Bookends

i lost all melinin after listening to this

Frances McDormand used the album cover as a visual aid for young William Miller to suggest all rock stars were on dope, something obvious by simply looking at their eyes. Frankly, I don't see it. Paul is trying a little too hard for a look that a young David Schwimmer would perfect some 30 years later, and Artie was likely just caught in a moment scratching the back of his head, or maybe he was trying harder to hear out of his left ear. Second Simon and Garfunkel album I've had from the list so far. There are four solid classics on this album that alone could warrant a 5. The final rating comes down to your desire to be transformed into a Kellogg's Corn Flake, or your feelings on poor Artie being tasked with going out and recording voices of old folks just to get a song writing credit. The loud Moog/Clockwork Orange sound at the start of "Save The Life Of My Child" suggests maybe Frances McDormand was on to something. There are some folks who suggest the Bangles cover of "A Hazy Shade of Winter" is better than the original. Others offer a similar opinion about the Lemonheads cover of "Mrs. Robinson". Both camps are wrong, but the popularity of those covers helps underscore how Paul Simon is one of our greatest songwriters. This is the album when Paul really took perfectionistic control of things, as if to leave no doubt as to who was Tom and who was Jerry. Somehow the closing song "At The Zoo" works for me. The only thing I ever want to see at the zoo is the exit sign. What I'm saying is I don't like the zoo, but I really like this album.

First off, I've no idea why I started this idiotic project when I've already got more things on the go than I have time for, but it was an impulsive click on a link from Popbitch that brought me here and before I knew what I was doing I'd signed up, so here we are. Right, first of 1,001 albums, hope it's something attention grabbing. Oh. A quick bit of background reading on Wikipedia confirms my worst fears: a Simon & Garfunkel concept album. Brilliant. Three hours of acoustic noodling about herbs and bridges. Better fire up Spotify and get on with it. Let's start with the positives: it's only half an hour long and the "concept" only stretches across side one, so it's a concept album in the same way that "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is a concept album, ie only because people keep saying it is. The supposed concept is the human lifespan, so presumably the 30 seconds of "Bookends Theme" are supposed to represent conception or birth. All it conjures up in my mind is a "Schools programmes follow shortly" countdown clock. 30 seconds in and already we're tackling the subject of suicide. "Save the Life of My Child" is the most arresting track on the album, all honking Moogs, sinister choirs and snatches of "The Sound of Silence". Still unclear how suicide fits in with the life cycle concept, but still. Unfortunately it's all downhill from there. Acoustic strum-along follows acoustic strum-along, punctuated by "Voices of Old People" which is literally just that, some old people talking for two minutes, completely derailing the listening experience. Then more acoustic strumming augmented by easy listening orchestra, another bit of the "Bookends Theme" and that's your concept over and done with. Side two deals with an entirely different concept: that of how to pad out an album by the hottest act on your label when they've only delivered quarter of an hour of music. It's a mish-mash of non-album singles and unused tracks from the previous year's soundtrack album for "The Graduate", including, bafflingly, "Mrs Robinson" which wasn't on the soundtrack album - at least, bits of it were but not its familiar single version. So we're on slightly more familiar ground here with "A Hazy Shade of Winter" and "Fakin' It" raising the album above mediocrity. So, not a great start. Like "Sgt Pepper", you probably had to be there at the time. At least "Sgt Pepper" had came with cut-out medals.

“Bookends” by Simon & Garfunkel (1968) Exhibit A in the art of album making, “Bookends” is a prototype of the ‘concept album’. Here we’re treated to a truly poetic treatment of life’s polarities, with images straining to burst through the bonds of beautifully unyielding metric structure. Paul Simon is a storytelling poetic genius (even if he’s a bit of a showoff). It’s too easy to love this album for the striking beauty of “Mrs. Robinson”, “Old Friends”, and “America” (which still makes me weep). But listen to the album from start to finish, and you’ll appreciate it as so much more than a collection of ‘tracks’. Simon’s performance on acoustic guitar is genre-defining, and Art Garfunkel’s tenor harmonies are angelic. Prepare yourself for shocks as you walk through this garden of delights, ending “At the Zoo”. This isn’t just a folk duo anymore. On this album, the excellence of S & G’s transition beyond their initial folk success surpasses Dylan’s. Those of you who know my love for Bob Dylan are welcome to pick yourselves up off the floor. And as an aside, the backing musicians, arrangements, engineering, and production on this album provide evidence for my reluctant acknowledgment that New York is indeed the greatest city in the world. Ever. Kleenex. 5/5

Really solid sound from these two assholes again. I hate myself more.

