1969
There’s blog (http://elisson1.blogspot.com/2005/11/strange-bedfellows-in-music.html) that mentions a 1969 S&G show in NYC’s Madison Square Gardens. Opening act was Miles Davis? Anyone any info?
- Besides some concerts in the beginning of 1969 Simon & Garfunkel toured the US during November. Not only the campusses, which they played a lot during their career, also the larger halls like NYC’s ‘Carnegie Hall’.
- Most of this tour seems to have been recorded by Columbia Records. Was a ‘live album’ in the making? Maybe. But it was also filmed for a special to be aired ABC, nation wide. A special called ‘Songs for America’.
1969-03-21 Los Angeles UCLA / Royce Hall USA CA unconfirmed
1969-04-15 New York Yankee Stadium USA NY [Paul Simon through the first ball for that game]
1969-05-02 Buffalo (NY), University of Buffalo
…..Simon and Garfunkel performing at Clark Gym on the same night as Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. According to an article in the Spectrum (the University at Buffalo student newspaper) this did indeed happen on May 2, 1969.
The article is a concert review by Joseph Fernbacher titled “Mothers of Invention” that appeared in the May 7, 1969 issue of the Spectrum on page eight. In it he writes that Simon and Garfunkel happened to be in the area and decided to visit Zappa. They played a set before Zappa and the Mothers of Invention played theirs. An article previewing the concert found in the April 28, 1969 issue of the Spectrum (also by Fernbacher) does not mention Simon and Garfunkel and leads me to believe their inclusion in the concert was not planned.
1969-07-28/30 Los Angeles, USA, CBS Convention, Century Plaza Hotel
1969-10-31 Detroit, Cobo Hall
1969-11-01 Kansas Wichita State University / Henry Levitt Arena USA WI
1969-11-02 St. Louis, Kiel Auditorium
1969-11-07 Philadelphia, Philadelphia Civic Center, Convention Hall
1969-11-08 Carbondale Southern Illinois Univeristy / USA IL
– Simon & Garfunkel during their Carbondale show –
From this tour at least one famous bootleg exists. ‘Back to college’ released on the Yellow Dog label (YD 044) in 1994.
And bootlegged self as well. But the Yellow Dog is a very nice cd with extra-ordinary sound quality, probably form the official recording tapes. Besides the very well known acoustic set by Paul and Art, there’s also a backing band to be heard on several songs. Musicians they knew well from recording sessions:
Larry Knechtel, piano and keyboards
Hal Blaine, drums
Joe Osborne, bass
Fred Carter Jr., electric guitar.But the date forthis show is always given incorrectly. It should be:
November 9th.
As the librarian of Miami University informed me:
Simon & Garfunkel performed at Miami’s Millett Hall on Sunday, November 9th, 1969 at 08:00 pm, for a crowd of 11.000, which was the largest over to gather in Millett up to that time.
1969-11-09 Oxford Miami University / Millett Hall USA OH
1969-11-14 Salt Lake City Salt Palace USA UT
1969-11-15 Long Beach USA CA
1969-11-27 New York City Carnegie Hall USA NY CBS
1969-11-28 New York City Carnegie Hall USA NY CBS
1969-11-29 Boston USA
- Former Simon and Garfunkel manager Mort Lewis commented that he is very pleased to have played a part in their international success and looked back fondly on his time spent with the duo by sharing a story of Art’s unique preferred mode of transportation: “After an extremely successful double-header concert at Carnegie Hall in 1969, I chartered a plane to fly us to and from Boston for a concert the next night. Artie decided he would pursue a favorite hobby and hitchhike to Boston instead of taking the plane. A young couple picked him up because he ‘looked like one of those two guys, Simon and Garfunkel.’ Even after producing his driver’s license, the couple refused to believe that the real Art Garfunkel would be hitchhiking! Artie arrived on time for the concert, but the kind couple never picked up the two complimentary tickets that were left at the box office for them…just as the hitchhiker had promised.”
Paul Simon - 'Time it was...it was' 
Where could I find rare Simon and Garfunkel recordings?
“1969-11-09 Oxford Miami University / Millett Hall USA FL”
Miami University is in Oxford, OH, not Florida. Ranked 2nd in undergraduate teaching by 2011 U.S. News World Reports, tied with Princeton. Respect, y’all.
Hello,
The Detroit MI concert was on Friday 31 Oct, not 21 Oct, and was at Cobo Hall.
Frank Zappa explains in his autobiography that he talked Simon & Garfunkel into performing at the Buffalo concert – but as “Tom & Jerry,” not “Simon & Garfunkel.” He writes that they did a set of their old 50’s songs and no one in the crowd recognized them. He brought them back out at the end of the concert to sing “Sounds Of Silence.”
Hello Roy! Yes that is correct. But the year was not 1967, but 1969 when they were at the height (or should one say ‘end’)of their career as duo.
Of course, Miami University is in Oxford, Ohio — not Florida.
And changed correctly now. Thanks
I’ve got a new concert date in 1969:
Des Moines, IA Sunday 10 November KRNY Theatre
(citation: Des Moines Sunday Register, section 3, page 14-T)
Sorry, that was a typo. The venue SHOULD
read KRNT Theatre, NOT KRNY.
Hello. According to the liner notes to the Columbia/Legacy CD “Simon and Garfunkel–Live 1969” (Columbia/Legacy 88697 41306-2, 2008), the duo was in Toledo, OH on November 1, 1969; not, as you state, unless they played two sets that day, at Wichita State.
Hello, thamnks for your comment. I have a newspaper ad saying thet they performed in Witchita on November 1st, 1969. Allthough the liner notes indeed state a concert in Toledo I have not seen it advertised so far.
I remember going to the Long Beach Convention Center concert. It was raining and they opened the concert with Homeward Bound. Something I will never forget.
They also played two shows (Matinee and evening) at Gill Coliseum, Oregon State University. No backing band, but they did end the show with “Wake Up Little Susie”.
Hi, thank you for this information. Do you have a more precise date or is there a link to a source? Thanks, Rob