Bridge over Troubled Water (song)
Encyclopedia
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" is the title song of Simon & Garfunkel's album of the same name
. The single was released on January 26, 1970, though it also appears on the live album Live 1969
, released in 2008. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100
chart on February 28, 1970, and stayed at the top of the chart for six weeks. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" also topped the adult contemporary chart
in the U.S. for six weeks.
This song's recording process exposed many of the underlying tensions that eventually led to the breakup of the duo after the album's completion. Most notably, Paul Simon
has repeatedly expressed regret over his insistence that Art Garfunkel
sing this song as a solo, as it focused attention on Garfunkel and relegated Simon to a secondary position. Art Garfunkel initially did not want to sing lead vocal, feeling it was not right for him. "He felt I should have done it," Paul Simon revealed to Rolling Stone
in 1972.
Garfunkel said that the moment when he performed it at a 1972 Madison Square Garden
benefit concert, as part of a one-off reunion with Simon, was "almost biblical."
In performances on the 2003 "Old Friends
" tour, Simon and Garfunkel took turns singing alternate verses of the vocal.
Rolling Stone
named it number 47 on The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
in Europe.
The song originally had two verses and different lyrics. Simon specifically wrote it for Garfunkel and knew it would be a piano song. The chorus lyrics were partly inspired by Claude Jeter
's line "I'll be your bridge over deep water if you trust in me," which Jeter sang with his group, the Swan Silvertones
, in the 1958 song "Mary Don't You Weep
."
Garfunkel reportedly liked Simon's falsetto
on the demo and suggested that Simon sing. He and producer Roy Halee also thought the song needed three verses and a 'bigger' sound towards the end. Simon agreed and penned the final verse, though he felt it was less than fully cohesive with the earlier verses. The final verse was written about Simon's then-wife Peggy Harper, who had noticed her first gray hairs ("Sail on, silvergirl").
Garfunkel's first two attempts to record the vocal failed. The first two verses were finally recorded in New York with the final verse recorded first, in Los Angeles. Part of the song was first heard in public on November 30, 1969, when it was included in the soundtrack of a one-hour TV special by the duo aired by CBS
; the music appeared in the background of a clip with John F. Kennedy
, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Larry Knechtel
spent four days working on the piano arrangement. Garfunkel came up with the intermediate piano chords between the verses while working with Knechtel.
and Song of the Year
in the Grammy Awards of 1971
, with its album also winning several awards in the same year.
by Aretha Franklin
, taken from her album Aretha Live at Fillmore West
, reached number one on the U.S. R&B
chart and number six on the pop chart, and later won the Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
in the 1972 awards
. Her live performance of the song at the Grammy Awards was released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III.
recorded it in Nashville on June 5, 1970, and it was released on the 1970 album That's the Way It Is
. He included it in his set list for his next engagement in Las Vegas, which included the filming of the 1970 documentary Elvis: That's the Way It Is
, and the song was included in the original theatrical release (included version is from the August 11 dinner show).http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLbOBoa8vD8&feature=related During that summer season in Vegas, Paul Simon attended one of the shows, and, after seeing Elvis perform the song, he was reported to have said, "That's it, we might as well all give up now." Presley continued to use this song throughout his live performances, including his final live appearance in Indianapolis on June 26, 1977. Another live performance was seen in the Golden Globe-winning documentary Elvis on Tour
, filmed at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, on April 14, 1972. Elvis even sung it at one of his Madison Square Garden Shows back in June 1972.
On the studio version, Robert Matthew Watson wrote in his book Heartbreak Hotel: "Presley's outstanding singing is not disguised. This is a fabulous version, burning with sincerity and power, and finding depths not revealed by the composers."
, Curtis Mayfield
's protegee signed on his Curtom label released an up-tempo disco
version of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" on her album "Let me be your woman" in March 1979. This epic version (10:20 in length) was produced by Gil Askey (jazz trumpet player and musical director for many Motown acts) and mixed by Jimmy Simpson, brother of Valerie Simpson from Ashford and Simpson. The song has two originalities, the first one being a 132 bpm
tempo (considered for being the ideal tempo for disco dancing) when the Simon and Garfunkel original is 82 bpm and Aretha Franklin's cover is 76 bpm. It was the first time that this song was covered with a fast tempo. It also has a highly original " Brazilian cuica
on a disco beat" break. It became a US disco #11, pop #41, R&B #49 and UK #28.
