Bleecker Street –

Sound of Silence –

Wow, fifteen of these posts! I knew I couldn’t make it much farther without mentioning another artist who had a significant impact on me since I was a kid.

Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. (1964), by Simon & Garfunkel. The debut and initially unsuccessful album by the famous folk duo.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel had performed music together since they were both 13, originally under the stage names Tom & Jerry (Art & Paul respectively) even releasing a few singles that met with minor popularity. They both shared a deep admiration of the Everly Brothers, which would help shape the similar two-part harmonies of their music. After they left to go to different colleges, they got back together and played in a few clubs under their now famous duo title.

This album was the result of Tom Wilson (famous producer for Bob Dylan, The Animals, and several others) hearing the duo one night. The album would feature five songs written by Simon (sometimes misprinted as 4 songs, but there is a fifth song credited to “Paul Kane” one of Simon’s many pen names) and a few other popular folk staples. However Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. would ultimately flop, not even selling more than 3,000 copies. Why? It was 1964. The British Invasion was in full swing and Beatlemania had officially swept the nation.

Following this failure Simon moved to England to travel between clubs and play folk music. However something fairly interesting happened while he was gone. Wilson had taken “The Sound of Silence,” overdubbed some drums and electric guitar over the track, and distributed it to several radio stations. This new version shot all the way up to the No. 1 spot on the U.S. pop charts. Encouraged by this success the two got back together and went on to pursue what would be become a legendary career.

Both of these songs are more like fine poetry than just another pop or folk song. Like a strong poem, there is beauty just to their rhythm, but there is also more to be found if you dive into what they mean. I am a firm believer that art can take on different interpretations to different people, but I also think that our understanding of the works becomes deeper and more complex when our personal “meanings” are shared with others. Most of my interpretations are very heavily influenced by Garfunkel’s notes on the back of the album, but I will attempt to write up a little something extra.

“Bleecker Street” really stands out to me with its musical harmony and simple imagery. There is this beautiful symbolism of the “fog covering Bleecker Street” depicting this stifling of creativity and the “poet writing his crooked rhyme” selling out to pay the rent (“30 dollars” mirroring Iscariot’s pieces of silver for the betrayal of Jesus). “The Sound of Silence,” another striking poetic endeavor, is much more difficult to pinpoint its complex meaning. While this is a fine example of a work that you should find your own meaning, I agree with Garfunkel’s idea of “miscommunication.” Garfunkel mentions, “There is no serious understanding because there is no serious communication” citing the song’s line “people hearing without listening” and the poet’s failed attempt to “reach out.” I think there are also themes of loneliness, oppression, death, morning, and a warning are found here as well. Some have interpreted it as a response to the Kennedy assassination, and Simon’s performance of it at the Ground Zero memorial also casts in a different light (as well as Disturbed’s excellent cover).

Most people might say that Paul Simon really made his significant impact as a songwriter after the duo split up, like his landmark album Graceland. Personally, I preferred the work of Simon and Garfunkel. I don’t mean to downplay the importance of his solo years, but there was always something about their harmony parts that was just so……perfect 😀

(I Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman –

Little Bit of Emotion –

Wasn’t sure what to pick this week, so I just went with a personal favorite ^^

Low Budget (1979) by The Kinks. While not my favorite Kinks album (Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One easily steals that award), Low Budget is still an album I’m fairly fond of.

In my opinion, one of the sadly forgotten faces of the “British Invasion.” Sure, of course people remember the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, that one song by the Animals, and maybe Herman’s Hermits (a band that I deeply regret not having on here yet…), but The Kinks tend to be forgotten. Most people might recognize their hit single “You Really Got Me” or maybe “Lola” (or a handful of others if you’re a Wes Anderson fan), but ultimately they didn’t have a large amount of chart toppers, neither here in the US or in their home country of the UK.

