On the journey of life our hearts struggle with questions about our lives. We question our direction and our purpose in an attempt to understand the choices we make and the things that happen to us that are beyond our control. Along with these questions, we ask ourselves what it means to care about each other, to live with each other and at the heart of it all, what it means to be a friend.
When the duo, Simon and Garfunkel released “Bridge Over Troubled Water” in 1970 the relationship between the two artists Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel was strained. They could not agree on the final track of the album as well as who should sing the title track. Paul Simon felt that Garfunkel should sing it as a solo and had to convince Garfunkel to do so. However, Simon has repeatedly said that he regrets this decision as it centered attention on Garfunkel. Simon and Garfunkel broke up later that the same year they released “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and since had a rocky relationship included a failed attempts at recording together and numerous reunion concerts.
It seems ironic that Simon and Garfunkel recorded one of pop music’s greatest tributes to friendship as the duo was breaking up. Even though “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” is a song that has a life of its own, the circumstances of its creation informs our understanding of the work. Maybe during the recording this song Simon and Garfunkel realized that they did not feel for each other what Simon wrote about and Garfunkel sang. The history of the song does give it meaning but makes us look at it in a slightly different light giving us a perspective to work from which adds a layer of depth to our understanding.
The melody of “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” is carefully crafted featuring mostly step-wise motion (moving between notes that are right next to each other) feature some well-placed leaps. The melody builds in the first stanza bring motion in the melody into to different parts of the line. In the line “when you’re weary, feeling small” there is a slight drop towards the end of the line. The next line, “when tears are in your eyes” the motion of the melody in the beginning, which builds into the next line which draws out the words with longer note values. There is a jump in the middle of this phrase bringing out the word “your” which foreshadows the wide leaps in the chorus. The last line of this stanza “I will dry them all” mirrors the first line coming to rest, reflecting the meaning of the lyrics.
The next two lines “I’m one your side, when times get rough,” has it’s own rise and fall resting for a moment before the dramatic leap in the next line. The chorus starts with heartfelt leap in the line “and pain is all around,” and then slowly rises. The words “like a bridge over troubled water” slowly descends, which is followed by a descending angular contour reflecting the darkness of“troubled waters.” The words “I will lay me down,” rise slowly with a the determination of a boxer who refuses to stay down.
In the first and second verse the narrator reassures his friend saying how he will help if bad things happens. The lines “when tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all” and “like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down,” is actions we want to do for our friends. We want to be able to fix problems and actively help them when things are difficult. Laying down over troubled waters is a self-sacrificing act. You aren’t helping someone conquer something by themselves but rather giving up someone of yourself so that they can get through their tribulations.
There is a change to optimism in the bridge assuring that the future is bright and that good things will happen, “your time has come to shine, all your dreams are on their way.” He says that in good times he will be “sailing right behind” not leading, not making something happen but supporting. Instead, of promising, “I will lay me down,” he promises, “I will ease your mind.”
Friendship is born from wanting to fix problems and develops into powerful feeling, a force that connects us to the friends in our lives. “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” challenges us to support our friends, not lead them, help them with problems, not fix them for them and to always be there with our friends in each others heart.
I have many friends who live in different cities and they can’t come by in 5 minutes when something bad happens. We try to see each other as much as we can but it’s hard. As I've grown up, I've realized that friendship is not about what we do for each other. Actions are just a manifestation of what is really important, what truly defines friendship, the feelings that we share.
These feelings sustains us when we are scared, tired and alone. These feelings remind us that over distance and time there is always friendship in our hearts. And these feelings brings us together so that we never face the future alone and have the power to calm the troubled water in our lives.
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