The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)
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"The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" is a song by
folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...
duo
Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...
, written by
Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...
and originally released on their 1966 album ''
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme'' is the third studio album by the American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Produced by Bob Johnston, the album was released on October 24, 1966, in the United States by Columbia Records. Following the succ ...
''. ''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' called it a "sparkling, spirited lid". The song is named for the
Queensboro Bridge The Queensboro Bridge, officially the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge, is a cantilever bridge over the East River in New York City. Completed in 1909, it connects the Long Island City neighborhood in the borough of Queens with the Midtown Manhattan ...
which spans the
East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...
between the
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
boroughs of
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
and
Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
, 59th Street Bridge being a popular unofficial alternate name for that landmark whose Manhattan end is located between
59th The 59th Quartermaster Company is a bulk petroleum company designed to provide semi-portable storage for of fuel and to provide distribution of fuel to military units within a specified geographic area while deployed overseas. Its secondary missi ...
and 60th Streets. Reportedly the song came to Paul Simon during a daybreak walk across the Queensboro Bridge: the line: "Just kicking down the cobblestones" refers to the paving at the approach to the bridge's Queens end, while "Hello lamppost, what'cha knowing" refers to either of two bronze lampposts which stood at the bridge's Manhattan end; although the northern member of the pair was removed circa 1975, the southern lamppost is still in place. Simon opted to entitle the song after its site of inspiration rather than its prominent hook line "Feelin' Groovy", Simon balking at labeling one of his songs with such a lowbrow turn of phrase: however "The 59th Street Bridge Song" would be tracklisted on the ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme'' album with "Feelin' Groovy" as its parenthetical subtitle. As recorded for the ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme'' album, "The 59th Street Bridge Song" features
Dave Brubeck Quartet David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrast ...
members
Joe Morello Joseph Albert Morello (July 17, 1928 – March 12, 2011) was an American jazz drummer best known for serving as the drummer for pianist Dave Brubeck, as part of the Dave Brubeck Quartet, from 1957 to 1972, including during the quartet's "clas ...
(drums) and
Eugene Wright Eugene Joseph Wright (May 29, 1923 – December 30, 2020) was an American jazz bassist who was a member of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Career Wright was born in Chicago, Illinois. He was a cornetist at high school and led the 16-piece band D ...
(double bass). Although such a cheerful track might have seemed an obvious choice for single release the track's running time of 1:43 was deemed too brief to garner radio "add-ons". Simon would say of the song's brevity: "Sometimes I make a song purely an impression...When you've made your impression, stop. I don't want the istenerto think eyondits einga happy song." (Subsequent remasters, included on later reissues of ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme'' and such compilations as '' Old Friends'', '' Tales from New York: The Very Best of Simon & Garfunkel'', and ''
The Essential Simon & Garfunkel ''The Essential Simon & Garfunkel'' is the second 2-CD compilation album of greatest hits by Simon & Garfunkel, released by Columbia Records on October 14, 2003. This two-disc anthology was released to coincide with Simon & Garfunkel's 2003 reun ...
'', have a longer fade-out at 1:53.) The track would serve as
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
for the Simon and Garfunkel 1967 Top 20 hit " At the Zoo". In 1971 "The 59th Street Bridge Song" would have an
A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
single release – with "
I Am a Rock "I Am a Rock" is a song written by Paul Simon. It was first performed by Simon as the opening track on his album ''The Paul Simon Songbook'' which he originally recorded and released in August 1965, only in the United Kingdom. Paul Simon and Art Ga ...
" as B-side – in several European countries. Footage of Simon and Garfunkel performing the song at the 1967
Monterey Pop Festival The Monterey International Pop Festival was a three-day music festival held June 16-18, 1967, at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. The festival is remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendrix Ex ...
is featured in the film ''
Monterey Pop ''Monterey Pop'' is a 1968 American concert film by D. A. Pennebaker that documents the Monterey International Pop Festival of 1967. Among Pennebaker's several camera operators were fellow documentarians Richard Leacock and Albert Maysles. ...
''. During his 2018 farewell tour, Simon "penalized" himself for wrongly performing the lyrics to another song by singing this song, which he confesses to hating. The theme song to the American children's television program '' H.R. Pufnstuf'', originally composed by
Sid and Marty Krofft Sid Krofft (born July 30, 1929) and Marty Krofft (April 9, 1937 – November 25, 2023), known as The Krofft Brothers and born as Cydus and Moshopopoulos Yolas, were a Canadian sibling team of television creators, writers and puppeteers. Through ...
, was found to closely mimic "The 59th Street Bridge Song" after Simon sued for plagiarism; his writing credit was subsequently added to the theme for ''H.R. Pufnstuf''.


