Columbia Studio Recordings 1964-70 [Box set, Limited Edition, Original recording remastered]

Simon & Garfunkel | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 21, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 1964
• Number of Discs: 5
• Format: Box set, Limited Edition, Original recording remastered
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00005NKKU
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,153 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #69 in Music > Box Sets

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

Though the American folk movement of the early '60s would influence bands like the Byrds and Buffalo Springfield and a score of oh-so-sensitive '70s singer-songwriters, its two most looming successes during the decade--Bob Dylan and Simon and Garfunkel--couldn't have seemed more disparate. While Dylan turned hard-left, outraging many a folk purist by zealously embracing rootsy blues-rock and its electrified cacophony, S&G veered toward the center, equally infuriating snooty pundits by embracing a Top 40 pop sense whose ostensible shallowness often belied its rich musical diversity. In retrospect, Simon and Garfunkel's career as a duo was remarkably brief (five albums in six years), if no less commercially potent (a slew of Top 40 singles, two Number One albums, and the requisite handful of Grammy Awards). This box set compiles digitally remastered versions of the original S&G albums, each expanded to include bonus tracks (mostly previously unissued demos with a few scattered outtakes, the quartet on Sounds of Silence the best of the lot) and a booklet featuring new notes for each album and song lyrics. It's a rewarding journey, wending from the almost slavish folk devotion of Wednesday Morning 3 AM through the greeting-card iconoclasm of Sounds of Silence, the madrigal-pop of Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme to the increasingly impressionistic lyrical landscape of Bookends. It also covers the rich musical tapestry of Bridge over Troubled Waters, which foreshadowed Simon's own diverse solo career by embracing everything from the Everlys and Jan & Dean to Andean folk and R&B. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

This deluxe collector's box contains all five of the original Simon & Garfunkel studio albums recorded for Columbia Records. Every album has been digitally remastered and contains rare and/or previously unreleased bonus tracks. Each CD comes packaged in a special sleeve that replicates the original LP artwork. A separate booklet containing rare and never-before-seen photos, new liner notes, detailed track information, lyrics and all original album information is also included inside. A special tribute to one of the greatest popular ever!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

101 of 103 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "...And What A Time It Was...", October 21, 2001

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Columbia Studio Recordings 1964-70 (Audio CD)

Simon and Garfunkel's five studio albums spent a total of 470 weeks on the album charts--that's nine years! As a child of the Sixties, this music helped create the soundtrack of my youth. Yes, I already owned Collected Works and I bought the box set Old Firends, and now this is part of my collection, too. Is it essential to own all three? It pretty much makes Collected Works obsolete. Collected Works had no liner notes or photos (a glaring omission corrected on this new box set). And the anthology Old Friends at best becomes dispensible. Of the 15 previously unreleased tracks on that anthology, only the eight live tracks and the two Christmas songs are not included here. [It does make you wonder about the greed factor on COlumbia's part when there are 49 tracks shared between the two.]

If you have not upgraded to CD with any of these three collections, the latest box wins hands down. Each of the five CDs comes in a miniature sleeve duplicating the original albums (both front and back). The 76-page booklet contains some terrific photos and new liner notes for each album by Bud Scoppa along with the original liner notes. Lyrics are also included--except for the bonus tracks. However, it would have been nice to have a running commentary from both Simon and Garfunkel on each of the songs or at least an extensive interview. Recording dates and session musicians would also have been a plus. But the main thing is the music--and it's never sounded better than it does here! Listen and enjoy. ESSENTIAL

58 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally - the complete works as nature intended, September 14, 2001

By 

GBS "showbiz27" (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Columbia Studio Recordings 1964-70 (Audio CD)

Has this material been released before? Yes. Is it duplicated on other sets? Of course?

So why buy it?

Finally, after more than 30 years, the entire "official" canon of Simon and Garfunkel is released in the original form from the original master tapes (long thought lost, but as noted in the "Old Friends" box, recently unearthed). Comparing the past CD issues of these albums to these new masters is like comparing a MacDonald's hamburger to a filet mignon. The richness of the sonics, the presence of the instruments, this is an absolute feast.

Of course, the earlier albums weren't as remarkable as recordings as the later albums. Once they got to "Bookends" they were creating records that were both great music as well as imaginative recordings. "Bookends" in particular is one of the few post-psychedelic records that still holds up as well today as it did way back then. Frankly, when "Save the Life of My Child" begins, you'll be hoping to save the life of your sub-woofer.

And the good news - beyond the quaint reproductions of the original album sleeves and the fine booklet - is that should you not wish to buy this whole box, each of the CD's is also available individually.

So...yes, it's old music once again, but it's never sounded this good. And it's fair to say that if you have "Old Friends" you have much of this, but if enjoying the albums in pristine sonic quality as the artists intended you to, this is a wonderful box set.

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Touch the Sounds, May 8, 2002

By 

Astrid Slomova (Louisiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Columbia Studio Recordings 1964-70 (Audio CD)

A few years ago, I reviewed COLLECTED WORKS, which at the time was the only comprehensive collection of Simon and Garfunkel's work (on 3 CDs). This is better. Much better.

One complaint, though, just to get it out of the way. I love the fact that the discs have the original label design on them, but BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER was also released on the same label as the others in its first edition (I own two such vinyl copies). That aside, onward and upward.

The music is what is important here. And it is given the royal treatment, beginning with WEDNESDAY MORNING, 3AM, a very good, if somewhat unassuming effort of basic folk arrangements. There are some standout tracks, indeed. "Sparrow", "Sounds of Silence", and the title track are among my personal favorites, but the rest of the album will not disappoint.

With 1966's SOUNDS OF SILENCE, the duo opted for a more folk-rock approach, which has been impuned for its commercial value. Commercial does not mean bad. The Beatles were, after all, the most commercial music group of all time. No one seems to mind. Neither should they here. "Leaves That Are Green", "Blessed", "Somewhere They Can't Find Me", "A Most Peculiar Man", and "I Am a Rock" never cease to captivate me. They were well on their way with this one.

Also in 1966, the duo released PARSLEY, SAGE, ROSEMARY, AND THYME. Let the opening title track work it's melodic and contropunal magic on you--it is hauntingly beautiful. PATTERNS is also first rate. In fact, very little on this record is not.

BOOKENDS (1968) is, I must admit not my favorite of their collections--just a bit pretentious. Still has "Hazy Shade of Winter" and "Mrs. Robinson", though, so it is not to be missed.

Finally 1970's BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER carried us to the brink of Simon's impending solo career. But songs like "The Boxer", "Cecilia", and "Keep the Customer Satisfied" are strong indeed.

The way the albums are released and presented here, with that one exception of the label on BRIDGE.

Even if you own COLLECTED WORKS, get this. You will be satisfied.

If you want an interesting presentation and better sound quality from their recordings, look here. I promise.