Anne Bancroft became forever associated with the role of Mrs. Robinson in the THE GRADUATE and this song. When she died, her husband Mel Brooks asked Paul Simon if he would perform the song at her funeral. As soon as he began to sing the lyrics both Paul and Mel realized that in the context of Anne's funeral, the lyrics took on a whole new meaning. Chills. TRUE FILM FAN
The part where it goes into the Joe DiMaggio bit is so brilliant because the song is expanded from Mrs Robinson lamenting a brighter past, to implying that all of America is Mrs Robinson. Do see the movie, it’s really really good. Thanks
For a young man about to face the decisions that go with college and career, the movie 'The Graduate' is a beautiful exploration of life and Dustin Hoffman's performance is outstanding. Anne Bancroft is also spectacular in this film. Simon & Garfunkel's contributions to the soundtrack are superb. I am sure you would enjoy it.
A lot of the people who don't understand how a reactor has never heard a song forget how young some of these people are. The songs they are reacting to were popular 20 or 30 years before they were born. A lot of this music is no longer played on the radio and kids don't listen to the radio anyway. Where would they hear it?
@@normamcgillis4983 kids..."it's boring!" even if that is not the refrain, where do you start or stop...20's onward? standards? big band? jazz? (which genres of jazz) pop? etc. I looked at a list compiled by Ytubus of groups and artists, some 2,000 plus (my rough count) and there were lots missing that I loved....but I had heard of or listened to some 90% that they listed. But that takes more than a few years....
@@dhamma58 Ahhh, the trick is to start "poisoning" their minds while they are still very young -- I still remember my sisters playing Beatles records for me when I was about 5.... :-)
@@fewwiggle pretty sure mine was 78's but the contents of which never stuck....but since we kids were all 18 months apart, nobody got to inflict taste except the parent unit...
Just as a bit of trivia, Joe DiMaggio owned a restaurant on San Francisco's "Fisherman's Wharf" (imaginatively named "DiMaggio's") and would often stroll through, talking with customers and signing autographs. When I saw him, he was an older man, with snow-white hair...I've seen a lot of impressive people in my 64-years, but, I've never seen anyone who could command a room so quickly and so thoroughly...complete silence descended and quite literally every eye was on DiMaggio...a quiet dignity and grace, and incredible charisma...he was a gentleman, back when that term had much more meaning than it does today.
fairly close alignment of meaning with the movie, Mrs Robinson trying to hang onto lost cultural ideals, lost youth, and making mistakes along the way that society prefers to hide in scorn. Something like that.
Simon coupled craftsmanship and art in unique fashion. His solo canon is equally deep; kodachrome, me & julio down by the schoolyard, slip-sliding away, graceland, and many more.
@@danieljodrey8863 Gordon Lightfoot and Leonard Cohen I'd add as well. Harry Chapin, Jim Croce and Don McLean would get honorable mentions on my list. I totally agree with your list as well.
Paul Simon has been married to Edie Brickell since 1992 (meaning my wife and I have 10 years longer!) but you might enjoy Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians' song "What I Am", because purportedly she was singing the song, saw Paul Simon out in the audience, and it led to their relationship, marriage, and three children.
It's definitely worked out (married for almost 30 years), but another case of an older entertainment person married to a younger beautiful girl - he was 51 and she was 26
Coo coo ca choo was a popular phrase in the 1920s and 30s, when Mrs. Robinson would have been young. It's a a reference to her younger, better days - like Joltin' Joe is a reference to our collective younger, better days.
The Graduate is my favorite movie. Watched it about a hundred times. This song can be interpreted in many ways. My best guess that it is a collaboration of the original song and the movie theme. I always thought the line "Hide it in a hiding place where no one ever goes" referred to the affair between Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson. The song really fits the movie.
Great harmonies, great songwriting, GREAT guitar playing. Paul Simon is a seriously underrated guitarist. His finger picking style on so many songs is just wonderful. Keep exploring them and of course both their solo careers. Garfunkel's "All I Know" was a big hit and really shows off his angelic voice
To me, this song is about family secrets. The particular secret in this case is substance abuse, for which Mrs. Robinson has just checked herself into rehab. The drugs or alcohol are what she puts in the pantry with her cupcakes, and what she has to hide from the kids. I'd love to see you react to American Tune by Paul Simon, which is a different song from America by Simon and Garfunkle. The melody (which was partly lifted from a hymn) is beautiful, and the lyrics are relevant today.