Covers and performances

* A popular cover version was recorded by
Harpers Bizarre Harpers Bizarre was an American sunshine pop band of the 1960s, best known for their Broadway/sunshine pop sound and their cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)." Career Harpers Bizarre was formed out of ...
on their 1967 debut album '' Feelin' Groovy'', reaching No. 13 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and No. 4 on the
Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...
chart. This version – which at 2:34 expanded on the Simon & Garfunkel original's running time, adding an a cappella choral section – was arranged by
Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock a ...
, who played piano on the track. The track also featured session musicians
Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...
,
Carol Kaye Carol Kaye (née Smith; born March 24, 1935) is an American musician. She is one of the most prolific recorded bass guitarists in rock and pop music, playing on an estimated 10,000 recordings in a career spanning over 65 years. Kaye began play ...
and drummer Jim Gordon, and a
woodwind quartet A woodwind quartet (or wind quartet) is a musical ensemble for four woodwind instruments. Alternatively the term refers to music composed for this ensemble. The most common scoring is flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon. The ensemble is also often ...
with a flute, oboe, clarinet, and bassoon. * Simon's former song-writing partner
Bruce Woodley Bruce William Woodley (born 25 July 1942) is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. He was a founding member of the successful folk-pop group the Seekers, and co-composer of the songs " I Am Australian," "Red Rubber Ball," and Simon & G ...
recorded a cover with his band
the Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk music, folk-influenced pop music, pop group originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the Unit ...
on their 1967 album ''
Seekers Seen in Green ''Seekers Seen in Green'' is the sixth studio album by the Australian group the Seekers. It was released in the UK and Europe in 1967 by Columbia Records and EMI Records. It was released in Canada in 1967 and in the US in 1968 by Capitol Records ...
''. * The song was covered by
the Free Design The Free Design was a Delevan, New York–based vocal group, whose music can be described as sunshine pop and baroque pop. Though they did not achieve much commercial recognition during their main recording career, their work later influenced ...
on their 1967 debut album ''
Kites Are Fun ''Kites Are Fun'' is the first album by The Free Design, released in 1967. The group was signed to the Project 3 label after a demo recording that was completed with the assistance of the band's father. The tracks are composed of precise instru ...
''. * The song was covered by Italian vocal band
Quartetto Cetra ; ) was an Italian jazz vocal quartet established during the early 1940s and active until 1988. Career The band was based on the Mills Brothers and started performing under the name Quartetto Egie from the initials of the singers' first names: En ...
on their 1967 single "La Ballata degli Innamorati / Tre Minuti", with Italian lyrics written by
Tata Giacobetti Giovanni "Tata" Giacobetti (24 June 1922 – 2 December 1988) was an Italian singer and jazz musician. He is mostly known for being a member of the vocal quartet Quartetto Cetra. Biography Giacobetti was a self-taught musician. He learned to pla ...
. * The melody was used by
Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...
in 1967 for her song "C'est Bon la Vie". *
Liberace Władziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987) was an American pianist, singer and actor. He was born in Wisconsin to parents of Italian and Polish Americans, Polish origin and enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, ...
and the Young Folks Singing Aggregation performed the song on the March 5, 1968 episode of ''
The Red Skelton Hour ''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his telev ...
''. * A version by
Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...
appeared on her 1968 album ''For the First Time'' (Decca DL 4955). *
Mabel Mercer Mabel Mercer (3 February 1900 – 20 April 1984) was an English-born cabaret singer who performed in the United States, Britain, and Europe with the greats in jazz and cabaret. She was a featured performer at Chez Bricktop in Paris, owned ...
and
Bobby Short Robert Waltrip Short (September 15, 1924 – March 21, 2005) was an American cabaret singer and pianist who interpreted songs by popular composers from the first half of the 20th century such as Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Harold ...
performed this song at their 1968
Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
performance, documented on the live album ''At Town Hall''. * The song appears on the 1969 album ''
The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper ''The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper'' is a double album recorded at the Fillmore West venue; the album is a successor to the studio album '' Super Session'', which included Stephen Stills in addition to Bloomfield and Kooper, ...
''; during the track's mixing, Simon added harmony vocals to the final chorus. *
