Last night they showed Si/Gar's Concert in Central Park 1981 on PBS.

First, I wondered if any of our east coasters were at that show.

Second, I marveled at the incredible voices and solid songwriting that make these two such a pleasure. Damn they're good.

Third, I noticed many moments where the animosity between the two was more than a little apparent. Simon especially seemed like he was enduring torture having to stand there with Art. Does anyone know what happened to cause such tension between these two?

It would be really nice to see them unite again in Central Park, not as another benefit, but just as a big free party for a city that could probably use a mellow concert in the park.

I loved the team and their music but never saw the show or them in concert, but I must say I still listen to and enjoy their songs.

Such a shame...I had no idea they aired the concert. My luck, friends...my luck!
I simply adore Simon and Garfunkel. I was raised listening to them, and I've seen each amazing talent (respectively) in concert. My only hope is to see them...together...again. But, that's only a wish.
I think they simply grew apart. They performed together, starting at a very young age, singing under names like Tom and Jerry. The friends had a hit with 'Hey Schoolgirl' when they were only 15 (give or take) years of age. That's pretty remarkable!
They continued to evolve into the duo we know and love today. With the music, they dabbled in other areas of expression, such as film.
Art Garfunkel was in several movies, such as Carnal Knowledge, and Paul was still quite serious about the music. During the recording of their last album, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Art wasn't around for a lot of the recording. He would harmonize in between his other outlets, and it strained the relationship.
On the song 'So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright', you can hear (at the end) Paul saying "So long already, Artie!" To record it so it sounded as subtle as it does, they had to record Paul screaming the line. Gives you some inclination at the relationship!
All of this is strictly what I think happened. They don't really talk about it. When I saw Artie in concert, he made reference to fans asking what broke up S&G. He said jokingly that maybe S&G broke up because Art wanted it to say (in 'Mrs. Robinson')"Jesus loves you more than you knew...woo woo woo" and Paul insisted on "...know...whoa whoa whoa..." <img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/laugh.gif" width=15 height=15>

my ex and i saw S&G at michigan state university in 1967. it was a superb concert, just the two of them with one guitar (paul's). i had never seen anyone play an acoustic guitar so well before. it sounded like two guitars. it's still a very fond memory.

I was there, with my husband and I think my sister. It was a lovely time. Most of us were there all day waiting, because it was like 350,000 people packed into a pretty small area. If you wanted to see the stage at all you had to bring a blanket and hang out for 8 hours before the show, at least. I recall it as a totally mellow, peaceful, friendly event and the feeling lasted after it was all over as people drifted out of the park and masses of us walked down Broadway. There was also a very strong awareness that this was all taking place right near the Dakota, so relatively soon after John's death. Somehow everything seemed connected and it all seemed like a reunion for everyone, not only the two stars of the evening.

As far as Simon and Garfunkel's feelings about each other, none of that was so obvious from the distance we were at. But I do recall that there was an attempt to either tour or record together following that concert but it didn't work out. To the best of my recollection it was that Paul Simon wanted to be in control of everything, and if you've heard a lot of Art Garfunkel's solo work, it's understandable. I think his main contribution to the duo was his beautiful voice which blended so well with Paul Simon's, but that wasn't really enough for him and he wanted to be a creative equal, which he really couldn't be. That might not be right, but it's just the way I remember things happening.

i loved S & G, as their hits bubbled out. I remember pulling over to the curb, stopping my car, when I 1st heard Birdge over troubled waters" on the radio, East Washington Blvd, Pasadena, 2300 block!
love what Paul has done, w/ music & groups from other cultures, too. Graceland had much to do, with ending aparthied. There's a video, of Paul, on Graceland tour, in Harare, Zimbabwe, with Miriam Makeba, & Ladysmith, incredible sutff. Paul does a duet, with Miriam Makeba, "Joseph's Face" may be just be my favorite song performance, done live...

yea, well, I'm jealous of you Manhattenites, at ground zero, for so many music "hallowed spots" Strawberry Fields, Gerde's Folk City, Cafe Wha', et al....
."...stayin up for days, in the Chelsea Hotel , writin 'Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowland', for you.."
B Dylan, "Sara"

Silly Bumper. When you live someplace, you never go to all 'the places.' That's just the visitors who go out and actually take advantage of what's around. How many native New Yorkers have ever been to the Statue of Liberty, or the top of the Empire State Building -- unless they work there?

Except for Pat and Bob, maybe. But then, we already knew they were special.

