Simon and Garfunkel Manchester Arena 14th July 2004
I really didn’t expect to get the chance to see Simon and Garfunkel together again. But, 20 years after touring the world, including a show at Wembley Stadium, the duo reformed again, and were back out on the road on their “Old Friends” tour. Support this time came from their childhood heroes and influences the Everly Brothers. The show was in three parts. Simon and Garfunkel started with “Old Friends / Bookends” and then were straight into one of my favourites, “Hazy Shade of Winter”. The first half featured other classics including “America” and “Kathy’s Song”. For the last song of the first set the pair took us right back to their first hit, “Hey Schoolgirl”, from the days when they were known as Tom and Jerry. That song gave them a chance to pay tribute to the guys whose songs and harmonies influenced them, as they welcomed Don and Phil Everly to take the stage. The Everlys then played a short set of four songs: “Wake Up Little Susie”; “All I Have to Do Is Dream”; “Let It Be Me” and “Bye Bye Love”. 
Simon and Grafunkel returned for a second set including all the other great tunes: “Scarborough Fair”; “Homeward Bound”; my all-time favourite “The Sound of Silence”; “Mrs. Robinson” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. Paul Simon also sang a number of his solo hits. The screens behind them showed videos of them as kids, and during the ’60s, bringing back lots of memories for all of us. The audience called them back for a few encores, including the haunting “Leaves That Are Green”. Wonderful stuff. Now whats the chances of them coming back again in another 10 years? Well you never know, do you.
Set 1: Old Friends/Bookends; A Hazy Shade of Winter; I Am a Rock; America; At the Zoo; Baby Driver; Kathy’s Song; Hey, Schoolgirl.
The Everly Brothers set: Wake Up Little Susie; All I Have to Do Is Dream; Let It Be Me; Bye Bye Love
Set 2: Scarborough Fair/Canticle; Homeward Bound; The Sound of Silence; Mrs. Robinson; Slip Slidin’ Away; El Condor Pasa (If I Could); Keep the Customer Satisfied; The Only Living Boy in New York; American Tune; My Little Town; Bridge Over Troubled Water.
Encore: Cecilia; The Boxer
Encore 2: Leaves That Are Green; The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)
Archive for the ‘Simon and Garfunkel’ Category
30 Jul
Simon and Garfunkel Manchester Arena 14th July 2004
29 Jul
Simon and Garfunkel Wembley Stadium 19th June 1982
Simon and Garfunkel Wembley Stadium 19th June 1982
I never thought I’d get the chance to see Simon and Garfunkel in concert. I’d seen Paul Simon once at a concert in the London Palladium in the 1970s, but felt that the chance of a reunion with Art Garfunkel was slim. However, Simon and Garfunkel did reunite for a free concert in New York City’s Central Park on September 19, 1981. The Central Park concert was attended by over 500,000 people, a recording of it was released as a live album, and the duo then went on to go on a world tour in 1982–83, including a performance at London in June 1982. This was a great concert, with Paul and Art singing all their classic hits, along with a couple of Paul Simon solo songs, Art Garfunkel’s “Bright Eyes” and a nod to their influences in the form of a couple of Everly Brothers’ songs. At the time I thought it strange going to see a folk-based act in a vast stadium, and wondered if the songs would get lost in such a vast venue. 
I needn’t have worried. The beauty and power of those simple songs transfixed the crowd of 72,000 people. The stage set was similar to the Central Park concert, and as far as I recall, there was no support act.
Setlist: Mrs. Robinson; Homeward Bound; America; Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard; Scarborough Fair; My Little Town; Wake Up Little Susie; Still Crazy After All These Years; Bright Eyes; Late In The Evening; Slip, Sliding Away; El Condor Pasa; American Tune; The Late Great Johnny Ace; Kodachrome/Mabellene; Bridge Over Troubled Water; The Boxer; Old Friends/Bookends; 59th Street Bridge Song; Cecilia; Sounds Of Silence; All I Have To Do Is Dream
Vintagerock's Weblog. 