Cochise Cochise ( ; Apache: or , ; later or , ; June 8, 1874) was the leader of the Chiricahui local group of the Chokonen and principal nantan of the Chokonen band of a Chiricahua Apache. A key war leader during the Apache Wars, he led an upri ...
recorded a rock/blues version on their self-titled debut LP (1970) * Jazz vocalist
Johnny Hartman John Maurice Hartman (July 3, 1923 – September 15, 1983) was an American jazz singer, known for his rich baritone voice and recordings of ballads. He sang and recorded with Earl Hines' and Dizzy Gillespie's big bands and with Erroll Garner. ...
recorded it on his 1973 album '' I've Been There''. * The song was covered by Berni Flint and
Lena Zavaroni Lena Hilda Zavaroni (4 November 1963 – 1 October 1999) was a Scottish singer. At the age of 10, with her debut album '' Ma! (He's Making Eyes at Me)'', she was the youngest person to have had an album in the top 10 of the UK Albums Chart. Lat ...
on her television series '' Lena Zavaroni and Music'' (1979). *
The Coolies The Coolies were an American alternative rock band from Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, active from 1986 to 1989. They derived their name from a dictionary definition of coolie, which defines the word as a derogatory term for "one who does ...
covered it on their 1986 album ''dig..?'', along with eight other tongue-in-cheek covers of Simon & Garfunkel classics. *
Pizzicato Five Pizzicato Five (formerly typeset as Pizzicato V and sometimes abbreviated to P5)Yang Jeff, Dina Can, Terry Hong, (1997) ''Eastern Standard Time'' pg 277 New York: Mariner Books was a Japanese pop band formed in Tokyo in 1984 by multi-instrum ...
made a Japanese-language version of the song, included on both the single ''The Audrey Hepburn Complex'' and the album ''Pizzicatomania!''. * The song was covered by the Boston band
Jim's Big Ego Jim's Big Ego is a Boston, Massachusetts-based band formed in 1995 under the leadership of singer/songwriter Jim Infantino, who was named as the best new artist of 1995 by the National Academy of Songwriters.''Eugene Register-Guard''"Jim's Bi ...
for their album ''Don't Get Smart''. * Jazz saxophonist
Paul Desmond Paul Desmond (born Paul Emil Breitenfeld; November 25, 1924 – May 30, 1977) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and composer and proponent of cool jazz. He was a member of the Dave Brubeck Quartet and composed the group's biggest hit, " ...
recorded the song on his album ''
Bridge Over Troubled Water ''Bridge Over Troubled Water'' is the fifth and final studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, released on January 26, 1970, by Columbia Records. Following the duo's soundtrack for ''The Graduate'', Art Garfunkel took an acting ...
'', consisting of all Simon and Garfunkel compositions. * The Grateful Dead based the "Dark Star" jam on 13 February 1970 at the Fillmore East in New York, NY on the ''
Dick's Picks Volume 4 ''Dick's Picks Volume 4'' is the fourth live album in the Dick's Picks series of releases by the Grateful Dead. It was recorded on February 13 and February 14, 1970, at the Fillmore East in New York City, and released in February 1996. It was th ...
'' album on the song. *
O.A.R. O.A.R. (short for Of A Revolution) is an American rock band, founded in 1996 in Rockville, Maryland. The band consists of lead vocalist/guitarist Marc Roberge, drummer Chris Culos, guitarist Richard On, bassist Benj Gershman, and saxophonist/g ...
have been covering this song in concert since 2002; they play their own arrangement which always serves as an intro to fan favorites "That Was a Crazy Game of Poker" or "City on Down". * The song was parodied by
Bob Rivers Robert Rivers (July 7, 1956 – March 11, 2025) was an American rock and roll radio on-air personality in the Pacific Northwest, as well as a prolific producer and songwriter of parody songs, most famous for his Christmas song parodies. His al ...
as "Feelin' Boobies". *
Tori Amos Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos; August 22, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She is a classically trained musician with a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Having already begun composing instrumental pieces on piano, Amos won a full ...
performed the original song at several of her concerts in 2005. * The song was covered by
Rachael MacFarlane Rachael Ann MacFarlane (born March 21, 1976) is an American voice actress. Her voice credits include Hayley Smith on the animated television show ''American Dad!'', the creator of which, Seth MacFarlane, is her older brother; Supreme Leader Nu ...
on her 2012 debut album '' Hayley Sings''. * During live performances,
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
guitarist
Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...
would often include snippets of "The 59th Street Bridge Song" in the guitar solo of the song " Heartbreaker". While usually edited out of official live releases, the snippet can be heard on numerous
Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings The Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings are a collection of music, audio and video recordings of musical performances by the English Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin which were never officially released by the band, or under other legal authority. T ...
.


