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Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Simon & Garfunkel. Their blend of folk and rock, including hits such as "The Sound of Silence" (1965), "Mrs. Robinson" (1968), "America" (1968), and "The Boxer" (1969), served as a soundtrack to the 1960s counterculture. Their final album, Bridge over Troubled Water (1970), is among the best-selling of all time.
As a solo artist, Simon has explored genres including gospel, reggae, and soul. His albums Paul Simon (1972), There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), and Still Crazy After All These Years (1975) kept him in the public eye and drew acclaim, producing the hits "Mother and Child Reunion" (1972), "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" (1972), and "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" (1975). Simon reunited with Garfunkel for several tours and the 1981 Concert in Central Park. Simon hosted Saturday Night Live four times from 1975 to 1987 and has served as the musical guest various times on the show. He made his acting debut in the Woody Allen romantic comedy Annie Hall (1977).
In 1986, Simon released his most successful and acclaimed album, Graceland, incorporating South African influences. "You Can Call Me Al" became one of Simon's most successful singles. Graceland was followed by The Rhythm of the Saints (1990) and a second Concert in the Park in 1991, without Garfunkel, which approximately 500,000 people attended. In 1998, Simon wrote a Broadway musical, The Capeman, that was poorly received. He continued to record and tour in the 21st century. His later albums, such as You're the One (2000), So Beautiful or So What (2011), and Stranger to Stranger (2016), introduced him to new generations. His most recent album, Seven Psalms, was released in 2023.
Simon has twice been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and has won 16 Grammy Awards, including three for Album of the Year. Two of his works, Sounds of Silence (1966) (as part of Simon & Garfunkel) and Graceland, were inducted into the National Recording Registry for their cultural significance. He was honored with the Kennedy Center Honors in 2001 and the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize in 2007. He is a co-founder of the Children's Health Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides medical care to children. Simon is a supporter of the effective altruism movement, which uses evidence to determine where charitable giving will do the most good.
Simon was born on October 13, 1941, in Newark, New Jersey, the son of Jewish emigrants from Ukraine and Romania. His father, Louis (1916–1995), a professor of education at the City College of New York, was a double bass player and dance bandleader who performed under the name Lee Sims. His mother, Belle (1910–2007), was an elementary-school teacher. In 1945, his family moved to the Kew Gardens Hills section of Flushing, Queens, in New York City.
The musician Donald Fagen described Simon's childhood as that of "a certain kind of New York Jew, almost a stereotype really, to whom music and baseball are very important. I think it has to do with the parents. The parents are either immigrants or first-generation Americans who felt like outsiders, and assimilation was the key thought—they gravitated to black music and baseball, looking for an alternative culture." Simon said Fagen's description was not far from the truth. He described his father as funny and smart, but said he worked late and did not see his children much. He recalls hearing "Gee" by The Crows on Make Believe Ballroom: "It was really the first thing I heard on there that I liked. And it was really the first time I heard rock and roll." He tried to explain to his father the feeling he got hearing "Earth Angel": "My father was a very good musician. And he comes from an era of very sophisticated music. Big bands, and Sinatra ... He didn't buy it. But I love that record".
Simon met Art Garfunkel when they were 11 years old and performed together in a production of Alice in Wonderland for their sixth-grade graduation. The two began singing together at age 13, occasionally performing at school dances. At age 12 or 13, Simon wrote his first song, "The Girl for Me", for him and Garfunkel to perform. According to Simon, it became the "neighborhood hit". His father wrote the words and chords on paper for the boys to use, and that paper became the first officially copyrighted Simon and Garfunkel song. It is now in the Library of Congress. In 1957, in their mid-teens, they recorded the song "Hey, Schoolgirl" under the name "Tom & Jerry", a name given to them by their label, Big Records. The single reached number 49 on the Billboard charts.
After graduating from Forest Hills High School, Simon majored in English at Queens College and graduated in 1963. Garfunkel studied mathematics education at Columbia University in Manhattan. Simon was a brother in the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, and attended Brooklyn Law School for one semester in 1963.
