THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

200-Simon & Garfunkel-The Boxer.

1968-Number 6 single.

Best Bit-At 2.53. On June 3rd, 2016, at a concert in Berkeley, California, Paul Simon stopped singing partway through ‘The Boxer’ to announce in one sentence the breaking news.’I’m sorry to tell you this in this way, but Muhammad Ali passed away.’ Paul Simon then finished the song with the last verse.
‘The Boxer’ was the first of four singles from Simon & Garfunkel’s fifth and final studio Album ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ from 1970. ‘The Boxer’ was written by Paul Simon, and he also produced the track along with Art Garfunkel, and Roy Halee, who had worked with the duo on previous occasions.

The lyrics to ‘The Boxer’ are mainly autobiographical and were written during a time when Simon & Garfunkel (see also best songs 529-96 and 71) felt that their work was being unfairly criticised. The lyrics describe poverty and loneliness in New York City, while the final verse is an observation of a boxer who despite the effects of ‘Every glove that laid him down, or cut him till he cried out, ‘I am leaving.” The lyrics continue,’The fighter still remains.’ Paul Simon has explained the songs meaning,’I think the song was about me, everybody’s beating me up, and I’m telling you now I’m going to go away if you don’t stop, by that time we had encountered our first criticism. For the first few years, it was just pure praise, it took two or three years for people to realise that we weren’t strange creatures that emerged from England, but just two guys from Queens who used to sing Rock N’ roll., and maybe we weren’t real folkies at all! Maybe we weren’t even hippies’ Paul Simon has also said about his writing of the song,’I think I was reading the Bible around that time, that’s where I think phrases such as ‘workman’s wages,’ and ‘seeking out the poorer quarters’ came from, that was biblical.’ The songs chorus consists of repetitions of ‘lie-la-lie’, Simon has stated that this was originally intended only as a placeholder, but became part of the finished song.’I didn’t have any words! Then people said it was ‘lie,’ but I didn’t really mean that it was a lie. But, it’s not a failure of songwriting, because people like that, and they put enough meaning into it, and the rest of the song has enough power and emotion, I guess, to make it go, so it’s all right, but for me, every time I sing that part…, I’m a little embarrassed.’

‘The Boxer’ was originally written with an extra verse that doesn’t appear on the ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ Al;bum version. The extra verse can be found on the duo’s ‘Live 1969’ Album, and also on Paul Simon’s 1974 solo live Album ‘Live Rhymin.’ Here are the lyrics to that extra verse.

‘Now the years are rolling by me, they are rockin’ evenly. I am older than I once was, and younger than I’ll be. That’s not unusual, no, it isn’t strange. After changes upon changes, we are more or less the same, after changes we are more or less the same.’