Arthur Ira "Art" Garfunkel is an American
singer, best known as half of the folk duo Simon and Garfunkel.
Garfunkel was born on November
5, 1941, in Forest Hills, New York, a section
of Queens, in New York City.
He met his future singing partner, Paul Simon in the sixth grade, and between
1956 and 1960 the two performed together as Tom & Jerry. Garfunkel
attended Columbia University in the early sixties.
In 1963, Simon and Garfunkel reformed their duo under their own names. The combination
of Garfunkel's sweet and melodic voice with
Simon's song-writing capacities caused the
duo to be among the top acts of the 1960's.
However, citing personal differences and
divergence in career interests, they split
following the release of their most critically
acclaimed album, Bridge Over Troubled Water,
in 1970.
In the 1970's, Garfunkel released a few solo albums, and although he
did not reach the heights that Simon and Garfunkel had reached, he still
scored hits with I Only Have Eyes For You, Bright Eyes (both British
#1 hit singles) and All I Know (#9 in the United States). A version
of Bright Eyes also appeared in the movie Watership Down.
In between, he acted in a few movies, including Catch-22 and Carnal
Knowledge (1971) with Jack Nicholson, Candice Bergen and Ann-Margret.
Following disappointing sales of his 1981 album Scissors Cut, Garfunkel
reunited with Simon for their famous concert in Central Park. They
next worked on a new studio album together, but Garfunkel left the project after
disagreements surrounding lyrics. After this, Garfunkel left the music
scene for several years but returned in 1988 with the album Lefty.
Neither of these projects garnered much critical success, and Garfunkel
did not release another album until 1993's Up 'til Now. Perhaps his
most noteworthy recent release is his live 1996 concert Across America,
recorded live at the registry hall on Ellis Island. The concert features
several musical guests, including James Taylor, Garfunkel's wife,
Kim, and his son James.
In 2003, he reunited again
with Simon for an U.S. tour, followed
by a 2004 international tour.
Garfunkel made news in early
2004 when he was arrested for possession
of marijuana. He was picked up for the same
charge in August 2005.
