Simon & Garfunkel — Patterns
Album: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and ThymeAvg rating:
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Total ratings: 264
Length: 2:36
Plays (last 30 days): 1
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The night sets softly
With the hush of falling leaves,
Casting shivering shadows
On the houses through the trees,
And the light from a street lamp
Paints a pattern on my wall,
Like the pieces of a puzzle
Or a child's uneven scrawl.
Up a narrow flight of stairs
In a narrow little room,
As I lie upon my bed
In the early evening gloom.
Impaled on my wall
My eyes can dimly see
The pattern of my life
And the puzzle that is me.
From the moment of my birth
To the instant of my death,
There are patterns I must follow
Just as I must breathe each breath.
Like a rat in a maze
The path before me lies,
And the pattern never alters
Until the rat dies.
And the pattern still remains
On the wall where darkness fell,
And it's fitting that it should,
For in darkness I must dwell.
Like the color of my skin,
Or the day that I grow old,
My life is made of patterns
That can scarcely be controlled.
With the hush of falling leaves,
Casting shivering shadows
On the houses through the trees,
And the light from a street lamp
Paints a pattern on my wall,
Like the pieces of a puzzle
Or a child's uneven scrawl.
Up a narrow flight of stairs
In a narrow little room,
As I lie upon my bed
In the early evening gloom.
Impaled on my wall
My eyes can dimly see
The pattern of my life
And the puzzle that is me.
From the moment of my birth
To the instant of my death,
There are patterns I must follow
Just as I must breathe each breath.
Like a rat in a maze
The path before me lies,
And the pattern never alters
Until the rat dies.
And the pattern still remains
On the wall where darkness fell,
And it's fitting that it should,
For in darkness I must dwell.
Like the color of my skin,
Or the day that I grow old,
My life is made of patterns
That can scarcely be controlled.
Comments (25)add comment
Great story tellers in great harmony and the creative flair bringing excellence to the tunes.
I have the vinyl of this...albeit stapled to the ceiling of my garage.
fredriley wrote:
Paul Simon produced about fifteen years of (mostly good) music between his days with S & G and his foray into "World Music".
This duo are the definition of the phrase "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts". Once they broke up neither really achieved the musical and lyrical level they'd produced together. Paul Simon may have become famous through his ripping-off/borrowing/homages to 'world music', but IMO his work is a pale shadow of the S&G years. I've not heard this number before, a shame as it's a goodie.
Paul Simon produced about fifteen years of (mostly good) music between his days with S & G and his foray into "World Music".
I think I prefer the original arrangement... Troubador, madrigal -ish... But still an excellent song by artisans who know their craft.
Sheesh. Where else are ya' gonna' hear this one? Thanks.
I used to have this record, forgot what a gem this is. Thanks Bill for the reminder.
Thanks for playing this, RP! I also had forgotten it - and it is beautiful. Has not dated at all.
This duo are the definition of the phrase "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts". Once they broke up neither really achieved the musical and lyrical level they'd produced together. Paul Simon may have become famous through his ripping-off/borrowing/homages to 'world music', but IMO his work is a pale shadow of the S&G years. I've not heard this number before, a shame as it's a goodie.
Of its time yet ahead of its time and timeless.
This album has got to be a top 10 of the 60's. Great songs. Paul Simon's songwriting
is so original. Art Garfunkel with his choirboy voice makes it all so clean and uncluttered. Thanks for picking this up from the flowergarden!
is so original. Art Garfunkel with his choirboy voice makes it all so clean and uncluttered. Thanks for picking this up from the flowergarden!
It's got a very Greenwich Village beatnik coffee house sound with the bongo drums, good to hear this again.
The patterns! AAAAAHHHHH!
Wouldn't EVER have them recognised!
I used to play this album to death when it first came out, but I had forgotten about this song!
wow, you just NEVER hear this.....forgot about it....this album was amazing....
Zeito wrote:
First time for me, too. Great transitions throughout. Nice stuff!
I've never heard this. I thought it was Iron & Wine or one of those other modern Monsters of Folk type acts.
First time for me, too. Great transitions throughout. Nice stuff!
Zeito wrote:
Exactly!
I've never heard this. I thought it was Iron & Wine or one of those other modern Monsters of Folk type acts.
Exactly!
I've never heard this. I thought it was Iron & Wine or one of those other modern Monsters of Folk type acts.
Excellent choice! 
Ditto - Buddybuddy wrote:
Alright! You''re reaching out into the vaults for this one - one of my favorites from PSR&T to be sure. Simon & Garfunkel when they were still intense before their Me & Julio days. A 10.
buddy wrote:
I found out this wasn't in the library.
So I needed a boost in my upload percentages.
It helped me get my lousy ratings up.
Alright! You''re reaching out into the vaults for this one - one of my favorites from PSR&T to be sure. Simon & Garfunkel when they were still intense before their Me & Julio days. A 10.
I found out this wasn't in the library.
So I needed a boost in my upload percentages.
It helped me get my lousy ratings up.
Great song from a great LP!
S & G are always good for a nice groove!!!