My mom and I sang this song in an air-conditioned rental car in 1968 while driving across So. Dakota on our way to Oregon. This has to be one of my all time favorites!
Simon and Garfunkle's music was very much a result of its time. Sometimes they were a mirror, sometimes a teacher, sometimes a conscience. They truly are timeless. Mrs. Robinson was a perfect reflection of the character and her times and life in the film. Even though it wasn't written specifically with her in mind. The character Mrs. Robinson wanted to have her social statu, and at the same time wanted to break away from it. It is arguable that while the title character is considered the main character, the film is so much more about Mrs. Robinson. Thanks for the reaction.
Mrs. Robinson is from the movie The Graduate which my dad took me to see when I was going on 9 years old in 1967. I was a bit shocked from the experience since the movie has a very mature storyline as you now have learned. One word, Plastics (watch the movie to understand that reference).
That was a classic scene that became real for me once. My girlfriend’s in-laws in Toledo gave us lodging on a cross country trip and at dinner I found myself conversing with a guy who worked for a plastics corporation. He was all about plastics, and I still can picture him bragging how cool it was that they last for over 2,000 yrs.
Future unboxing will give you many more to choose from that wonderful show performed in New York Central Park Bookends shall also be available for a "LP reaction assist" in the near future
Ciao Daniel, nice surprise 😊 Really like this song! It was fun watching your reaction as you knew the song but were not familiar with the movie. And it did make sense that lyrics were difficult to decipher for you as you lacked the context. Still you were able to detect the ironic tone in the chorus, good catch 👍 I had the opposite experience as I discover the song through the movie, so it's weird to me to think about one without the other 😉
Joe DiMaggio is one of the greatest baseball players of all time. DiMaggio was a symbol of class and qualified as baseball royalty. The fact that he played for the almighty Yankees adds to his prestige. Anyone of a certain age knows who Joltin' Joe is. Anyone of a younger certain age may know DiMaggio as Mr. Coffee.
@@HamiltonRb When Monroe was married to DiMaggio she did a trip overseas to appear before the troops. She was thrilled by how much she was loved. She said to Joe that he didn't know how it felt to have thousands screaming at your every move. He quietly replied, Yes, I do."
And all of a sudden, I'm back in high school. Btw, I think the "coo coo ca-choo" line is a reference to a similar phrase in "I Am the Walrus" (1967) by The Beatles. Or at least it seems to be.
You should try to get into some early punk rock music. Suggestions are as follow: * The Damned “New Rose” * The Buzzcocks “ What Do I Get?” * Siouxsie and the Banshees “Happy House” * The Cramps “Goo Goo Muck” * The Undertones “Teenage Kicks”
There are thousands of songs and other pieces of music I've never heard and I've been around for a long time. Who am I to question anyone who hasn't heard a piece music, it's people making assumptions that I wonder about. I agree with you about Simon and Garfunkel and have enjoyed their music for a long, long time. I was fortunate enough to see Paul Simon in concert when he and Bob Dylan toured together. It was a great show...
Soundtrack for The Graduate starring Dustin Hoffman. I know.... “Dustin who??” I get it and respect what you do. You are learning as you go. Can’t ask for more than that.
Hey Daniel, you definitely heard a lot of great bands and artist on your channel, let me suggest another one, that I miss here, Tom Waits, who is a very unique musician, singer, songwriter. Just a few songs to choose from: "Jockey Full of Bourbon", "Martha", “16 Shells from a Thirty-Ought Six”, “All the World Is Green”, “Ol’ ‘55”, "Clap Hands", "Grapefruit Moon".
Please react to "The Only Living Boy in New York". It is a hidden gem that wasn't played on the radio as much as their big hits, but has turned out to be one of my favorites by them.
There are a lot of REALLY great lesser-known Simon and Garfunkel tracks that aren't quite as 'laid back' and 'mellow.' "Patterns" and "Poem on the Underground Wall" are pretty dark but still hauntingly beautiful, and tracks like "Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine" and "A Simple Desultory Philippic" lay on some thick Dylan-esque sarcasm and irony. "Hearts and Bones," "Train in the Distance," "Renee and Georgette Magritte (with their dog after the war)," "Everything Put Together Falls Apart," "How the Heart Approaches What It Yearns," and "Duncan" are some of my personal faves that draw out pure emotion... All S&G (and just S!) are legitimate masterpieces of composition/construction and emotive communication--more, more!!!! :)
@@sjw5797 I figured, but didn't want to assume--I've heard different people give their interpretations over the years, and it feels like it ruins their telling of it if I say it first, I guess? :) I think I've heard either Art or Paul put forth 'love' as a possibility--makes sense!
