A poetry analysis of "America" by Paul Simon, including a brielf account of Simon's life.

Essay by LittleBrittleHigh School, 10th gradeA, May 2004

download word file, 6 pages 4.7 1 reviews

Downloaded 43 times

Paul Simon

Paul Simon, one half of the singer/songwriter duo "Simon and Garfunkel" was born in Newmark, New Jersey, U.S.A, on October 13, 1941. He grew up in Queens, New York, where he attended Forest Hills High School. It was there that he met his future musical partner, Art Garfunkel.

By 1955, the two had formed a partnership, and had even written a song together called "The Girl for me." They started performing under the name "Tom and Jerry". In 1957, the two of them had their first hit, "Hey Schoolgirl", recorded when the boys were only 16 years old. Throughout the rest of high school they had a few more hits, but after graduation, Art went to college, so Paul began a career as a professional songwriter.

At the time, most of his songs were performed by others; Paul released a few himself, recording as Jerry Landis. He also sang with Tico and the Triumphs, who charted in late 1961 with "Motorcycle", and later performed as Paul Kane.

In 1964, Simon and Garfunkel reunited, and recorded the album Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. which failed to nail a position on the charts. Art returned to school, and Paul travelled to England to find inspiration for his music. While overseas, he began performing in pubs and eventually released a U.K. recorded album titled The Paul Simon Songbook.

Meanwhile in America, an edited version of the Simon and Garfunkel song "Sound of Silence" from Wednesday Morning 3 A.M. had hit number 1, prompting Paul to return to New York, and make another recording with Art.

The 1966 album Sound of Silence established the pair as a prominent folk-rock act, and Paul as a well-established songwriter. The next two albums released by the duo, 1966's Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme and...