Bridge over Troubled Water
Bridge Over Troubled Water is the fifth and final studio album by Simon & Garfunkel. Released on January 26, 1970 on both Quadraphonic and Stereo formats, it reached No. 1 on Billboard Music Charts pop albums list...
. The single was released on January 26, 1970, though it also appears on the live album Live 1969
Live 1969
Live 1969 is a live album by Simon & Garfunkel released through Columbia Records. It consists of live recordings captured on the duo's final North American tour, prior to the release of their Bridge Over Troubled Water album...
, released in 2008. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart on February 28, 1970, and stayed at the top of the chart for six weeks. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" also topped the adult contemporary chart
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
in the U.S. for six weeks.
This song's recording process exposed many of the underlying tensions that eventually led to the breakup of the duo after the album's completion. Most notably, Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
has repeatedly expressed regret over his insistence that Art Garfunkel
Art Garfunkel
Arthur Ira "Art" Garfunkel is an American singer-songwriter, poet, and actor, best known as being a member of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel...
sing this song as a solo, as it focused attention on Garfunkel and relegated Simon to a secondary position. Art Garfunkel initially did not want to sing lead vocal, feeling it was not right for him. "He felt I should have done it," Paul Simon revealed to Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
in 1972.
Garfunkel said that the moment when he performed it at a 1972 Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
benefit concert, as part of a one-off reunion with Simon, was "almost biblical."
In performances on the 2003 "Old Friends
Old Friends: Live on Stage
Simon & Garfunkel's Old Friends Live On Stage is a live documentary from their highly successful "Old Friends" reunion concert tour of 2003, with The Everly Brothers as special guests...
" tour, Simon and Garfunkel took turns singing alternate verses of the vocal.
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
named it number 47 on The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Writing and recording
Simon wrote the song in the summer of 1969 while Garfunkel was filming Catch-22Catch-22 (film)
Catch-22 is a 1970 satirical war film adapted from the book of the same name by Joseph Heller. Considered a black comedy revolving around the "lunatic characters" of Heller's satirical anti-war novel, it was the work of a talented production team which included director Mike Nichols and...
in Europe.
The song originally had two verses and different lyrics. Simon specifically wrote it for Garfunkel and knew it would be a piano song. The chorus lyrics were partly inspired by Claude Jeter
Claude Jeter
Claude A. Jeter was an African American gospel music singer. Originally a coal miner from Kentucky, Jeter formed the group that would eventually become one of the most popular gospel quartets of the post-war era – the Swan Silvertones...
's line "I'll be your bridge over deep water if you trust in me," which Jeter sang with his group, the Swan Silvertones
Swan Silvertones
The Swan Silvertones were an American gospel music group that achieved popularity in the 1940s and 1950s while led by Claude Jeter. Jeter formed the group in 1938 as the "Four Harmony Kings" while he was working as a coal miner in West Virginia...
, in the 1958 song "Mary Don't You Weep
Mary Don't You Weep
"Mary Don't You Weep" is a Negro spiritual that originates from before the American Civil War – thus it is what scholars call a "slave song," "a label that describes their origins among the enslaved," and it contains "coded messages of hope and resistance." It is...
."
Garfunkel reportedly liked Simon's falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
on the demo and suggested that Simon sing. He and producer Roy Halee also thought the song needed three verses and a 'bigger' sound towards the end. Simon agreed and penned the final verse, though he felt it was less than fully cohesive with the earlier verses. The final verse was written about Simon's then-wife Peggy Harper, who had noticed her first gray hairs ("Sail on, silvergirl").
Garfunkel's first two attempts to record the vocal failed. The first two verses were finally recorded in New York with the final verse recorded first, in Los Angeles. Part of the song was first heard in public on November 30, 1969, when it was included in the soundtrack of a one-hour TV special by the duo aired by CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
; the music appeared in the background of a clip with John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
Larry Knechtel
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William "Larry" Knechtel was an American keyboard player and bassist, best known for his work as a session musician with such artists as Simon & Garfunkel, Duane Eddy, The Beach Boys, The Mamas & the Papas, The Partridge Family, The Doors, and Elvis Presley, and as a member of the 1970s...
spent four days working on the piano arrangement. Garfunkel came up with the intermediate piano chords between the verses while working with Knechtel.