I do not wish I was a Kellogg's cornflake floating in my bowl. nor do I wish I was an English muffin.

Fuck Simon and Garfunkel. A couple of low talent hacks. “Old people talking”!? Get the fuck out of here.

A surprising forgettable album from Simon & Garfunkel. The concept of side A sounded interesting but is rushed and underdeveloped. 15 minutes worth of music cover an entire life cycle, with only one stand out track ("America") and 2 full minutes of no music at all. It might have been better if they'd fleshed out a full album for this idea. Side B is much stronger. "Mrs Robinson" and "A Hazy Shade of Winter" are the best two songs on the album. Unfortunately, there's really nothing new here, aside from one leftover track from The Graduate. The rest of side B are previously released singles. There's nothing wrong with that, but we're supposed to be rating the best albums ever made. A short concept for side A and a singles collection for side B is too low effort for artists of this level. It's fine for what it is, but hardly their best release in my opinion.

random documentary in the middle?????

Look at them! They are high on pot! Great album!

A great surprise of an album. If "A Day In The Life" was an entire album, it would be Bookends. The instrumentation, lyrics, and songwriting on this album are phenomenal. All the songs here are highlights and I would highly recommend this album to anyone who hasn't heard it. I love the experimental nature that is incorporated into this album as well. What a pleasant surprise! Highlights: 2, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12.

Yes, it's okay, I really don't see what the fuss is about

There is a level of twee I can appreciate and then there's a level of twee that I find unbearable: this skirts the line between the two. You've got to grind through some gallingly sentimental tracks - weepy junk like 'Old Friends' and the Bookends reprise - to get to the palate cleansing power of 'Mrs Robinson' and 'A Hazy Shade of Winter'. I don't think it adds up to a good album, but it's not bad either. Mid 2*.

A pretentious mash of a half-baked concept record and leftovers from their score for The Graduate, not even the modular Moog on “Save the Life of My Child” can save Bookends from being ponderous and slothful throughout its 30 minutes.

Kind of boring, not bad voices, just hardly even noticed it was playing

Prob would be a desert island album, what a unique brand these two had. Before all the fluff and fireworks of pop

4.5*, but I can't quite round up to 5. America and Mrs. Robinson are, of course, excellent. Great cover of Hazy Shade, too. Maybe my favorite version. Several other songs I hadn't heard before that were quite good, too. But Voices of Old People, while it might be poignant, isn't something I want to listen to very often. Punky's Dilemma seems a bit silly, too.

One of the surprising side-effects of this project has been my growing and active dislike of Paul Simon. Previously, I thought he was OK -- he wrote a bunch of pretty memorable songs both with S&G and solo (as showcased by his appearance on the Muppet Show), and Graceland was a great album, and he did occasional cameos in movies. But having sat through more than half a dozen of his records, I now find him an annoying and pretentious narcissist and unrepentant serial plagiarist. I am not inclined to give him a pass based on a few pretty tunes. Admittedly, there are some great tunes on this record (America, Mrs Robinson, Hazy Shade of Winter), but as a child of the 80s, I prefer the Lemonheads' version of Mrs Robinson and the Bangles' version of Hazy Shade. But there is also a lot of filler on this record, ranging from insipid and unmemorable songs through to Voices of Old People, which is the worst kind of time-wasting tape 'experiment'. Does anybody ever need to hear this more than once in their life? And the production choices on 'Save the Life of My Child' are not innovative and groundbreaking; they are just shitty. I would also like to discuss the ways in which _this specific album_ was a powerfully malign influence on the music industry. Simon & Garfunkel, realizing that their contract guaranteed that their record company would pick up all of their recording costs, disappeared into endless studio indulgence in the name of 'art'. Columbia Records, unhappy but reasonably confident of a big hit, indulged them. Not even the Beatles spent this amount of time and money recording their albums in 1967. But this high recording cost then justified increasing the album cost by $1 (over 20% of the usual retail price, to the equivalent of over $50 in today's money). For a 29 minute record! And they got away with it! It sold a bajillion copies while maintaining artistic cred, despite being artistic self-indulgence and a flagrant and merciless price gouge on the listening public. This price strategy was, unfortunately, successful and so helped establish the model of record companies screwing their customers at every opportunity, and for the ongoing indulgence of misguided artistic bloat. And I suggest that _this specific album_ is one of the first examples of record company greed being successfully leveraged against listeners. They happily did so for the next 35 years until file-sharing crashed the business model that delivered seemingly endless rivers of cash squeezed out of music fans. We all suffered as a result. Fuck you, Columbia Records, and fuck you, Simon & Garfunkel for being the record company's shills.