Despite their lack of chart success, their wide variety of music and pioneering of new sounds had a very broad range of influence in the industry. This is due in part because of the multiple music genres they dabbled in and a lengthy career from ’64 to ’96. From initially helping to define the Psychedelic genre for bands like The Doors and Jefferson Airplane, to paving the way for Hard Rock like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, to inspiring the raw sound of Punk bands like The Clash and Ramones, to even distant Garage Rock like The Vines. In all ways, a truly impressive – if occasionally forgotten – band.

Low Budget, their largest success in the States, was a slight change of pace for the band. Most of their 70s albums were concept albums that focused on themes of nostalgia and other, often complex, ideas that were deemed “too abstract” by critics. While I would argue that Low Budget is still very much a concept album in its construction and arrangement of songs, there is a change of themes to reflect the contemporary economic issues of the UK at the end of the 70s. There is also a musical shift to that more reminiscent of Arena Rock (similar to Queen), but this album also features some songs that shift into Country, Hard Rock, Disco, and even some content boarding on soft-Punk.

While this album pales in comparison to The Clash’s landmark double-LP album London Calling, which also came out the same year, the two albums themes of social poverty and injustice strike a similar cord and the two definitely overlap musically. If you’re a fan of London Calling odds are there’s at least something for you on Low Budget, and if you haven’t heard London Calling before…well I can’t force you to, but you get the idea… (I’d post it here, but that vinyl is so hard to come by… >.<) Oh yeah, songs. I kinda wandered on this week's entry. "(I Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman" features a traditional disco beat, a catchy chorus, and dreary depressing verses. What a combo! But seriously, it centers around dissatisfaction in one's shortcomings and flaws. Disappointed in his self and surrounded by sorrows the singer wishes he could only be more like Superman. "Little Bit of Emotion," on the other hand, discusses how people refuse to show others their true self and emotions in the fear of being rejected, but argues that somehow we must find a way to reach out. Two songs that really speak to me on a personal level. I hope that despite their dreariness they bring some hope to your week.

The Day Begins –

The Night: Nights in White Satin –

Well, since I mentioned it last week…

Days of Future Passed (1967), The Moody Blues with The London Festival Orchestra conducted by Peter Knight. An album not to confused with the popular X-Men story Days of Future Past. A fascinating bridge between pop and classical, this album really challenged the notion of what popular music could be and almost completely began a new genre all by itself. Progressive rock, the playground of talented bands like Yes, Rush, Pink Floyd, and many others.

One of the funny things about Days of Future Passed is that even though it was based around the notion of bringing an orchestra and a rock band together, all the material was recorded separately (all except one song…). All of the songs by The Moody Blues were done in a recording studio and the orchestra, lead and composed by Knight, was recorded elsewhere. Even the album keeps the two separate with songs by the band being featured and interludes between the songs by the orchestra. However the last song “Nights in White Satin” is the only one to feature both playing together, and even then they were still recorded separately.

It’s interesting that the band that would finally come up with this popular notion of mixing classical and rock/pop was The Moody Blues. A band that two years earlier had released their less than successful R&B debut album and a slightly successful single “Go Now.” While the Beatles had used an orchestra earlier the same year for “A Day In the Life” (the ending track for Sgt. Peppers), the idea was still extremely new to the industry. Mike Pinder’s heavy use of the Mellotron on this album also had a significant impact upon what would become the Progressive rock industry as well as the then blooming Psychedelic genre.

I tried really hard on this LP choice to go with something other than just another “first and last song on album” (which if you haven’t noticed yet, is a fairly common choice on my Monday LPs…), but both of these songs complemented one another so well. From the melody of “Nights in White Satin” being teased by the orchestra in “The Day Begins” to the first and second half of the poem (spoken by Pinder) being split between the two songs. While the lyrics of “Nights in White Satin” may border on the cliche of their pop influence, the song’s (and album’s) unique sound and psychedelic imagery definitely paved the way for a new world of music.