Chart performance
| Chart (1970) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 1 |
| U.K. Singles Chart | 1 |
| French Singles Chart | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| Australian Singles Chart (Go-Set) | 1 |
| Australian Singles Chart (Kent) | 2 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 2 |
| German Singles Chart | 3 |
| Austrian Top 40 | 4 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 5 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 5 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 7 |
Awards
The single won the Grammy Award for Record of the YearGrammy Award for Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959.-History:The honorees through its history have been:*1959-1965: Artist only.*1966-1998: Artist and producer....
and Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
The Song of the Year is one of the four most prestigious awards in the Grammy Awards ceremony, if not in all of the American music industry. It has been awarded since 1959 and unlike the Record of the Year award, which goes to the performer and production team of a single song, Song of the Year...
in the Grammy Awards of 1971
Grammy Awards of 1971
The 13th Grammy Awards were held on 16 March 1971, and was the first time the ceremonies were broadcast on television by ABC. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1970...
, with its album also winning several awards in the same year.
Aretha Franklin
A gospel-inspired cover versionCover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, taken from her album Aretha Live at Fillmore West
Aretha Live at Fillmore West
Aretha Live at Fillmore West is a gold-certified album by Aretha Franklin, released in 1971. It was reissued on compact disc in the 1990s through Rhino Records. An expanded, limited edition 4-CD box set entitled, Don't Fight The Feeling: The Complete Aretha Franklin & King Curtis Live At Fillmore...
, reached number one on the U.S. R&B
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart and number six on the pop chart, and later won the Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for quality R&B songs...
in the 1972 awards
Grammy Awards of 1972
The 14th Grammy Awards were held March 15, 1972, and were broadcast live on television in the United States by ABC; the following year, they would move the telecasts to CBS, where they remain to this date...
. Her live performance of the song at the Grammy Awards was released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III.
Elvis Presley
Elvis PresleyElvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
recorded it in Nashville on June 5, 1970, and it was released on the 1970 album That's the Way It Is
Elvis: That's the Way it Is
Elvis: That's the Way It Is is a documentary movie directed by Denis Sanders about Elvis Presley that was released on November 11, 1970. The film documents Elvis' Summer Festival in Las Vegas during August 1970...
. He included it in his set list for his next engagement in Las Vegas, which included the filming of the 1970 documentary Elvis: That's the Way It Is
Elvis: That's the Way it Is
Elvis: That's the Way It Is is a documentary movie directed by Denis Sanders about Elvis Presley that was released on November 11, 1970. The film documents Elvis' Summer Festival in Las Vegas during August 1970...
, and the song was included in the original theatrical release (included version is from the August 11 dinner show).http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLbOBoa8vD8&feature=related During that summer season in Vegas, Paul Simon attended one of the shows, and, after seeing Elvis perform the song, he was reported to have said, "That's it, we might as well all give up now." Presley continued to use this song throughout his live performances, including his final live appearance in Indianapolis on June 26, 1977. Another live performance was seen in the Golden Globe-winning documentary Elvis on Tour
Elvis on Tour
Elvis on Tour is a Golden Globe Award-winning American musical documentary motion picture released by MGM in 1972. It was the thirty-third and final motion picture to star Elvis Presley before his death in 1977.-Background:...
, filmed at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, on April 14, 1972. Elvis even sung it at one of his Madison Square Garden Shows back in June 1972.
On the studio version, Robert Matthew Watson wrote in his book Heartbreak Hotel: "Presley's outstanding singing is not disguised. This is a fabulous version, burning with sincerity and power, and finding depths not revealed by the composers."
Linda Clifford
Linda CliffordLinda Clifford
Linda Clifford is an American R&B, disco and house music singer and actress, who scored hits from the 1970s to the 1980s, most notably "If My Friends Could See Me Now", "Bridge over Troubled Water", "Runaway Love" and "Red Light"....
, Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly...
's protegee signed on his Curtom label released an up-tempo disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
version of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" on her album "Let me be your woman" in March 1979. This epic version (10:20 in length) was produced by Gil Askey (jazz trumpet player and musical director for many Motown acts) and mixed by Jimmy Simpson, brother of Valerie Simpson from Ashford and Simpson. The song has two originalities, the first one being a 132 bpm
BPM
- Organizations :*BPM , a satellite radio channel*BPM , an American magazine* Bank Pertanian Malaysia, a financial institution in Malaysia* Banca Popolare di Milano, a financial institution in Italy...
tempo (considered for being the ideal tempo for disco dancing) when the Simon and Garfunkel original is 82 bpm and Aretha Franklin's cover is 76 bpm. It was the first time that this song was covered with a fast tempo. It also has a highly original " Brazilian cuica
Cuíca
Cuíca , or "kweeca", is a Brazilian friction drum often used in samba music. The tone it produces has a high-pitched squeaky timbre. It has been called a 'laughing gourd' due to this sound....
on a disco beat" break. It became a US disco #11, pop #41, R&B #49 and UK #28.
