Paul Simon Concerts Setlist

Paul Simon is an American folk/rock singer and songwriter. He was born on October 13th 1941 in Newark, New Jersey. His parents were Hungarian-Jewish immigrants, with his father being an amateur double bass player. Simon met Art Garfunkel, with whom he later formed an iconic music duo, when both of them were aged 11. They started singing together at age 13. Simon described their first musical act as a “neighborhood hit”.

Simon and Garfunkel, originally under the stage name “Tom & Jerry,” recorded their first professionally produced song in 1957, under the label Big Records. The song was titled "Hey, Schoolgirl," and it became a moderate hit in the United States.  

After graduating from high school, Simon and Garfunkel’s paths drifted apart, as they attended two different colleges (although both in New York City). They would occasionally reunite for some music, but both focused on their solo careers - Simon was the only one who had some minor success. In 1964, they got together again to audition for Columbia Records, an audition they passed together. Their debut album came out in October 1964, with the title “Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.,” and now under the name Simon & Garfunkel. However, the album only saw moderate commercial success, so Simon decided to move to London, United Kingdom, after even saying “There was no place to play in New York City. They wouldn't have me”.

He recorded a solo folk album while in London. In the meantime, back in the US, the track called “Sound of Silence” off of the first Simon & Garfunkel record started to become what is known in the industry as a “sleeper hit,” meaning it became popular only some time after its release. This prompted Simon to go back to the US, and reunite with Garfunkel for a second album, with the same title “Sound of Silence” - that record became a hit!

Simon & Garfunkel put out 3 more full studio albums together (they have 5 total), until their break-up in 1970. Their break-up was brought on by tensions over Garfunkel not being a songwriter himself; thus all the songs were actually written by Simon. This culminated when their 1970 song "Bridge Over Troubled Water” became a massive hit, but only featured Garfunkel’s vocals, despite that too being written by Simon.

As a solo artist, Paul Simon continued to enjoy massive success. It started with his self-titled debut album “Paul Simon” in 1972. His best selling solo album is “Graceland” from 1986, which sold around 16 million copies worldwide. However, it is still not as successful as the best selling Simon & Garfunkel record, “Bridge Over Troubled Water," which has sold around 30 million copies. Simon has 15 (!) solo albums in total.

The biggest Paul Simon hits to date are “The Sound of Silence” (1964), and “Mrs. Robinson” (1968) as part of Simon & Garfunkel; and “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” (1975), “You Can Call Me Al” (1986), and "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" (also 1986) as a solo artist. You can check when the next Paul Simon concert is playing near you on the page above.