Every time I get a S&G album on here, I think "this is the one that will get me into this band." I've come to the conclusion that I just don't like them. The first and second side of the album don't mesh at all. Other than "Mrs, Robinson," this album was a big miss.

Easiest 5 star so far. Continues to be a formative album for every generation. The longevity alone is incredible, all together the album is one of the greatest pieces of American culture ever. Perhaps most impressive of all is that this isn't even their best album!

Perhaps their best album. Like both sides of it. The side A song suite and the side B collection of looser and poppier material. Some incredibly iconic songs here. Grew up on this stuff.

Always been a fan of Simon & Garfunkle, and there is definitely alot of goodness on this album… Not entirely sure about the whole “concept album” thing that a number of people have commented on… Perhaps it was an attempt – but certainly not what I think of when I think about concept albums, as TRUE concept albums run start to finish, so classic albums that would fit that bill, would be – “Tommy” – The Who “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway” – Genesis “The Wall” – Pink Floyd Even if it was an attempt at a concept album, it seems like they only did one side – so what’s that??? I prefer to think of this a collection of individual songs – much like The Who’s album – “Who’s Next” that started off as a concept, but was abandoned somewhere along the way – but a stunningly good album regardless… Love the harmonies, and the unique sound on this album, and the best songs IMO are – “America” – 6-stars out of 7… “Fakin’ It” – 4-stars out of 7… “Mrs. Robinson” – 7-stars out of 7… “Hazy Shade Of Winter” – 5-stars out of 7… “At The Zoo” – 4-stars out of 7… Given how loaded Side 2 is, plus the fact that this album contains a couple of their most iconic songs in – “America” & “Mrs. Robinson” – this album clocks in at a solid 4 for me – and I would probably give it a 4.25 if I could…

Simon and Garfunkel is usually a little too twee, a little too choir-boy for me. This album avoids that, for the most part, for me. The arrangements are interesting without being bogged down with too much, and the songwriting is, as always, solid. Probably my favorite S&G, both solo and as a duo. Favorite tracks: "Overs", "Mrs. Robinson", "A Hazy Shade of Winter"

Honestly, I thought this album was overwrought. Too much instrumentation, too many odd sound effects, and so on. The couple of classic tunes on this record are tunes that don't have these distractions. Simon & Garfunkel are best when they are singer songwriters, not trying to be the next Jefferson Airplane acid freakout.

Mrs Robinson was okay and the rest was incredibly boring

Classics. Beautiful, calming, joyful. Love it.

Ya gotta love an album from a band that’s hitting their stride of being one of the greatest bands of all time.

America is just one of the best songs of all time, even considering I'm not American. It displays a yearning for something more that just resonates even 60 years later. Mrs robinson is of course also a classic, but means less to me personally. All in all a great album. Easy 5.

