Play Bridge Over Troubled Water Like a Pro!

One lucky thing about having musical tastes reaching back into my parents’ generation is that many of my relatives share those tastes. I found the sheet music for Bridge Over Troubled Water and Simon and Garfunkel’s Greatest Hits years ago, in the garage where my aunt had been storing many of her possessions and which we had to evacuate in her absence, and also at my grandma’s house, presumably from the days when my aunts were learning to play the piano. I’m not sure from whom I snagged these books, but they’ve gotten a great deal of use since then, particularly Bridge Over Troubled Water, which is advanced music while the Greatest Hits collection is for beginners. The books were a bit ragged before I got them, and only more so since. I’m not sure how much longer the binding will hold!

This book features music from Simon and Garfunkel’s best-selling final album. The photographs have a rather fuzzy quality to them. The front and back cover are the same as the album, with a frontal shot of Art walking along behind Paul, apparently in the winter as Art’s in an overcoat and Paul has a jacket and scarf. It’s a fun picture because it just has Art looming behind Paul, his face fully visible from just below the nose to his poofy hair, which gets cut off at the top. He’s also a lot broader than Paul, with he shoulders coming out far beyond Paul’s head and his overcoat providing a black background for Paul’s green jacket. They’re walking along outdoors. On the back, they seem to be in a blue studio, wearing the same clothes. This time Art is in front, tilted slightly backwards and looking jaunty, with a spring in his step. Paul, by contrast, seems to be dragging; because of the blur of the picture it’s hard to tell for sure, but it looks like he’s burying his head in Art’s coat. He looks exhausted. It’s a very comical picture.

The inside cover has a sharp picture of a contemplative Paul and Art sitting next to one another, with a photo of a smiling Paul in the studio on the facing page. The back inside cover has a blurry shot of them singing together in the studio. The middle of the book features a headshot of Paul on the left, Art on the right. Paul’s wearing a hood and wisps of hair are whipping out underneath it. Art’s smiling, his hair so illuminated by the sunlight it almost disappears toward the top of the picture. By contrast, his face is shrouded in shadow.

The bulk of the book, of course, is the sheet music. I only play the piano and my brother was never too interested in playing these songs on the guitar, so I can only comment on the book from a pianist’s experience. The title song is the first in the book, and if no other songs were in the collection, it would still be worth the price. Bridge Over Troubled Water is very much a piano song. When Art performs it during concerts, it’s always a chance for the pianist to shine. When played properly, this arrangement sounds pretty much identical to the piano part on the recording, from the first distinctive rolled chords to the ultra-forte finale. I’ve spent much more time with this song than any other, and I can play the first two verses perfectly from memory. The third verse always trips me up, but I am able to play it while looking at the music. It’s a complicated piece of music, but it is well worth the time it takes to learn it. By far the most satisfying piece in the book for the piano.

The book contains a wide range from there. Next is the intricate but rather brief El Condor Pasa and the chord-driven Cecilia. Keep the Customer Satisfied starts out fairly simple and gets more complex, but still remains one of the book’s simpler compositions, not quite sounding right without the brass section. So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright is quiet and legato and well suited to the piano. The Everly Brothers standard Bye Bye, Love is a fun little number whose chorus is fairly simple and easy to punch out with great enthusiasm.

Song for the Asking is soft and flowing with a waltz feel to it. Unfortunately the song also has five sharps, so it’s not much fun to play. The Only Living Boy in New York is also well suited to the piano, though I find that when I play it the song sounds a bit jazzier than it should. Still great, though. One of my favorite arrangements. Why Don’t You Write Me , like Keep the Customer Satisfied, sounds a little strange without the accompaniment of louder instruments. It’s still energetic, though, and fun to play, though I’ve never quite gotten the hang of it.

The Boxer is as nice a piano arrangement as one could hope for, but this is a song meant for the guitar, so it really doesn’t sound right with the piano. Because I like the song so much, it was probably my biggest disappointment in the book. It’s well done, but it’s just the nature of the song to suffer under the treatment of a piano. Guitarists would probably name this their favorite song in the book to play. The book ends with energetic, rather simplistic Baby Driver. Not bad, but as it’s probably my least favorite song on the album, I don’t play it much.

Well, there you have it. For a more detailed analysis of the songs on their own terms, check out my review of the album: Bridge Over Troubled Water. If you’re a Simon and Garfunkel fan who wants to play some of their songs yourself, then this is the book for you!