The Sound of Violence
Rift of pop duo Simon and Garfunkel was so tense they had to be pulled apart backstage
THE rift between Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel was once so vicious that one of their managers feared they could end up knifing each other.
The pop pair’s simmering resentment of each other’s talent was bizarrely fuelled by their huge success together.
Lifting the lid on the backstage rivalry, manager Joseph Rascoff reveals: “They never came to blows, but there was shoving and I had to step between them.
“I genuinely believed that if there had been a knife on the table, one of them would have used it.”
The bitterness that almost turned to violence came during the duo’s 1993 reunion tour – 23 years after they originally fell out. In a biography out next month, Simon reveals their grievances even spilled over on stage.
He recalls: “During one song, I think it was The Boxer, I made a mistake over when to come in – it threw Artie off.
“So later, we’re singing Feelin’ Groovy, and Art just stops singing at the part that goes ‘Life, I love you’, and I’m just left there trying to figure out what to do.
“I assumed it was another mistake – no big deal. But then at intermission, Art comes up to me and says, ‘You tried to make me look like a fool on The Boxer’.
“And I said, ‘No, Artie, it was a mistake, just like you forgot to do Life, I love you.
“He looked me in the eye and said, ‘I didn’t forget. I wanted you to see what it feels like to be made a fool of ’.” The pair began shoving – and had to be pulled apart by Rascoff, Simon’s business manager.
Simon, 76, believes Garfunkel had been hurt by a critic’s comments, which he blamed Simon for. The duo completed the tour, but would not play together again until 10 years later.
And a 2010 reunion ended in them rowing again – and splitting for good.
The pair achieved huge success in the 1960s with hits such as Sound Of Silence and Bridge Over Troubled Water.
But Garfunkel resented the reliance on Simon’s songwriting skills – while Simon was jealous of the attention given to Garfunkel as the singer. A height difference also led to tension. The 5ft 2in Simon was sensitive alongside 5ft 10in Garfunkel.
He once recalled: “On a photo session Artie said, ‘No matter what, I’ll always be taller than you.’ Did that hurt? I guess it hurt enough for me to remember 60 years later.”
Simon later made Grammy-winning album Graceland, with South Africa’s Ladysmith Black Mambazo – a hit at the Queen’s birthday party on Saturday.
Paul Simon: The Life is published on May 8 by Simon & Schuster.
I believe if there’d been a knife on the table, one of them would have used it JOSEPH RASCOFF SINGER’S MANAGER ON DUO’S RIVALRY