Bookends This is on the same level BOTW as my favourite S&G album, even if it feels slightly more piecemeal than BOTW despite the concept, but it does have the imperiously magnificent America and the fantastic Save the Life of My Child, Overs, Fakin’ It, Mrs Robinson, A Hazy Shade of Winter and At the Zoo. The Moog on Save the Life of my Child is pretty interesting and must be one of the earliest examples on a major pop record? The song itself is great, and the Moog sounds more modern than other contemporaneous uses, I like the little Sound of Silence interpolations and the whole thing mixes melody and experimentalism in a fantastic way. And crossfades superbly into the majesty of America, brilliantly taking the specifics of the first song into the wider picture and open narrative of the latter. Overs is great, the bluesy folky intro building up to Art’s ethereal entrance at 1.16. Voices of Old People does it’s job in the context of the concept of the first side, and I like the ‘an old person without money is ‘ line, but it does slow down the momentum into the delicateness and melancholy of Old Friends and the plaintiveness of Bookends a little. I’ve always loved Fakin’ It, it has a little vibe of those S&G and Paul Simon uptempo acoustic songs like Baby Driver or Keep the Customer Satisfied or Me & Julio Down by the Schoolyard, but with a more folky structure. Punky’s Dilemma is not a bad song, but does feel a little throwaway in comparison to the songs around it especially as its followed by Mrs Robinson, A Hazy Shade of Winter and At the Zoo. It’s an easy 5, some of their best songs, a concept done brilliantly on the first side and an overall sense of personal wistfulness and introspection against wider musings on contemporary society and culture, all tied together with Paul Simon’s slightly off kilter melodic brilliance and Art’s graceful and otherworldly vocals. 📚📚📚📚📚 Playlist submission: America

Замечательный и чувственный альбом. Очень лёгкий, приятный и простой, но в то же время и глубоко трогательный и личный. Тексты воспринимаются вполне легко, а в купе с таким же лёгким, но детальным инструменталом всё сливается в одну цельную и красивую картину. (9)

Really enjoyed it. S&G are very relaxing to listen to and at the same time I really enjoy the poetic and artsy quality of their music. I liked the first thematic half of the album (bookends), but liked the unthematic second half a bit better. For songs, Mrs. Robinson and Hazy Shade Of Winter are my clear favorites from this album. Great!

A collection of some of the most notable songs within the Simon & Garfunkel collection. Bookends, Old Friends, Overs, Fakin' It, At The Zoo, Hazy Shade of Winter, and Mrs. Robinson.

Just a whisper of an album, blink and you’ll miss it. While some of the songs are typical Simon / Garfunkel strong, others are bewildering and there is more than one non-musical track. I love their sound and always will but this is far from my favorite S&G production.

Pretty interesting

Oh man......this one! 30 minutes of pure joy! The glory of "America." The fantastic "Mrs. Robinson." The driving "Hazy Shade of Winter." The bizarre interludes. An album that remains sonically ahead of its time. And as Frances McDormand would say, "Simon and Garfunkel is poetry. Yes, it's poetry. It is the poetry of drugs and promiscuous sex! Honey, they're on pot!"

These guys are fucking dorks but god damn can they make a song about being a boysenberry jam sound good.

Nr. 175/1001 Bookends Theme NR Save The Life Of My Child 3/5 America 5/5 Overs 3/5 Voices of Old People 2/5 Old Friends 4/5 Bookends Themen - Reprise NR Fakin' It 4/5 Punky's Dilemma 4/5 Mrs. Robinson 5/5 A Hazy Shade of Winter 3/5 At the Zoo 4/5 Average: 3,7 More experimental than I would have expected from a Simon & Garfunkel album. I prefer their regular stuff.

Extremely modern sounding album for its time. Had to do a triple take that I wasn't listening to music in another tab for Save the Life of my Child, I can't believe this song was recorded in the 1960s, feels like it's a modern remix of an old S&G song. Incredible stuff. Voices of Old People is a skit that seems to set the template for contemplative skits on albums. I can't think of many skits from this era; I wouldn't be surprised if it was the first of its kind. Beautiful orchestral production on Old Friends; maybe my favourite song here? Second half lost me a bit despite the songs having more streams... interesting.

The sounds of a generation.

