The 500 - #202 - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme - Simon and Garfunkel

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #202
Album Title: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme
Artist: Simon And Garfunkel

Genre: Folk Rock
Recorded: Columbia Studios, New York, U.S.A.

Released: October, 1966
My age at release: 1
How familiar was I with it before this week: Somewhat

Is it on the 2020 list? No
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: A Simple Desultory Philippic

There is a quote, often ascribed to Vladimir Lenin, which says: "There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen." During our summer of 2024, this seems powerfully applicable. We live in a time charged with international tension, wars, assassination attempts, consequential worldwide election campaigns, a humanitarian crisis, racial and cultural hostility, and environmental disasters.

1966 had its own upheavals. It, too, was time of global strife, with events that, in some ways, are eerily similar to the summer of 2024.

• Political protests against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War were raging on college campuses.
• The Mississippi Marches sought an end to segregation and advancements in civil rights, while the Watts Rebellions protested racist police actions in Los Angeles.
• Military coup d états rocked Indonesia, Syria, Burundi, Nigeria, the Central African Republic and Ghana.
• Cold War Russian/U.S. tensions moved into the heavens. The Soviets blasted two Kosmos spacecraft into orbit, while the U.S. launched the Gemini program. The race for space supremacy was on in earnest.

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin takes the first "selfie" from space (1966)

• A U.S. submarine lost (and then found) a hydrogen bomb on the ocean floor.
• Mao Zedong introduced China's Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution to his people and abortion and gun-rights took centre stage in the election of Ronald Regan as Governor of California. (Spoiler: the Republican former actor wasn’t on the side you might think...for either issue.)
• Natural disasters, including earthquakes, tornadoes, record cold spells and snowstorms claimed thousands of lives.
• However, it was an avoidable, man-made tragedy that made headlines in Aberfan, Wales. On October 21, 116 children and 28 adults died when a coal waste heap slid and engulfed a primary school.

Aftermath of the coal waste slide in Aberfan in southern Wales.

Throughout this tumultuous period, arts and entertainment thrived -- perhaps fueled by chaos, acrimony and uncertainty of the times. Twelve records on The 500, including three in the Top 10, were released in 1966. An additional 19 records on the list were recorded that year and released in 1967, among them, The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which landed at #1.

Then, there was album #202, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, the third studio release from folk rock musicians Simon and Garfunkel. It was the second of three records by the New York duo to appear on the list, although Simon has an additional two as a solo artist. I shared a little about their history, as well as a story about my late "aunt" Jean in a December, 2023, post centered on their fourth record, Bookends.

Album cover for Bookends (1968).

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme includes several songs that were "recycled" from Simon's debut solo record, The Paul Simon Songbook, written during his time in England. PSR&T is considered a breakthrough record for the pair and many critics identify it one of their best. It peaked at #4 on the Billboard charts but eventually sold more than three million in the United States, which gave it triple platinum status.

Album cover for The Paul Simon Songbook (1965).

I was familiar with several songs from the record; however, prior to this week, I had never listened to it in its entirety. The song that struck me has a title that is a mouthful: A Simple Desultory Philippic (or How I Was Robert McNamara'd into Submission). Originally recorded on the aforementioned Simon Songbook, the tune was penned as a playful parody of American musician Bob Dylan's 1965 protest song Subterranean Homesick Blues.

Single for A Simple Desultory Philippic.

In an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine, Simon admits he was exploring Dylan's style, saying:

"One of my deficiencies is (that) my voice sounds sincere. I've tried to sound ironic. I don't. I can't. With Dylan, everything he sings has two meanings. He's telling you the truth and making fun at the same time."

With a playing length of fewer than two and a half minutes, this lyrically dense parody packs a lot of references into its three verses and six line bridge. Simon name-checks numerous contemporary politicians and artists, including Norman Mailer, The Beatles, Mick Jagger, Ayn Rand, Andy Warhol, Lou Adler, Lenny Bruce, and even his singing partner, Art Garfunkel.

