Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel have been connected for nearly their entire lives. After meeting as classmates when they were just kids, the two started making music together and eventually became the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel. Together, they’re known for classic songs including “The Sound of Silence,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Mrs. Robinson,” “Cecilia,” and many more. But, while they have a major musical legacy, the time between their first hit and the act’s demise was only five years.
Of course, they’ve reunited since then for tours and special events. Notably, they got back together in 1981 to perform in Central Park in New York City—a show which was recorded for a live album. They also reunited when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. Garfunkel and Simon have also gone on various tours throughout the years, as their personal relationship has ebbed and flowed through peaceful periods and times during which they weren’t getting along.
For the most part, they’ve continued on as solo recording artists since they stopped making new music together in 1970. Read on to find out more about Simon and Garfunkel’s lives and careers today.
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Simon set out on his solo career before Simon & Garfunkel found success. He has released 14 studio albums, with the latest, In the Blue Light, released in 2018.
That same year, Simon announced that he was retiring from touring after “Homeward Bound – The Farewell Tour,” which took place that year.
“I’ve often wondered what it would feel like to reach the point where I’d consider bringing my performing career to a natural end,” he said in a statement (via NBC News). “Now I know: It feels a little unsettling, a touch exhilarating and something of a relief.”
That said, the artist said that he wasn’t retiring completely and would do a performance if he could donate the proceeds to charities working to “save the planet, ecologically.” In 2019, he performed at San Francisco’s Outside Lands festival and donated over $1 million to environmental groups, according to SFGATE.
Simon, now 81, has a son, Harper Simon, with his first wife, Peggy Harper, to whom he was married from 1969 to 1975. He also has three children—Adrian, Lulu, and Gabriel Simon—with his current wife, singer Edie Brickell, to whom he has been married since 1992. When he retired from touring, he noted that one of the reasons was so that he could spend more time with his family.
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As a solo artist, Garfunkel has released 10 studio albums. His most recent was 2007’s Some Enchanted Evening. Around 2010, Garfunkel began having vocal problems due to damage to his vocal cords. This led to the cancelation of some performances, but in 2014, he said in a statement (via The Independent), “The voice is back. I’m in flight again. I believe I have grown through adversity. A new creation has emerged that is truly exciting me—my stage show.”
In addition to being a singer, Garfunkel is also a poet and an actor. His most recent movie role was in the 2009 romantic comedy The Rebound.
Garfunkel, who is 80, has two kids, James and Beau Garfunkel, with his wife Kim Cermak. The couple have been married since 1988. He was previously married to Linda Marie Grossman in the early 1970s.
In 2020, Garfunkel talked to PBS NewsHour about his legacy—or lack thereof?
“Legacy. I’ve heard that word. They like that word a lot these days,” he said. “I don’t have a legacy. I don’t know what that means. I have a wife and kids. I have a family. I know what that means.”