While I can appreciate the historical importance of this album and a tremendous side 2, side 1 doesn't quite reach up to the same heights. It tackles a fairly straightforward concept – ageing – and while it captures that idea pretty well, it's at the expense of the music's quality. The tracks on side 1 aren't very catchy, and musically they're very simple, often consisting of finger-picked guitars and odd, repeating melodies. America and Old Friends are my two favourites on this side. The Bookends Theme and its reprise are very forgettable, and Voices of Old People is obviously unnecessary. I will acknowledge that this would've been a pretty big stepping stone in the development of concept album culture. At least it's a more well-defined concept than Sgt Pepper (as another commenter pointed out). Side 2 is brilliant. Fakin' It, Punk's Dilemma, Mrs. Robinson, A Hazy Shade of Winter, At the Zoo... All of them put a huge smile on my face because of how goofy and fun-packed their melody and lyrics are. Mrs. Robinson, in particular, is pure 60s pop, and it's a masterpiece. 4/5 Key tracks: Fakin' It, Punk's Dilemma, Mrs. Robinson, A Hazy Shade of Winter

Can't lie, actually quite enjoyed this. Was far more varied and interesting than I expected and felt like it was over too soon. 29 mins seems a bit too short to be considered an album! Actually, when you then consider that there's also 2 mins of old people talking it seems they are taking the mick a bit. But I'll gladly take quality over quantity and despite it not really being my thing I would listen again.

Bookend’s theme - 7/10 Save the Life of my Child - 8/10 America - 9/10 Overs - 8/10 Voices of Old people - 7/10 Old Friends - 6/10 Bookend’s Theme Reprised - 8/10 Faking It - 8/10 Punky’s Dilemma - 8/10 Mrs Robinson - 9/10 A Hazy Shade of Winter - 9/10 At the Zoo - 8/10 TOTAL -105 /120

Great songwriting and very beautiful voices. Mrs. Robinson is a classic. I didn't like the interludes that much, but overall a very nice album.

I enjoyed this more than I expected to, especially the A side. They were more experimental than I think I gave them credit for.

It’s nice, a bit boring at times, a bit weird at times. I love Mrs Robinson but tbh I think I prefer the Lemonheads version. I also think I prefer the bangles version of Hazy Shade 3.0/5.0 Best Song: A Hazy Shade Of Winter

Listening to this I didn't pick up that it was a concept album. "Voices Of Old People" serves that concept I guess but I didn't think that it should have been included. Maybe they relented so Artie could have a win. These two were meant to be together vocally and this is a pretty solid album. 3.5/5

A perfectly fine folk album that doesn't do too much for me. Not unpleasant to listen to, just didn't grab me in the way I might have expected. Surprised there is any bloat on an album under 30 mins. Some good tracks, but nothing groundbreaking. Top tracks: America, Old Friends, Mrs Robinson

I really have no idea what was going on in this album. It's all kind of a fever dream. I don't feel like any of the songs on here are real except for maybe "Mrs. Robinson" and "A Hazy Shade of Winter". Sure their harmonies are nice but I don't feel like they really did much on this album. It was short though so that was nice.

Why does Paul Simon get angry at me when I request Voices of Old People at his concerts?

A real mixed bag - Mrs Robinson remains one of my favorite songs ever - but other songs like Fakin it are very underwhelming.

Wholesome.

A side was hot garbage. B side pretty good. 2.5

Side A suite is excellent but the back half is hampered by its odds and ends nature. Simon had yet to find a lyrical voice that wasn’t bad college poetry (he wouldn’t get there until “Hearts and Bones”) and it really shows in those castoffs. Sometimes you have to kill your babies, even if it only leaves you with an EP’s worth of material.

Alvin, Simon, GARFUNKEL! Do, do, do, do, do, do

Boring

The album mostly passed my by in a blur of nothingness

Given the subject matter of many of these songs, how does it still manage to feel so white and wimpy? I found this one a bit boring, they've gotta have better albums than this because they have a handful of good songs and they aren't on here. A Hazy Shade of Winter is good but is cancelled out by At the Zoo (elephants aren't even dumb). Not enough good ones to justify a higher rating or a relisten.

Definitely an album in the 60s.

I'm glad this was short. The duo tries to explore some weirdness here like on the track old people talking...which quite literally is just that. Didn't get it. Seems like the studio threw on Mrs. Robinson, which is the only good song, after the fact to get people to buy it.