Other notable covers
- The SupremesThe SupremesThe Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
recorded a version in 1970. - Dionne WarwickDionne WarwickDionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
, Gladys KnightGladys KnightGladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
, BeBe WinansBeBe WinansBenjamin "BeBe" Winans is a gospel and R&B singer. He is a member of the noted Winans family, most members of which are also gospel artists.-The PTL Club:...
and CeCe WinansCeCe WinansPriscilla "CeCe" Marie Winans Love is an American Gospel singer, who has won numerous Grammy and Stellar Awards.-Early life:CeCe Winans was born in Detroit, Michigan, to David and Delores Winans, on October 8, 1964...
performed the song at the Family Night Special in 1991. - CeCe WinansCeCe WinansPriscilla "CeCe" Marie Winans Love is an American Gospel singer, who has won numerous Grammy and Stellar Awards.-Early life:CeCe Winans was born in Detroit, Michigan, to David and Delores Winans, on October 8, 1964...
and Whitney HoustonWhitney HoustonWhitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
also performed the song. - The Jackson 5The Jackson 5The Jackson 5 , later known as The Jacksons, were an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
covered the song on their Third AlbumThird AlbumThird Album was an album released by The Jackson 5 on Motown Records, and the group's second LP released in 1970. Third Album featured the group's fourth consecutive number-one single on the US pop charts, "I'll Be There", the Top 5 single, "Mama's Pearl", and album tracks such as the...
in 1970. - Nana MouskouriNana MouskouriNana Mouskouri , born Ioánna Moúschouri on October 13, 1934, in Chania, Crete, Greece, is a Greek singer who has sold about 300 million records worldwide in a career spanning over five decades, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. She was known as Nána to her friends and...
covered the song in 1970. - Roberta FlackRoberta FlackRoberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
covered the song on her album Quiet FireQuiet FireQuiet Fire is Roberta Flack's third album, released in 1971. The album features Roberta's cover of the 1960 Shirelles classic...
in 1971. - Neil SedakaNeil SedakaNeil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
combined it with the Irish folk tune "Danny BoyDanny Boy-Background:The words to "Danny Boy" were written by English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly in 1910. Although the lyrics were originally written for a different tune, Weatherly modified them to fit the "Londonderry Air" in 1913, after his sister-in-law in the U.S. sent him a copy. Ernestine...
" in his 1974 album On StageNeil Sedaka On StageNeil Sedaka On Stage is a 1974 live-in-concert album recorded by Neil Sedaka during one of his tours to Sydney, Australia. The exact date of the recording is not known, but the concert must have taken place at some point between 1971 and 1974. The album contains mostly cover versions of rock and...
in Australia. - In addition to Franklin's gospel version, Buck OwensBuck OwensAlvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
and the Buckaroos covered the song for the country music market. A departure from Owens' usual Bakersfield SoundBakersfield soundThe Bakersfield sound was a genre of country music developed in the mid- to late 1950s in and around Bakersfield, California. The many hit singles were largely produced by Capitol Records country music head, Ken Nelson. Bakersfield country was a reaction against the slickly produced, string...
, his version reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot Country SinglesHot Country SongsHot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart in March 1971. Another 1971 cover was by Shirley BasseyShirley BasseyDame Shirley Bassey, DBE , is a Welsh singer. She found fame in the late 1950s and was "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century"...
on her album Something ElseSomething Else (Shirley Bassey album)Something Else is a 1971 album by Shirley Bassey.Following-up her comeback album Something, this proved to be almost as big when it too made the UK top 10, peaking at No.7...
. - Jimmy LondonJimmy LondonJimmy London is a reggae singer who first recorded in the late 1960s, and achieved chart success both in Jamaica and the United Kingdom in the early and mid-1970s.-The Inspirations:...
recorded a reggae cover of the song in 1972. - Willie NelsonWillie NelsonWillie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
covered the song on his 1982 album, Always on My MindAlways on My Mind (album)Always on My Mind is a 1982 album by country singer Willie Nelson. It was the Billboard number one country album of the year for 1982, and stayed 253 weeks on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts, peaking at number one for a total of 22 weeks, as well as spending 99 weeks on the Billboard 200...
