1965. Once again, the album went largely unnoticed despite including tracks like "I Am a Rock" and "Kathy's Song" that would later go on to become fan favorites.
Commercial Success
In 1966, Simon and Garfunkel took another stab at recording with the album Sounds of Silence. Included among its tracks was a re-edited version of "Sound of Silence" that contained electric accompaniment. The remake became an instant hit; overnight, the duo became the darlings of literary-minded college students.
Things only got better in 1967 when Simon and Garfunkel were asked to collaborate on the soundtrack to Mike Nichols' iconic film The Graduate. Released in 1968 with songs like "Scarborough Fair" and "Mrs. Robinson," the soundtrack was a smash hit, marking Simon and Garfunkel's ascendency to become one of the most popular and influential acts of the era.
Simon and Garfunkel would produce only one more album together after The Graduate, however, recording Bridge Over Troubled Water in 1969. With its gospel influences, dramatic crescendo and pacifist lyrics, the title song became a cultural anthem for the 1960s generation.
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Included In These Groups
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- In this group:
- Paul Simon
- Art Garfunkel
Simon and Garfunkel
View groupLegendary folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel—comprised of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel—performed songs that spoke to the generation of the 1960s and '70s, including "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "The Sound of Silence" and The Graduate soundtrack hits "Scarborough Fair" and "Mrs. Robinson." Today, the duo is credited as one of the most popular and influential acts of the era.
Simon and Garfunkel 2 people in this group
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Folk Singers and Folk Revolutionaries
View groupWith simply their voices and guitars, folk singers are the unplugged artists who tell our collective stories through their songs. Their music conveys universal truths and, in turbulent times, is often a call to action in the form of protest songs. Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and other legendary folk singers have rallied audiences around historic causes such as the Civil Rights, peace and feminist movements. Here are some of the famous folk singers who were revolutionary through their songs.
Folk Singers and Folk Revolutionaries 30 people in this group
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Famous Libras 533 people in this group