Simon (rear) and Garfunkel in New York (1966).

When asked about the title in an interview, Simon offered the following:

"I was having fun. I thought it would be funny to use those unusual words 'desultory' and 'philippic,' in a song title, and I also wanted to sneak in some Lenny Bruce, who was my favorite comedian. That line, 'How I Was Robert McNamara'd Into Submission,' is pure Lenny."

To be desultory is to be laid back or indifferent, while a philippic is a bitter, verbal attack. It's derived from a speech Greek Statesman Demosthenes delivered in opposition to the military ambitions of Philip II, King of Macedon, in 351 B.C. Heady stuff to be sure, but all presented with tongue firmly planted in cheek.

Simon's clever and reference-dense lyrical satire got the educator in me thinking. I have, in the past, invited students to rewrite or parody lyrics to songs that lend themselves to that challenge -- swapping out more contemporary or personal events for a stanza in Billy Joel's We Didn't Start The Fire, for example.

Billy Joel's 1989 song, We Didn't Start The Fire, is a fast paced list
of 119 significant cultural events from 1949 (his birth year) to 1989.

Just last year, several clever groups of Grade 7 students rewrote and performed two stanzas from The Breaks, from Kurtis Blow. The 1979 hip-hop hit, the first of the "rap" genre, features four line stanzas that follow a predictable AABB rhyming scheme. In each, Blow comically describes unfortunate situations that people encounter in life and have to deal with because, "That's the breaks."

Album cover for the single, The Breaks, Kurtis Blow (1979)

The activity, which can be viewed in its entirety here, offered students the chance to rewrite the track by humourously infusing contemporary problems. I even created a Karaoke-style track that the most courageous could use to perform their rap, while classmates supported them with the "That's the Breaks / That's the Breaks" call and response.

\My example (which I absolutely rapped for the wide-eyed class) is below.

So, after hearing Simon's lyrics for A Simple Desultory Philippic, I wondered if I could update it and infuse personal political and pop culture perspectives. 

The challenge I gave myself was to try to match Simon's overall construction and rhyme scheme, while swapping out his '60s references with my own ('80s-Present). I tried to stick to his meter, but that proved too challenging. If you are interested in seeing the original lyrics and then reading my parody of Simon's parody of a Dylan song, check it out here. I am not sure if this has "middle school lesson potential" yet -- but, we'll see.

This post and that small creative exercise were a pleasant respite from the chaos of the summer of 2024 which, sadly, beckons my return to reality. That's the breaks!  Thanks for reading.

The 500 - #234 - Bookends - Simon & Garfunkel

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #234
Album Title: Bookends
Artist: Simon & Garfunkel
Genre: Folk Rock
Recorded: Columbia - 52 Street Studios, New York, New York

Released: April, 1968
My age at release: 2
How familiar was I with it before this week: Most of it

Is it on the 2020 list? No
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Mrs. Robinson

In September, 1980, my dad took me out of school for one week for a surprise trip to California and Nevada. This recently minted 15-year-old saw all the Hollywood sites, made famous in movies and television shows I had loved as a kid. I climbed Bell Mountain and spent a night sleeping under the stars on Coyote Dry Bed Lake in the desert. I saw a Mojave Green Rattlesnake and a Californian Scorpion in the wild. We visited the Hoover Dam and spent two nights in Las Vegas where I played video games in the Circus Circus casino that wouldn't make it to Canada for months.

A vintage postcard from the Circus Circus Casino (1980)

Our host for the trip was Jean Tierney who, despite not being related to me, I called “Aunt Jean”. She and my father met when they both worked at the Kingston Whig Standard in 1968. He was the assistant wire editor and Jean was a reporter. They only worked together for seven months. My dad moved to the Hamilton Spectator as a copy editor. Adventurous Jean headed for a kibbutz in Israel, giving my dad her guitar for safe-keeping. It was the first guitar I used to teach myself how to play. Years later, in 1980, the guitar was returned to its rightful owner when, by pure chance, she reconnected with my dad at The London Free Press, where he became a senior reporter, and she was visiting her brother, and to check out the newspaper's new-fangled computer system. When Jean left for home in Victorville, famous for exhibiting cowboy movie star Roy Rogers’ stuffed horse, Trigger, the California visit was hatched.