I’d forgotten about the collagey aspects of this album, the surprising sounds that emerge and submerge. It’s very beautiful.

This is a very familiar album I’ve listened to before. I love everything about it, listening to it takes me back to 2005-2010 when I had it in heavy rotation.

One of my favorite albums of all time Warm and comforting listen Their songwriting here is so charming and unique compared to their other work You can hear how this sets the stage for the way they further branch out their sound by the time they get to Bridge Over Troubled Water America is one of my favorite songs ever

Bookends es una obra de arte atemporal de la música popular y un testimonio sociológico de una finura extraordinaria que ha envejecido bien en su profunda madurez conceptual. A nivel de arquitectura sonora, el álbum es una proeza de claridad y contención; instrumentos, voces armónicas y coros, efectos de sonido, percusiones y silencios, todo se entretejen muy bien para edificar un espacio donde la música respira de manera orgánica. En el corazón de este entramado destaca de forma monumental "Mrs. Robinson", la pieza que reconocí de inmediato y que con su brillante galope acústico actuó como un potente vehículo que generó nostalgia, demostrando cómo un éxito pop masivo puede albergar una lírica sofisticada y un retrato punzante de su tiempo. La propuesta conceptual del disco es un viaje existencial de un valor humanista incalculable, operando como un sutil pero potente llamado a la conciencia sobre el paso del tiempo, la alienación moderna y la vejez. Cada interpretación en este trabajo se siente profundamente humano, conmovedor, crudo y real, donde las perfectas armonías vocales del dúo transmiten una fuerza y calidez que transmiten autenticidad inmediata y una autoridad superior desde la vulnerabilidad. Nos encontramos ante una obra compacta que, bajo una aparente sencillez acústica y una constante sensación de paz y fluidez melódica, cobija una densa dualidad nostálgica, volviéndose un fondo extraordinario para múltiples usos intelectuales, desde el trabajo creativo hasta una profunda reflexión solitaria.

best duo ever

Unexpectedly beautiful. I really thought there was only one top top tier Simon and garfunkel record. I've obviously completely missed this one previously. A little bit rangey and interesting in it's production. Tied together by really great writing. I appreciate the blend and tone of their voices more on this record than I have previously.

<3 <3

This album slaps

It's a masterpiece.

There's some "The wall" vibes here. I like it. Definitely some of the roots of classic rock here Freaking good album

Loooove

I'm surprised I've never listened to this album from front to back. It's a real masterpiece. Totally taken back by the segue into the second track, the conversation gave it a melancholy feel during the middle, and every song is a banger.

I legitimately don't think they've ever written a bad song, and I am loving getting to listen through more than just the 10-15 I already know from them. Obviously "America" and "Mrs. Robinson" are all time, but hazy shades of winter was a revelation!

Easily a high point of my conservative parents' very small record collection.

Look, this album contains three of Simon & Garfunkel's best songs: America, Mrs. Robinson, and A Hazy Shade of Winter. For that alone, it's an all-timer. However, there isn't really a single song here I think is bad (besides maybe Voices of Old People, which is literally just two minutes of someone recording some random people talking. Didn't get that one.) Save the Life of My Child is not something I ever really expected from Simon & Garfunkle, but it's so good. Old Friends is sad but beautiful. At the Zoo is a weird fun way to end the album. It all kicks ass. Easy up there as one of the best.

Something about the first half made me emotional, which is impressive for a 15-minute subtle set of songs. The second half is full of great tunes that stand on their own. I think 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' is more consistent, but both albums are great in their own ways.

5 ballen pure nostalgie

Awesome front to back. The three track run to end the album is amazing. The sound mixing is astounding - especially for its time. Loved every minute.

Me encanta

Between his Garfunkel and solo stuff this is my 6th and last Paul Simon album. It's really really good but if I'm being critical it's the 3rd best S&G album on the list. It's up against some stiff competition though. I've been a fan of Simon's music since I was single digits and I dig most of his output. How Hearts and Bones was chosen over Still Crazy After All These Years is truly befuddling. But this sort of confusion happens the deeper you get into the list. I predict there will be a new mental health disorder called the Dimery Befuddlement. It will consist mainly of people who finished the 1001 Albums challenge, have had their mind boggled and are now convinced their listening choices are shite. But anyways, go listen to the Less Than Zero soundtrack, it has awesome covers of Hazy Shade of Winter by The Bangles and In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by Slayer, plus some LL Cool J and Public Enemy. Dig it.

