SIMON AND GARFUNKEL - THE SUN IS BURNING

THE SUN IS BURNING

SIMON AND GARFUNKEL

SONGWRITER: IAN CAMPBELL

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: WEDNESDAY MORNING, 3 A. M.

LABEL: COLUMBIA RECORDS

GENRE: FOLK ROCK

YEAR: 1964

 

         Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including "The Sound of Silence" (1965), "Mrs. Robinson" (1968), "The Boxer" (1969), and "Bridge over Troubled Water" (1970)—reached number one on singles charts worldwide.

         Simon and Garfunkel met in elementary school in Queens, New York, in 1953, where they learned to harmonize and began writing songs. In 1957, under the name Tom & Jerry, the teenagers had their first minor success with "Hey Schoolgirl", a song imitating their idols, the Everly Brothers. In 1963, aware of a growing public interest in folk music, they regrouped and were signed to Columbia Records as Simon & Garfunkel. Their debut, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., sold poorly; Simon returned to a solo career, this time in England. In June 1965, a new version of "The Sound of Silence" overdubbed with electric guitar and drums became a US AM radio hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The duo reunited to release a second studio album, Sounds of Silence, and tour colleges nationwide. On their third release, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme(1966), they assumed more creative control. Their music was featured in the 1967 film The Graduate, giving them further exposure. Their next álbum Bookends(1968) topped the Billboard 200 chart and included the number-one single "Mrs. Robinson" from the film.

      Simon and Garfunkel had a troubled relationship, leading to artistic disagreements and their breakup in 1970. Their final studio album, Bridge over Troubled Water, was released that January, becoming one of the world's best-selling albums. After their breakup, Simon released a number of acclaimed albums, including 1986's Graceland. Garfunkel released solo hits such as "All I Know" and briefly pursued an acting career, with leading roles in the Mike Nichols films Catch-22 and Carnal Knowledge and in Nicolas Roeg's 1980 Bad Timing. The duo have reunited several times; their 1981 concert in Central Park attracted more than 500,000 people, one of the largest concert attendances in history.

       Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. is the debut studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Following their early gig as "Tom and Jerry", Columbia Records signed the two in late 1963. It was produced by Tom Wilson and engineered by Roy Halee. The cover and the label include the subtitle exciting new sounds in the folk tradition. Recorded in March 1964, the album was released on October 19.

The album was initially unsuccessful, so Paul Simon moved to London, England and finished his first solo album The Paul Simon Songbook. Art Garfunkel continued his studies at Columbia University in his native New York City, before reuniting with Simon in late 1965. Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. was re-released in January 1966 (to capitalize on their newly found radio success because of the overdubbing of the song "The Sound of Silence" in June 1965, adding electric guitars, bass guitar and a drum kit), and reached Nº 30 on the Billboard 200. It was belatedly released in the UK two years later (in 1968) in both mono and stereo formats.

         The song "He Was My Brother" was dedicated to Andrew Goodman, who was their friend and a classmate of Simon at Queens College. Andrew Goodman volunteered in Freedom Summer during 1964 and was abducted and killed in the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner.

           The album is included in its entirety as part of the Simon & Garfunkel box sets Collected Works and The Columbia Studio Recordings(1964–1970).

The sun is burning in the sky

Strands of clouds go slowly drifting by

In the park the lazy bees

Are joining in the flowers among the trees

And the sun burns in the sky

 

Now the sun is in the West

Little kids go home to take their rest

And the couples in the park

Are holding hands and waitin' for the dark

And the sun is in the West

 

Now the sun is sinking low

Children playing know it's time to go

High above a spot appears

A little blossom blooms and then draws near

And the sun is sinking low

 

Now the sun has come to earth

Shrouded in a mushroom cloud of death

Death comes in a blinding flash

Of hellish heat and leaves a smear of ash

And the sun has come to earth

 

Now the sun has disappeared

All is darkness, anger, pain and fear

Twisted sightless wrecks of men

Go groping on their knees and cry in pain

And the sun has disappeared.