The London Free Press Building in London, Ontario.

Jean was the coolest adult I had ever met. Not only did she live in an inviting adobe-style home on the edge of the desert in Victorville, she drove an early-’70s white Dodge Valiant she called "Prince" -- aka Prince Valiant. She knew volumes about the flora and fauna of the Mojave and took us hiking. We spent one night camping out on the Coyote Dry Bed Lake, where dad let me drive Jean’s car. My first time behind the wheel and I was grinning. Jean’s concern about her beloved Prince was assuaged when dad reassured her: “There’s nothing to run into out there.” It was later when my turn came to be reassured when Jean said: "Snakes won't cross a dry lake because there is nothing out there for them. But, be sure to shake out your boots in the morning before you put your feet in." I trusted her, but still had a fitful night's sleep worrying about venomous reptiles and arachnids. Eventually, I moved from the hard ground to the backseat of "Prince" to finish my slumber. The campfire of scrounged dead twigs and vegetation gathered from the salt lake “shore” was still burning in the morning.

An early-70s white Valiant - similar to "Prince".

This memorable trip came when my 15-year-old self was cultivating a taste in music. I loved flipping through the record collections of the adults in my world. Jean didn't have many discs, but one stood out --  Simon & Garfunkel's Greatest Hits. Paul Simon's song, Late In The Evening, from his upcoming film One Trick Pony, was a hit on the radio at the time and I liked it. I asked Jean if she would play the record and she readily obliged, telling me that The Boxer was one of her favourites. That disc got many spins that week and I became a fan of the duo.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel met in elementary school in Queens, New York, in 1953. It was there that they learned to harmonize and write songs. Initially performing in New York coffee houses as Tom & Jerry, the pair had a modest hit in 1957 with the song Hey Schoolgirl, which was written in the same style as their musical idols, the Everly Brothers. In 1963, they signed with Columbia Records and rebranded with their own last names. They enjoyed commercial and critical success throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s, with three number one songs and multiple charting hits. They have three records on The 500 list, with Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme checking in at #202 and Bridge Over Troubled Waters appearing at #51. Paul Simon also has two records on the list, including his self-titled debut (#268) which I wrote about in April, 2023. Graceland is at #71. Not only is it a crackin' album, its release coincided with one of the best times in my life. I look forward to writing about Graceland in two years. It is a record that is likely in my Top Ten.

Bookends is the fourth studio record from Simon & Garfunkel, released after their eight-song contribution to the soundtrack for the film The Graduate. Side one is a concept record, which means that the individual tracks interrelate to tell a larger narrative, exploring the journey from childhood to old age. Side Two is comprised of previously released singles and additional tracks intended, but not used, in the The Graduate,

Aunt Jean and I reconnected through Facebook about four years ago and she became a loyal reader -- often sharing positive feedback or additional commentary on the records I wrote about. At one point, I mentioned the Simon & Garfunkel records on the list and reminded her of the impact her record had on my teenage fandom. I planned on asking her to guest blog on this record and I’m sure she would have agreed. However, she passed away on September 22, 2022, at the age of 80. Her obituary can be found here. Thanks Aunt Jean for that epic adventure in the autumn of 1980. You were a wonderful host and I am so glad that I got to share a little time in your universe. Simon & Garfunkel's The Boxer will always remind me of you.

The 500 - #268 - Paul Simon (Self-titled)- Paul Simon

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #268

Album Title: Paul Simon

Artist: Paul Simon

Genre: Folk Rock infused with other musical styles

Recorded: Four Studios in U.K., U.S.(2) & Jamaica

Released: January, 1972

My age at release: 6

How familiar was I with it before this week: Somewhat

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #425, dropping 157 places

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard

Album cover for Simon's self-titled release.