In popular culture

* The cover version of the 1969 album '' Switched-On Rock'' by the
Electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...
group "The Moog Machine" was used as the theme for Dr. Chapatín, a character created by
Chespirito Roberto Mario Gómez Bolaños (21 February 1929 – 28 November 2014), more commonly known by his stage name Chespirito, or "Little William Shakespeare, Shakespeare", was a Mexican actor, comedian, screenwriter, humorist, director, produce ...
. * In 1991,
Harpers Bizarre Harpers Bizarre was an American sunshine pop band of the 1960s, best known for their Broadway/sunshine pop sound and their cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)." Career Harpers Bizarre was formed out of ...
's cover of the song was featured in an episode of ''
The Wonder Years ''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl X ...
'' (season 5, episode 10), "Pfeiffer's Choice". * The song was used in a 2003 series of Gap commercials featuring R&B/soul singers
Angie Stone Angela Laverne Stone (née Brown; December 18, 1961 – March 1, 2025) was an American singer-songwriter, rapper, actress, and record producer. With a career spanning over four decades, she has been credited with revolutionizing the sound of Ol ...
and
Mýa Mya Marie Harrison (; born October 10, 1979), known professionally as Mýa, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, and actress. She was born in Washington D.C. and studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance as a child. Her ca ...
. * The song was used in the first season of US TV series ''
Desperate Housewives ''Desperate Housewives'' is an American mystery comedy-drama television series created by Marc Cherry, and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012, for a tota ...
'', during a scene where
Lynette Scavo Lynette Scavo is a fictional character from the American comedy drama television series ''Desperate Housewives'', which aired on ABC from 2004 to 2012. Developed by series creator Marc Cherry, Lynette was portrayed by Felicity Huffman. Lynette ...
hallucinates her own suicide. * In an episode of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'' (season 6, episode 25) titled " Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part One)", Mr. Burns alludes to the song, saying, "Hello lamppost, whatcha knowin'? I've come to watch your power flowin'." * The song was used in the trailer for Hal Ashby's 1975 comedy-drama ''
Shampoo Shampoo () is a hair care product, typically in the form of a viscous liquid, that is formulated to be used for cleaning (scalp) hair. Less commonly, it is available in solid bar format. (" Dry shampoo" is a separate product.) Shampoo is use ...
'' for which Paul Simon composed the original score. * The song was used in the season 3 premiere of '' The Leftovers'' (season 3, episode 1) called " The Book of Kevin". Protagonist Kevin Garvey asphyxiates himself with plastic wrap and duct tape in his room as the song plays. * A variant of the song was performed by Paul Simon and
Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( ; born May 13, 1964) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is best known for hosting the satirical Comedy Central program ''The Colbert Report'' from 2005 to ...
as the opening segment for ''
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night news satire, news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Stephen Colbert, Spartin ...
'' on May 25, 2017. * In a season 1 episode of ''
Animaniacs ''Animaniacs'' is an American Animated series, animated Comedy television, comedy Musical film, musical television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Television Animation. It originally aired on Fox Broadcasting Company ...
'' entitled "The Warners' 65th Anniversary Special", during an appearance on ''
The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the ''CB ...
'' the song is parodied as "Make a Gookie", in which Wakko encourages the general public to be humorous and make silly faces.


References


External links


"The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" Lyrics from Paul Simon's official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:59th Street Bridge Song 1966 songs 1967 singles Columbia Records singles Simon & Garfunkel songs Song recordings produced by Bob Johnston Songs about roads Songs about New York City Songs written by Paul Simon