. He also performed the song during the closing ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics2002 Winter OlympicsThe 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City, UtahUtahUtah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. - In 1987, the song was covered on Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
by the Sweeney Sisters (Jan HooksJan HooksJanet V. "Jan" Hooks is an American actress and comedienne best known for her work on NBC's Saturday Night Live , on which she appeared from 1986 to 1991...
and Nora DunnNora DunnNora Eloise Dunn is an American actress and comedian, perhaps best known for her work on NBC's Saturday Night Live.-Early life:...
). They sang the song to Simon, who was the episode's host. - In 1994, saxophonist Richard ElliotRichard ElliotRichard Elliot is a Scottish-born saxophone player.He was a member of the funk band Tower of Power playing tenor sax for 5 years during the 1980s. He also worked on Stacy Lattisaw's 1986 album "Take Me All The Way". His solo career took off when he remade the Percy Sledge classic "When a Man...
covered the song from album After Dark. In 2001, the song was chosen for ballad compilation album, Ballads. - In 2004, Michael W. SmithMichael W. SmithMichael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
covered the song on the album Healing RainHealing RainHealing Rain is Michael W. Smith's nineteenth album.- Track listing :# "Here I Am"# "Healing Rain"# "Live Forever"# "Hang On"# "Fly To The Moon"# "Human Spark"# "We Can't Wait Any Longer"# "I Am Love"# "Bridge Over Troubled Water"...
. - David FosterDavid FosterDavid Walter Foster, OC, OBC , is a Canadian musician, record producer, composer, singer, songwriter, and arranger, noted for discovering singers such as Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, and Charice Pempengco; and for producing some of the most successful artists in the world, such as Céline Dion, Toni...
, Andrea BocelliAndrea BocelliAndrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....
, and Mary J. BligeMary J. BligeMary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
performed the song on January 31, 2010, during the 52nd Grammy Awards52nd Grammy AwardsThe 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Person of the Year on January 29, two days prior to the Grammy telecast. Only ten of the 109 awards were received during the broadcast...
ceremony, in the context of raising awareness for the victims of the Haiti earthquake. This version reached #75 on the Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. - Annie LennoxAnnie LennoxAnnie Lennox, OBE , born Ann Lennox, is a Scottish singer-songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. After achieving minor success in the late 1970s with The Tourists, with fellow musician David A...
performed an emotional cover on April 25, 2007 live on Idol Gives BackIdol Gives BackIdol Gives Back is the name of a charitable campaign that spanned two episodes of American Idol during its sixth season. A second Idol Gives Back concert and fundraiser occurred on April 9, 2008, during the seventh season of the show. Idol Gives Back was not held in 2009 due to the ongoing...
. - The song was covered on October 5, 2010 for the television show GleeGlee (TV series)Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
s episode which centered on spiritualityGrilled Cheesus"Grilled Cheesus" is the third episode of the second season of the American television series Glee, and the 25th episode overall. It was written by Brad Falchuk, directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, and premiered on the Fox network on October 5, 2010...
. The cover was performed by Amber RileyAmber RileyAmber Patrice Riley is an American actress and singer best known for her role on the series Glee as Mercedes Jones.-Early life and career:...
as her character, Mercedes JonesMercedes JonesMercedes Jones is a fictional character from the Fox popular musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Amber Riley, and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode, first broadcast on May 19, 2009. Mercedes was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and...
. - In 2011, Singapore singer - Kit ChanKit ChanKit Chan is a Singaporean singer.-Music:She was a member of the pioneer generation of Singaporean singers to successfully break into the international market, marked in particular by her breakthrough into the competitive and highly critical Taiwanese market with her hit Mandarin album Heartache ...
covered this song in her comeback album (Re-interpreting '重譯'). - A Cantonese version of this song was done in Hong Kong in 1991 as a fundraiser for the Eastern China flood of 1991Eastern China flood of 1991The Eastern China flood of 1991 was a severe natural disaster that affected the Eastern region of China. It was the first large-scale flood in the history of People's Republic of China, which called for international aid....
. - The song has also been performed by Robert GouletRobert GouletRobert Gerard Goulet was a Canadian American entertainer as a singer and actor. He played the role of Lancelot in the Broadway musical Camelot of 1960.-Early life:...