The self-titled record from singer, songwriter, guitarist and actor Paul Simon was his second release. However, it was the first album he recorded after splitting from long-time collaborator Art Garfunkel whom he had known since sixth grade. The duo recorded five studio albums during their time together which included more than 20 singles, including their number one hits The Sound of Silence, Bridge Over Troubled Water, The Boxer and Mrs. Robinson -- from the soundtrack to the Oscar-nominated 1967 film The Graduate.

Movie poster for The Graduate

Simon's first solo release, The Paul Simon Songbook was released in 1965, following multiple visits to England to play coffee houses and small venues. He recorded the album at Levy's Recording Studio in London, with only a single microphone for his voice and guitar. The album contained early versions of many songs, including I Am A Rock and The Sound Of Silence, which would later be re-recorded with Garfunkel.

Album cover for Paul Simon's Songbook

The split between Simon and Garfunkel occurred in 1970, shortly after they released their best selling album, Bridge Over Troubled Waters (#52 on The 500). The recording of that album was difficult as the relationship between the pair had become acrimonious. At the urging of Simon's first wife, Peggy Harper, he made the decision to break from Garfunkel in the spring of 1970. Although they reunited to perform together many times over the next four decades, this would mark the start of Simon's commercially and critically successful solo career.

Simon and Garfunkel - a troubled partnership

This got me thinking about times when I made important splits in my life and risks that paid off.

In 1997, I quit my job as a bartender at Jack Astors' Restaurant when I found out that I had an interview at Garlic's Restaurant. Not a job. An interview. I disliked working at Jack Astors' enough to understand I needed a change and was confident of landing the Garlics' gig. I did and worked there for 12 years, making friendships that continue to this day.

In 2016, I applied for a position as an Instructional Coach with my school board. This meant leaving the classroom to work with other teachers at six schools. The professional growth I experienced during my two years in this position made me a better educator.

Another significant change was my January, 2018, decision to switch the direction of my blog from education-based posts to documenting my journey through The 500. Not only did it provide me with a different weekly topic (something I was missing when I wrote exclusively about education), it has also helped generate meaningful connections.

I have enhanced my relationships with more than a dozen friends, acquaintances and students who were willing to guest blog for me. In the case of my friend Claudio, who passed away in December, 2021, his two guest-posts serve as a digital memorial to the friendship we built discussing music over the decade I knew him. I've re-read them many times, missing his presence.

Promoting my blog through social media has helped build a loyal readership and has connected me with a smart, kind and supportive network. Like-minded, musical adventurers who read, respond to and promote my posts weekly, include:

• Denise K a Southern Californian of my generation, who shares stories and excellent music suggestions with me weekly.
• TJ Gillespie from Philadelphia, who reposts my blog along with his favourite line or idea from that post.
• James Cornelius, a fellow Rush fan, who microblogs through Twitter about the music he loves always reposts my efforts.
• Doug Peterson and Stephen Hurley who host a weekly podcast called This Week In Ontario Edublogs. On a half dozen occasions, they have discussed my 500 blog posts, amplifying my voice to other educators.
• Author Shana Hartman, a long time supporter of the blog who provided me with early access to her Young Adult Science Fiction novel, The Sentinels Vs. The Night Crawlers, so I could read it with my Grade 7 class.
• Fellow music blogger and podcaster, Various Artists, who read all 200 of my blog posts when he discovered them in the summer of 2022. He interviewed me about this journey last month and it will be released in an upcoming podcast. His My Life In Concerts website is a wealth of fascinating stories and pictures.
• Fellow Canadian Eamon O'Flynn, who is also working his way through the 2020 edition of The 500 on his podcast, Record Roulette. 
  

Above is a graphic I show to my students every year to encourage them to take risks in the learning process in our classroom. However, I also show it to remind myself that, like Simon leaving Garfunkel, can lead to opportunities that one might otherwise miss. We shouldn’t settle for merely being content, even if things seem to be going well.