P. Simon

Netikėtai geras

Not the best by the duo but definitely the most iconic. Mrs Robinson, the album cover, America. Just a proper classic.

Has a couple goofy 60s moments but is one of the best albums from one of the best groups of the time. "America", "Old Friends", "Mrs. Robinson" are among some of the best S&G songs and the cover/vibe is iconic. As a lover of Paul Simon, I gotta go 5.

A very influential singer/songwriter album

This one takes me back to my youth. My mom had this one playing a lot when I was growing up. Great album!

Oh it's just beautiful

Masterpiece. Everything just works together in a perfect way. The themes, the lyrics, the compositions, the sound effects… it’s a journey not to be missed. It’s very thought provoking, and at times profound. Like the “Voices of Old People” track. This is from an actual nursing home and these people were “old” in 1968. Imagine their lives, the things they saw, their triumphs and struggles. All the life stories. Then the realization comes that none of those people are around anymore. This is an album that sticks with you.

One of my all time favourites, actually

Oh, man, a favorite. It’s interesting to return to it after many years, and after listening to a lot of Paul Simon’s solo albums.

Great album, love this music genre.

Just a fantastically beautiful album. America is simply one of the great songs.

When Save the Child of my Life started I thought it was a different Band, strange sound for Simon & Garfunkel A few of my favorite Simon & Garfunkel songs are on this album… America Old Friends Loved Punky’s Dillema, funny song

Ta bueno. Tranquilón y 70oso. Vines beatelescas

I'm not a big Simon & Garfunkel (or even just Paul Simon) fan, and I don't choose to listen to it "on my own time." However, I can't deny their songwriting and especially the "hits" on this album. It is really well written, produced, and performed.

Legendary smooth as silk

With all due respect to every great album they put out this my is my favorite. The song writing & performance on is incredible but it's also the production & the way it's recorded. It's a very New York album.

One of my favorite alblums. The "Non popular" tracks are a good as the ones on the radio. I can't remember the last time I heard Old Friends and Old people Voices. Listening brought a smile to my face.

Немного не то настроение и настрой чтоб расходится кучей слов, но скажу что альбом мне понравился. Особенно первая сторона вполне себе ощущается концептуальной, там авторы этого точно придерживались. Есть запоминающиеся мелодии, хорошие текста, другие работы от Simon & Garfunkel я также обязательно заценю. Обложка отличная, такие фото никогда не устаревают, недавно даже натыкался на подражание ей от какого-то современного исполнителя, что уже о многом говорит.

21. Simon & Garfunkel - Bookends (1968) Вывод: молодость уходит и память становится единственным багажом У меня особое отношение к этому дуэту, они заставляют погрузиться в глубокие раздумия, хоть и периодически очень острые. Этот альбом как неприятное напоминание про неумолимое течение времени. С этой группы, кстати, я начала любить фолк и понимать Дилана. Альбом делится на две части, один почти замерший во времени черно-белый фильм, прошлое наследие. И вот, вторая часть это современное понимание - в предпоследней песне это новое понимание. Даже когда наступила зима твоей жизни (метафора старости) сделай вид, что это ещё весна. Надежда и юность не умирают в душе, несмотря на изменения. Встреть старого друга, сходи с ума по женщине, завидуй простой жизни хлопьев и джема. Будь глупым, странным, искренним и тогда не пожалеешь о своей прошедшей жизни.

It feels physically wrong to give this album anything less than a 5, Simon and Garfunkel are way too formative to my music tastes for me to do that. They get away with things I would never tolerate in another artist simply because they are that good. Are their songs sometimes a tad maudlin? Are their lyrics sometimes a bit goofy? Yeah, but I don't care, they're fucking Simon and Garfunkel, they can sing about being cornflakes if they want. Save The Life Of My Child and America is one of the greatest one-two punches you can have on an album, but all of the songs here would've been the highlight of most other artists' careers.