, Perry ComoPerry ComoPierino Ronald "Perry" Como was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943. "Mr...
, Anita BakerAnita BakerAnita Baker is an American R&B/soul jazz singer-songwriter. To date, Baker has won eight Grammy Awards, and has four platinum albums and two gold albums to her credit....
, Michael W. SmithMichael W. SmithMichael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
, Clay AikenClay AikenClayton Holmes "Clay" Aiken is an American singer, songwriter, actor, producer and author who began his rise to fame on the second season of the television program American Idol in 2003. RCA Records offered him a recording contract, and his multi-platinum debut album Measure of a Man was released...
, Ronnie DysonRonnie DysonRonnie Dyson was an American singer and actor.-Career:Born in Washington, D.C., Dyson grew up in Brooklyn, New York where he sang in church choirs. At just 18 years of age, he won lead part in the Broadway production of Hair debuting in New York in 1968...
, Roy OrbisonRoy OrbisonRoy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
, Morten HarketMorten HarketMorten Harket is a Norwegian musician, best known as the lead singer of the Norwegian synthpop/rock band A-ha, which released nine studio albums and topped the charts in several countries after their breakthrough hit "Take on Me" in 1985. A-ha disbanded in 2010. Harket has also released four solo...
, Josh GrobanJosh GrobanJoshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
, Brian McKnightBrian McKnightBrian McKnight is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, producer, and R&B/Pop musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays nine instruments: piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, percussions, trombone, tuba, flugelhorn and trumpet....
, Aretha FranklinAretha FranklinAretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Eva CassidyEva CassidyEva Marie Cassidy was an American vocalist known for her interpretations of jazz, blues, folk, gospel, country and pop classics. In 1992 she released her first album, The Other Side, a set of duets with go-go musician Chuck Brown, followed by a live solo album, Live at Blues Alley in 1996...
, Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, Stevie WonderStevie WonderStevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
, Peggy LeePeggy LeePeggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
, Rhydian RobertsRhydian RobertsRhydian James Roberts , popularly known as Rhydian, is a classically trained Welsh baritone and crossover artist. He rose to fame on The X Factor in 2007...
, Black Label SocietyBlack Label SocietyBlack Label Society is a heavy metal band formed by Zakk Wylde, with nine studio albums, one live album, two compilation albums, one EP, and three video albums released since formation of the band.-Formation and Sonic Brew :...
, CasiopeaCasiopea, named as a misspelling of the constellation Cassiopeia, was a Japanese jazz fusion band that was formed in 1976 by guitarist Issei Noro, bassist Tetsuo Sakurai and keyboardist Hidehiko Koike. In 1977, keyboardist Minoru Mukaiya and drummer Takashi Sasaki joined the group, leaving Hidehiko out of...
, Charlotte ChurchCharlotte ChurchCharlotte Maria Church is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress and television presenter. She rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching into pop music in 2005. By 2007, she had sold more than 10 million records worldwide including over 5 million in the United States...
, Zsa Zsa PadillaZsa Zsa PadillaZsa Zsa Padilla is a Filipina singer and actress. She is currently part of ABS-CBN contract actresses.-Biography:Padilla was born as Esperanza Padilla in 1964, the daughter of actor and sportsman Carlos “Sonny” Padilla, Jr. who served as the referee in the Ali-Frazier world heavyweight boxing...
, Elton JohnElton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Jacob Lusk and Linda Clifford
See also
- Songs on album: "The BoxerThe Boxer"The Boxer" is a folk rock ballad written by Paul Simon in 1968 and first recorded by Simon & Garfunkel. It was released as the follow-up single to their number one hit "Mrs. Robinson", and reached #7 in the US charts. It later appeared on their last studio album, Bridge Over Troubled Water, along...
" / "CeciliaCecilia (song)"Cecilia" is a song written by US musician Paul Simon. It was first recorded by Simon and Garfunkel for their 1970 album Bridge Over Troubled Water. When released as a single, it reached #4 in the US charts...
" / "El Condor PasaEl Cóndor Pasa (song)El Cóndor Pasa is a song from the zarzuela El Cóndor Pasa by the Peruvian composer Daniel Alomía Robles, written in 1913 and based on traditional Andean folk tunes....
".
Links
- Video recording of "Bridge Over Troubled Water", Central Park Concert, September 19, 1981 (YouTube)