I was at the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building once each, when I was a little kid. I was still meaning to go to the top of the World Trade Center sometime. Not happening now. Haven't gotten to Strawberry Fields yet, either. Or lots and lots of places. We've done the museums, as kids and with our kids but haven't seen the new improved planetarium. I keep meaning to go up to my old neighborhood and have a look around, but haven't done that either. When we go into the city it's almost always to go to a gig of one sort or another, Arlo, son, or once in a long while something else and there never seems to be time to do a whole lot more. I'd say that we spend 95% of our city time either around Carnegie Hall or in the Village.

Yes, i guess you are right, Muffy, I've been to Manhatten, 3 times & I've been to empire st bldg, statue of Liberty, MOMA, Guggenheim,the Met, Shea Stadium, and Windows of the World restaurant, World Trade Center. I did all that at "Bumper-style" pace...
"aayyy, I'm runnin heah!!..."

yeah.. went to that concert in the park... i have the t-shirt to prove it too! it was as pat describes, a rather mellow event... but garfunkel performed strictly out of Simon's largesse... he was somewhat snookered into allowing it when he agreed to the concert with the city.
A few years ago, Simon did a sort of retrospective show at the Paramount (now called the Theater at MSG, used to be called for many years the Felt Forum) A small intimate theater... he invited Ladysmith Black Mambazo(sp?) and Art Garfunkel to perform segments with him, covering all aspects of his career... All the segments with Simon alone, and with Ladysmith, Simon was very animated, very much into the music, dancing around... really enjoying it...
When he did the segment with Garfunkel... he performed with him the way he always used to... just standing there, looking down, and not really looking like he enjoyed the music, much less sharing the space!
The really amazing thing after that segment, was that he allowed Garfunkel to come back out and do a SOLO of Bridge over troubled waters... A very cool show, but very weird at the same time...

as for tourist spots in NYC, I think we've 'slummed' as tourists quite a few times, and have been to 'em all, with the current exception of the new Planetarium... I'm looking for some little kids to take that will go "wow!"

I'll come & "wow", Arnie..can I bring Muffy, too?

i do <u>great</u> "wow". are you kidding? please can i come too? hunh? hunh? can i? puh-leeeeeeeese? pretty please? pretty please with a cherry on top?
(thanks, bump.)

i always wanted to go to windows on the world, especially for their "wines of the world" feature (or whatever it was called), where you got a different wine with each course, and went through about ten courses... it's sure not going to happen now, though. used to pop down to the city for gigs -- mostly at the lone star (then race back up here for last call, sometimes). since i was born in nj, with my father commuting into the city every day, i went to my first broadway show at three or so. (we saw "five little peppers and how they grew") that's likely how i got hooked in the first place, come to think of it... went to the bronx zoo once (when i was the kid who was borrowed to justify the trip), would like to go there again. when living around 81st and amsterdam, i'd go down to the natural history museum, hang in central park and at moma; stayed with relatives a few times around 56th and 9th, also down by the river behind the lincoln center -- would sometimes stay with actor friends who'd moved up from dc (and get comps to their shows when i was lucky). midtown is what i know the best, as a result, i guess. no empire state building. <img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/frown.gif" width=15 height=15> may have been to the statue of liberty on the same trip that took me to the bronx zoo, but it's kinda hazy. that was such a looong time ago.
in dc i lived 5 blocks from the us capitol for years, so was down at the smithsonian all the time (especially the air and space museum, and the folk life festivals). i ushered at the folger so i could see shakespeare for free -- helen hayes would work there as a docent, so she could hang with shakespearean scholars and see the shows a lot. <img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/smile.gif" width=15 height=15>

Hey, muffy, I lived on west 87th, between west end and riverside drive, although probably not at the same time you were at 81st. I was there for about my first 11 years.

The Bronx Zoo was one thing we did a few times and also took our kids to. That was my favorite thing to do. A couple of years ago on Carnegie weekend, Sherry and Ken and I ventured into the Central Park Zoo. That was a time trip. Hadn't been there since the 50's.

ok, so, I'll play the LA version... I was on the original usher crew, at Dorothy Chandler Pavillion, in LA, ran an elevator there for 1 1/2 years, we used to go to La Brea Tar Pits for lunch, between Sat performances, hang out w/ the saber tooth tiger statue
The Rose Bowl was my high school home field, for football, John Muir Mustangs, graduated , in there HELLO hello hello hello hello......worked on Rose Parade floats for 3 years...long ago, far away....