Scarborough Fair/Canticle- Simon and Garfunkel

When i heard this song for the first time, i had a preconceived notion that i would not like it. Usually when you go ahead with something carrying this notion, the notion wins 99% of the time. This song beat that notion of mine. I will try to put into words what i actually felt when i heard it. But before that, let's have a look into what it really is about.

This song describes a young man asking his former lover to perform a serious of impossible tasks, like making him a shirt without a seam and washing it in a dry well. He says that he will take her back only if she can finish these tasks. Looks like she sure had made his life hell! ;-)

I don't know how many people who have heard the song have actually paid attention to few words which go on in the back ground. I was always curious about those but i could never figure out anything except these- "To fight for a cause they've long ago forgotten". I used to think this might relate to some kind of revolution or war. When i googled it up, my guess was right.

So the song isn't just Scarborough Fair. There is Canticle going on in the background. The latter describes a war scene. It is two songs sung simultaneously. It is upto the listeners to link them or not. You can imagine a soldier thinking about his ex-lover. Or you can just think that S&G used both to create melody of the highest order. If you ask me, it is the perfect combination of a beautiful story wrapped in a mystical world created by S&G's musical harmony.

When i heard it for the first time, i couln't help but drift away to a magical place where i could see lush green meadows and puffs of white clouds against the blue sky. You can call that my 'Happy Place'. In short, I felt peaceful. The music, the voices- they had an element of innocence in them.

I get the same feeling when i listen to it today. It is a song i can never get bored of. I don't know who originally wrote the song(s), I don't know how it was supposed to be sung. I just believe that S&G has presented it in the best possible manner. I do not think there is room for any improvement, because it is PERFECT.