REVIEW: A Night of Simon and Garfunkel
3/22 @ Cohoes Music Hall
Photos by Debi Gustafson
“In truth, while it’s relatively easy to stage a tribute show, creating one that resonates deeply requires talent, thought, and genuine passion—and that’s precisely what was on display Saturday night.”
I never know if it sounds cool or if it ages me to start stories with, “When I was listening to my mother’s record collection…”.
Oh well.
One of my earlier musical memories was going through my mother’s record collection. I was always particularly drawn to anything with compelling and intricate harmonies. I’d play them and sing along at the top of my lungs. And any song moving forward without harmonies would get the treatment. Surely one of my more annoying habits and thanks to Fleetwood Mac, CCR, my mother and Simon and Garfunkel.
To be fair, these acts were before my time, so before you start doing the math, let me qualify: While my friends were listening to Michael Jackson and Madonna, I was deeply submerged in Central Park, Slip Sliding Away to the sounds of Simon and Garfunkel. Considering the deep awe I have for The Concert in Central Park, I can promise I attended the tribute show at Cohoes Music Hall with a healthy dose of skepticism.
In truth, while it’s relatively easy to stage a tribute show, creating one that resonates deeply requires talent, thought, and genuine passion—and that’s precisely what was on display Saturday night. All skepticism was quickly rendered unwarranted.
“A Night of Simon and Garfunkel” marked local songstress Zan Strumfeld’s third tribute event, following her previous successful shows dedicated to Joni Mitchell and Carole King – both admirable undertakings.
One might expect a Simon and Garfunkel tribute show to conclude or encore with “Sound of Silence”, arguably one of the group’s most iconic songs. When this sold-out show started with it instead, we all collectively knew we were going to experience something truly special.
Strumfeld was joined by her brother, Dave, for this initial song; remarkably, it was their first time singing together, but you wouldn’t have guessed it from their flawless performance.
Next up was Drank the Gold, starting with a lesser known Garfunkel track, “Dream Alone”, followed by a few other charming deep cuts for the true fans, and the more recognizable “Scarborough Fair” thrown in for good measure.
Following them were Chris Carey and Mike O’Donnell, who jokingly expressed concern about the difficulty of performing “America”—only to dominate the song with ease. The duo covered some of the more familiar hits like “Mrs. Robinson” and “Homeward Bound” and, much like the voices they were paying tribute to, it was hard to tell where one voice started and the other stopped.
After the intermission, Strumfeld was joined by fellow female phenoms of the capital region: Raya Malcolm (of Hold on Honeys), Oona Grady (from Drank the Gold), and Caity Gallagher. Together, they delivered an emotional rendition of “Kathy’s Song.”
Soon after, the acts were accompanied by an all-star band comprised of Pat Parkinson on bass, Joe Woodul on drums, John Drabik on guitar and Dan DeKalb on keys.
Caity Gallager was the first to front the backing band, but DeKalb took much of the lead on the singing – a first-time delight for audiences (and hopefully not the last). His voice suited this tribute to the point you thought he may have just been doing a well-honed impersonation. They opened the set with a soothing rendition of “April Come She Will” before moving onto some more upbeat hits like “The Boxer” and “Graceland” before closing with Gallagher taking lead on “Bridge Over Troubled Water”.
I would have never thought there was a way to improve on Simon and Garfunkel until Raya Malcolm and Michael Gregg took the stage and offered an element of whimsy which made you realize how humorless the original duo was. Something you didn’t even think you needed until you got it. Gregg made a point of steering the ship towards the Simon solo tunes almost as if by design to bookend the earlier Garfunkel deep cuts. Whether it was planned or not, it just worked in a beautiful, full circle kind of way. They covered “Song for the Asking”, “The Only Living Boy in NY”, “At the Zoo”, ”American Tune”, and aptly closed with “Still Crazy After All These Years”.
The songs were peppered with fun facts about the tributees and the venue. Like the original name for Simon and Garfunkel was “Tom and Jerry”, the two recorded their first album at 15 years old, and the 150-year-old theater had a ghost named Eva keeping everyone company.
One of my favorite parts of the night was watching Strumfeld come into the theater, stand in the back and watch the magic she birthed like a proud mother. All of the performers took to the stage for the final song – “Cecelia” – before bidding us adieu, leaving us all entertained, delighted and curious as to what tribute we’re going to get next from the very talented soul of Zan Strumfeld.
