Simon & Garfunkel: Konzert im Central Park 1981

As one who attended this show, let me say that the video is a terrific testement to one of the best concerts I ever attended. Where else can 300,000 people gather for a musical event and there not be one incident, not one arrest and at the end, the fans clean it all up themselves. That's what happened on the late summer night in 1981. From Ed Koch's introduction to the soul stirring finale, this reunion concert is packed with hits from Simon & Garfunkle, as well as from Paul Simon's solo career.

I remember this concert well...but as they say of the '60s, if your can remember it you weren't there. I was a teen back then (September 1981) and like most of the hundreds of thousands of others there I was smoking myself a "J". Me and a friend got a good place as everyone packed in hours before the show. Then I had to take a leak. Unfortunately it took an hour of stepping over a mass of stoned people to find somewhere to go, and as the concert started I gradually found my way back.

Mrs. Robinson starts it off. Then Homeward Bound, America, Me and Julio, Scarborough Fair, April Come She Will, Still Crazy, Late in the Evening, and it ends with Old Friends, Bookends, Sounds of Silence, and everything in between. This was a great concert and a respite for me from the New Jersey suburbs. Nothing much to do there except count the cars on the NJ Turnpike.

I went to Paul Simon's 1991 concert there too.

This pleasant documentation of the 1981 reunion of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel is a must-see for die-hard fans, of course, but it's likely to please the more casual listener also. The duo's much-ballyhooed get-together shows that even though the partners may have been unequal in songwriting talent, there was still something special about them when they reunited to harmonize on their classics. Simon's post-Garfunkel compositions work well too, and a highlight is his "Slip-Slidin' Away," in which his soaring voice on the chorus wraps beautifully around Artie's. "Late in the Evening" is a standout also, showcasing the band of top-notch New York musicians assembled for the occasion, including Steve Gadd and Richard Tee.

This is outstanding concert featuring most of the famous singing duo's best songs, of which there were many. There is a good mix of fast and slow songs and so-so stereo. Too bad they couldn't have re-mixed this in 5.1surround for the DVD.

Simon and Garfunkel are such pros. The two harmonize so well it's amazing and even though they were live, playing in front of a mammoth crowd, most of their songs sound like perfect studio takes. Yes, a couple might not sound as good as those original studio recordings but some - thanks to the great backup band here - sound even better than the originals! Most are equal....and ALL of them are winners. There are no "clunkers" in this group.

The boys looked a bit smug, but when you can draw literally hundreds of thousands of fans to a concert, I guess it's hard to be humble. They were real superstars of their music era.

One of the whitest concert movies of all time. Not a criticism or a positive - just an observation. The main thing is the music is very good. Setlist isn't all bangers, but all the usual suspects are here, song-wise (plus a few quirkier choices here and there).

The bit with the guy who rushed on stage surprised me. Always like it when those things are included in otherwise standard concert movies, for authenticity (reminded me of how the 30th-anniversary celebration concert for Bob Dylan included Sinead O'Connor getting booed by the crowd, all because she publicly criticized the Catholic Church before it was cool on TV sometime earlier).