By Ian Murphy

This article will be the first in a series that highlights songs throughout pop music history that can have a case made for them as being the greatest song of all time. Of course these selections are subjective, and reflect my own tastes and preferences. However, to avoid a “ranking”, I have chosen to select a number of songs that could qualify to be the greatest. There will be no specific genre, time period or group/artist in particular, although you may see some repeat. The criteria is not based on popularity alone, musical proficiency, or longevity in the public consciousness (although all the preceding contribute). In addition, depth of message, quality of arrangement, and societal impact all weigh heavily in the selection process.

For our first selection, let’s take a look at Simon and Garfunkel’s classic ballad “The Boxer”, off of their 1970 mega hit Bridge Over Troubled Water. Now there are many, many songs that this duo wrote that could be in consideration for the title of “Best Song of All Time”, but I personally feel this one covers the most ground sonically, lyrically, and technically. The harmonies are so tight that it seems as if there is one multi-layered voice. This is in the days before autotune and other “touch up” apps of the digital age. Simon and Garfunkel’s vocal performance on “The Boxer” is all them, crafted painstakingly and polished to perfection without making it soulless and sterile. There is a warmth to this recording that supports the plaintive desperation and loneliness that pervades this song.

What many do not know is that it took nearly 100 hours in the studio to get the final cut of “The Boxer”. Despite the aforementioned warmth and seeming simplicity, this song was very much a labor of love for Paul and Arthur. Fred Carter, Jr. (who played guitar on “The Boxer”) reminisced years later: “That’s the greatest record I heard in my life, especially after the scrutiny and after all the time they spent on it and breakin’ it apart musically and sound wise and all of it. There was some magic in the studio that day”. This is coming from a man who spent nearly fifty years in the business and had played with artists like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Waylon Jennings.

In a catalogue bursting with innovation and nuance, “The Boxer” stands out as an example of the best of Paul Simon’s canon as a writer. When you add Angelic Arthur’s voice into the mix it only serves to heighten the nearly spiritual being of this song, and it is no surprise that portions of “The Boxer” were recorded in St. Paul’s Chapel in NYC. Elementally, Garfunkel is the warm air and brightness to Simon’s gritty earth, and yet their voices blend as one. When considering the greatest song of all time, “The Boxer” most certainly belongs in the discussion.

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