Review: You'll be "feelin' groovy" when you see THE SIMON & GARFUNKEL STORY

Back in 2009, I had the honor of attending the 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concerts at Madison Square Garden. The two-night concert event honored the Hall of Fame by having nine Hall of Fame inductees highlight the history and greatest hits of Rock and Roll. The headliners, which also featured special guests, included: Crosby, Stills & Nash, Paul Simon, Steve Wonder, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Aretha Franklin, Jeff Beck, Metallica, U2 and the reunion of Simon & Garfunkel. Little did any of the audience members know this would be the final time that Simon & Garfunkel would perform together on stage...for now. Hearing their amazing harmonies live was an unbelievable experience. On November 19, I had the pleasure of reliving that experience by seeing The Simon & Garfunkel Show at the NYC Theater in Westbury.

This is not your standard bio musical i.e. Jersey Boys, Beautiful, On Your Feet!, or Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. It's more of a tribute show like: Beatlemania/Rain or A Night with Janis Joplin. It's a theatrical concert experience that truly presents the impact this dynamic folk rock duo had on the music industry and history.

Inhabiting the roles of Simon & Garfunkel are Taylor Bloom and Benjamin Cooley. At no point in the show, do Bloom or Cooley go by Simon & Garfunkel; this is perhaps due to licensing issues. The production is told entirely in the third person. Thanks to the great performances by Bloom and Cooley, you don't miss the names at all. Taylor Bloom brilliantly captures Simon's essence. His stance, his voice and his finger picking guitar skills were amazing; his finger picking was so smooth, at times I thought James Taylor was on stage. Cooley echoes Garfunkel. The way Cooley stands at the microphone, with his four fingers in his pockets, slightly slouched so he doesn't tower over his counterpart; it's like watching a clone. Then he has the daunting task of performing "Bridge Over Troubled Water", but Cooley knocks it out of the park. Bloom and Cooley's harmonies were

perfection; they nail every single song. The setlist, which you can see below, was a great representation of Simon & Garfunkel's catalogue. You hear their greatest hits as well as some deep cuts including one the first songs they ever performed called "Hey, Schoolgirl." At that point in their career, they weren't even called Simon & Garfunkel; they were going by Tom and Jerry.

While I loved every single song performed, some of the deep cuts were my favorites including: "Leaves that are Green", "Keep the Customer Satisfied" and "The Only Living Boy in New York." The hits are here too: "The Sound of Silence", "Homeward Bound", "The 59th Street Bridge Song", "America", "Cecilia", "The Boxer." Each performance was flawless. Taylor Bloom and Benjamin Cooley were backed by a fantastic four-piece band comprised of: Bob Sale, Marc Encabo, Joshua Vasquez and Adam Saxe. The band truly gets a chance to shine in Act II where they play an instrumental medley of Paul Simon's solo hits including: "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover", "You Can Call Me Al", and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard."

In addition to the third-person biographical tidbits and stirring musical performances, there is great use of projections of images, animations and video clips of the era affiliated with the songs when they were released. Facts about the folk-rock duo are also projected during the production. My one negative point I have to make is toward the end of Act II. Facts about the latter part of Simon & Garfunkel's career scroll across the screen and there is no mention of the last time they performed together on stage which was the concert I attended back in 2009 (The 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert). That's a key fact to incorporate in the show and I hope it is added for future performances. The Simon and Garfunkel Story really lays the groundwork down for a music bio flick or jukebox musical. One would hope after seeing this show, producers would take the opportunity to make that happen. If the amazing music and great performances can't convince the producers, one would think the constant standing ovations, like the ones I experienced at the performance I saw, would do the trick.

You will have a great time at this show. Don't miss it!

You can purchase tickets to see The Simon & Garfunkel show here:

http://www.thesimonandgarfunkelstory.com/tour-dates/

Please also check-out my interview with the shows stars!

The Simon and Garfunkel Show Setlist

(* - favorite performance)

Act I

The Sound of Silence*

He Was My Brother

Hey, Schoolgirl

Bleecker Street*

Leaves that are Green*

Kathy's Song

I Am a Rock

Richard Cory

Somewhere They Can Find Me

The Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine

Patterns

For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her

Homeward Bound*

Scarborough Fair

The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)*

Act II

Mrs. Robinson*

A Hazy Shade of Winter

Old Friends

Punky's Dilemma

America*

Fakin' It

Cecilia

Keep the Customer Satisfied*

The Only Living Boy in New York*

Medley: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover/You Can Call Me Al/Me and Julio down by the Schoolyard

Late in the Evening

Baby Driver

Bye, Bye, Love

Encore

Bridge Over Troubled Water*

The Boxer*

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