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Simon and Garfunkel’s first big hit, “The Sounds of Silence” (also known as “The Sound of Silence”), is this week’s Song of the Week. The folk rock duo were one of the most successful acts of the 1960s, but without the unexpected success of an overdubbed version of “The Sounds of Silence” the pair may have disappeared into obscurity after one album.

“The Sounds of Silence” first appeared on Simon and Garfunkel’s debut album “Wednesday Morning, 3am”, which was released in October 1964. The album was not a commercial success and the duo split up shortly afterwards, with Paul Simon spending much of 1965 performing solo in Europe. Fortunately, Tom Wilson, who had signed the duo to Columbia and produced their first album, took it upon himself to overdub “The Sounds of Silence” and release it as a single in September 1965, backed with “We’ve Got a Groovey Thing Goin’.” The huge success of this single was directly responsible for Simon and Garfunkel reforming. The overdubbed version of the song also featured on their next album, which was called “Sounds of Silence.”

“The Sounds of Silence” (single version) – Simon and Garfunkel

“The Sounds of Silence” (original acoustic version) – Simon and Garfunkel

As good as the single version of “The Sounds of Silence” is, the mood created by the less cluttered original acoustic version does seem more in keeping with the lyric. The vocal harmonies can also be heard more clearly on the original.

In the liner notes to “Wednesday Morning, 3am”, Art Garfunkel describes “The Sounds of Silence” as follows:

Authorship

The music and lyrics of “The Sounds of Silence” were written by Paul Simon over a three month period, with the theme and melody established in November 1963 and the lyrics coming together on February 19, 1964.

Recording date/location

“The Sounds of Silence” was recorded on March 10, 1964 at Columbia Records in New York City. The overdubs for the single were made at the same location on June 15, 1965.

Musicians

The original version of “The Sounds of Silence” featured Paul Simon on acoustic guitar and vocals, and Art Garfunkel on vocals. Tom Wilson’s overdubs were performed by:

• Al Gorgoni – electric guitar
• Bob Bushnell – electric bass
• Bobby Gregg – drums.

Chart performance

“The Sounds of Silence” hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on December 26, 1965, where it remained for one week.

Simon and Garfunkel had two subsequent number ones on the Billboard Hot 100 – “Mrs. Robinson” in 1968 and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” in 1970.

“The Sounds of Silence” – Paul Simon solo

While in the UK in June 1965, Paul Simon recorded a solo version of “The Sounds of Silence” for his album “The Paul Simon Songbook”:

Most of the songs on Paul’s solo album would later be re-recorded for Simon and Garfunkel albums, including “I Am a Rock,” “Leaves That Are Green,” “Kathy’s Song” and “Patterns.”

There will be a new Song of the Week on September 20.

The original and single versions of “The Sounds of Silence” are available on remastered versions of “Wednesday Morning, 3am” and “Sounds of Silence”, respectively, both of which include bonus tracks. However, I’d recommend the amazing value 2008 box set, “Simon and Garfunkel – The Collection”, which includes the remastered versions of all five Simon and Garfunkel albums, as well as a DVD of the Central Park show.

Title
Simon and Garfunkel – The Collection (5 CDs/DVD)	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now
Simon and Garfunkel – Wednesday Morning, 3am (CD)	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now
Simon and Garfunkel – Sounds of Silence (CD)	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now
Paul Simon Songbook (CD)	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now	Buy Now