The ‘Bridge over troubled water’ The 40th Annivesary Edition has become available. Although this is an informational blog and not my intention to ventilate my own thouhgts, I would like to make some if you don’t mind as an exception to the rule.
1) The ‘Harmony Game’ video on the DVD disk is superb. Why? First of all the information that is shared by, especially, Paul Simon and Roy Halee. We now know what makes Simon & Garfunkel sound like Simon & Garfunkel did. The way they recorded their voices: first track was 2 voices together, than the separate voices were recorded, and this mixed together….
Secondly it is ‘almost giving a warm feeling’ to see how Paul Simon has enjoyed the cooperation with Roy Halee. One studio freak together with another, makeing beautiful thing together. Thirdly, it is astonishing that Paul and Art had to be recorded separately for the interviews. Have they really grown apart so much (again)? The album was recorded in almost no harmony at all it seems (Art being actor in ‘Catch 22’, Paul on his own most of the time in the studio).
2) The booklet. Again no session info. Just some dates, not who played what, how where. There a two pictures of the Label Copy Mastering Instructions. These show recording dates and the remark ‘Studio ?’ after several tracks. Indeed with a question mark. Was this album really intended to be a live album ( all shows of the 1969 US tour were recorded ). Why not tell us about that. CBS / Sony of Japan used this info on their sleeve too, under the impressions probably, that it was a live album. This is the 7th or 8th edition I know have of ‘bridge over troubled water’ and again the liner notes are dissapointing to me. The information we get is nice to know. Thanks to ‘The harmony game’ we know a bit more.
But, the album still is a masterpiece after 41 years!
Paul Simon - 'Time it was...it was' 