Song:(What A) Wonderful World
Album:The Singer
Of course Art Garfunkel is best known as one half of Simon and Garfunkel. After they split up in 1970, Garfunkel had success as a solo artist including this cover of the Sam Cooke classic (What A) Wonderful World in 1978. He was born Nov. 5, 1941 in Queens, NY. He began singing at an early age even in the synagogue. Apparently his Bar Mitzvah was quite the show. He met Paul Simon in sixth grade and they performed as Tom and Jerry for several years. Their main influence at the time was The Everly Brothers. They split up and then reformed as Simon and Garfunkel in 1963. They were not successful at first and Simon moved to England. But they reformed when Sounds Of Silence was a hit. They were one of the most popular groups of the 60s. They split up in 1970. Simon had immediate solo success. Garfunkel appeared in the films Catch-22 and Carnal Knowledge. Then he released his 1973 debut album Angel Clare and the single All I Know reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. For his 1975 album Breakaway, Garfunkel reunited with Simon for the single My Little Town. It reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's Garfunkel's biggest hit to date and the album was certified Platinum. For the 1977 album Watermark, Garfunkel decided to do an album of Jimmy Webb songs. But when the first single didn't chart, Columbia pulled the album and had Garfunkel record a cover of the Sam Cooke classic (What A) Wonderful World with Simon and James Taylor. The single reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it helped with album sales too. One note is that this album was sax player Paul Desmond's final appearance before his death from cancer. After Garfunkel's 1979 album Fate For Breakfast was released, his longtime girlfriend Laurie Bird committed suicide. He dedicated the 1981 album Scissors Cut to her and then he disappeared for several years until his 1988 album Lefty. He was married by then and he and his wife have two kids. Garfunkel still records occasionally. He left Columbia in 1998 and he has recorded for Blue Note and Atco. He's had voice problems in recent years which seems to be a byproduct of years of heavy smoking. He still tours so I expect him to record at some point. This 2CD comp has all of his hits along with Simon and Garfunkel highlights. Here's a video of (What A) Wonderful World by Art Garfunkel featuring Paul Simon and James Taylor.
AS a family, we really loved Simon And Garfunkel in the 60's. The Sounds of Silence we loved as well as many others they produced. We played their music a lot at our house. I am glad that Art Garfunkel had success after they broke up. I wish both of them the best. They really made some great music back then.
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