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Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Simon & Garfunkel. Their blend of folk and rock, including hits such as "The Sound of Silence" (1965), "Mrs. Robinson" (1968), "America" (1968), and "The Boxer" (1969), served as a soundtrack to the 1960s counterculture. Their final album, Bridge over Troubled Water (1970), is among the best-selling of all time.
As a solo artist, Simon has explored genres including gospel, reggae, and soul. His albums Paul Simon (1972), There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), and Still Crazy After All These Years (1975) kept him in the public eye and drew acclaim, producing the hits "Mother and Child Reunion" (1972), "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" (1972), and "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" (1975). Simon reunited with Garfunkel for several tours and the 1981 Concert in Central Park. Simon hosted Saturday Night Live four times from 1975 to 1987 and has served as the musical guest various times on the show. He made his acting debut in the Woody Allen romantic comedy Annie Hall (1977).
In 1986, Simon released his most successful and acclaimed album, Graceland, incorporating South African influences. "You Can Call Me Al" became one of Simon's most successful singles. Graceland was followed by The Rhythm of the Saints (1990) and a second Concert in the Park in 1991, without Garfunkel, which approximately 500,000 people attended. In 1998, Simon wrote a Broadway musical, The Capeman, that was poorly received. He continued to record and tour in the 21st century. His later albums, such as You're the One (2000), So Beautiful or So What (2011), and Stranger to Stranger (2016), introduced him to new generations. His most recent album, Seven Psalms, was released in 2023.
Simon has twice been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and has won 16 Grammy Awards, including three for Album of the Year. Two of his works, Sounds of Silence (1966) (as part of Simon & Garfunkel) and Graceland, were inducted into the National Recording Registry for their cultural significance. He was honored with the Kennedy Center Honors in 2001 and the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize in 2007. He is a co-founder of the Children's Health Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides medical care to children. Simon is a supporter of the effective altruism movement, which uses evidence to determine where charitable giving will do the most good.
Simon was born on October 13, 1941, in Newark, New Jersey, the son of Jewish emigrants from Ukraine and Romania. His father, Louis (1916–1995), a professor of education at the City College of New York, was a double bass player and dance bandleader who performed under the name Lee Sims. His mother, Belle (1910–2007), was an elementary-school teacher. In 1945, his family moved to the Kew Gardens Hills section of Flushing, Queens, in New York City.
The musician Donald Fagen described Simon's childhood as that of "a certain kind of New York Jew, almost a stereotype really, to whom music and baseball are very important. I think it has to do with the parents. The parents are either immigrants or first-generation Americans who felt like outsiders, and assimilation was the key thought—they gravitated to black music and baseball, looking for an alternative culture." Simon said Fagen's description was not far from the truth. He described his father as funny and smart, but said he worked late and did not see his children much. He recalls hearing "Gee" by The Crows on Make Believe Ballroom: "It was really the first thing I heard on there that I liked. And it was really the first time I heard rock and roll." He tried to explain to his father the feeling he got hearing "Earth Angel": "My father was a very good musician. And he comes from an era of very sophisticated music. Big bands, and Sinatra ... He didn't buy it. But I love that record".
Simon met Art Garfunkel when they were 11 years old and performed together in a production of Alice in Wonderland for their sixth-grade graduation. The two began singing together at age 13, occasionally performing at school dances. At age 12 or 13, Simon wrote his first song, "The Girl for Me", for him and Garfunkel to perform. According to Simon, it became the "neighborhood hit". His father wrote the words and chords on paper for the boys to use, and that paper became the first officially copyrighted Simon and Garfunkel song. It is now in the Library of Congress. In 1957, in their mid-teens, they recorded the song "Hey, Schoolgirl" under the name "Tom & Jerry", a name given to them by their label, Big Records. The single reached number 49 on the Billboard charts.
After graduating from Forest Hills High School, Simon majored in English at Queens College and graduated in 1963. Garfunkel studied mathematics education at Columbia University in Manhattan. Simon was a brother in the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, and attended Brooklyn Law School for one semester in 1963.
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