Songwtiter, Paul Simon explained in an interview that the dee-dee's and do'-do's in the song were Paul's grooving on the guitar riff and the lyrics came in spurts. So he reflected on certain cultural elements and characters. Beyond that, It is pure genius. The entire BOOKENDS album is brilliant. A complete immersion piece. In my opinion, S&G's best album.
"The Graduate" was my favorite movie for some years. Caveat: I have an odd sense of humor. I do not know if it has aged well - but the song sure has! I think it's more a commentary on upper or upper-middle-class America, which Mrs. Robinson represents. That segment of society included such common activities as "having a nervous breakdown", "over-using prescription meds", "having affairs" and even "actually attending candidates' debates" - local candidates - where both sides were equally terrible also-rich people. So the lyrics fit in a general way, though not specifically with Mrs Robinson's actions in the movie. She's "of that ilk."
In those days you had to either see a film in the cinema or wait five years before it was shown on TV. I was 17 when I saw "The Graduate " on TV and I still think it's a wonderful film. The Simon and Garfunkel music adds to the atmosphere. You should watch it.
Hi! Just for fun -- Anne Bancroft, who played Mrs. Robinson in the film, was married to Mel Brooks. Katharine Ross, who played her daughter, is married to Sam Elliot.
🇨🇦❤️Hi Daniel! Thank you for reviewing this song. It holds special significance for me because I was 13 when The Graduate was released and I believe that it’s an excellent representation of universal cultural cynicism. My mother, like hundreds of thousands of other women at the time, became addicted to Valium, or Mothers Little Helper, as it was known. She was more fortunate than some women that quit the highly addictive drug cold turkey against the advice of their doctors. Some of them landed in insane asylums. My opinion is that Valium was utilized to keep wives and mothers under control because a foggy brain is less likely to rebel against the status quo, of course. Anne Bancroft, who portrayed Mrs. Robinson so perfectly, sadly passed away in 2005, and she’s survived by her husband, the great Mel Brooks. (The inventor of Valium, Leo Sternbach, also died in 2005 at the age of 97). People have used terms like 'cougar', 'sugar mummy' or the 'Mrs Robinson Syndrome' to refer to older women dating younger men which would have been seen as purely transactional - for sex, money or both.
Great song writing, harmony and message. Perfect song for the movie the Graduate. Your opening statement - Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends - Check out Emerson Lake and Palmer - the first song from that live album - Hoedown. Who played keyboards as well as Keith Emerson......
Song is from one of the seminal movies of a generation. The Graduate, like Easy Rider and Apocalypse Now, was a movie that reflected the times and trials of young people in the late 60's ,early 70's. You really have to see it, soundtrack by Simon and Garfunkel.
Hey Daniel, Great old song which takes me back to first seeing the movie too. Life was sure good being an 11 yr old paperboy with money to burn, buying singles and going to the theater every weekend ! Pivoting to request mode, I have an idea for you ~ Railroad themed songs ! (It doesn’t get more classic American than that). Here are a few good folk songs : - “City of New Orleans” , Arlo Guthrie - “Casey Jones” , Tom Rush - “ End of the Line “, Travelling Wilburys
For CONO I would consider the original instead of the guthrie cover (there was a lawsuit over that). Casey Jones is also the name of a song by the Grateful Dead but their version is very different. The Grateful Dead also did a song called "Monkey and the Engineer" which is about railroading. The greatest railroad song I have heard is Gordon Lightfoot's Canadian Railway Trilogy.
@@maruad7577 Great suggestions, especially “Monkey and the Engineer”. I almost put Gordon’s masterpiece on my list except it’s so long. I totally love his music and that one in particular - it is GOAT of railroad songs.
BTW , noticed you seem like you’re into GD. Thought you might be interested in a new channel I found called “Garloo”. He’s posting some great vids from Dead history, especially 60s era. Cool stuff ! Two excellent interviews of Jerry also.
Daniel I'm a New York Yankees fan so the Joe DiMaggio reference strikes a happy chord and the song is featured in the " The Graduate" I'm a big fan of the movie.0pù
There are three movies you need to watch in order to get many 1970s-80s references. The Graduate, MASH (the movie that inspired the TV series), and The Godfather.
I don't know what Columbia was doing in 1968, but their records were awesome sounding. (Blood, Sweat and Tears 2nd album as well as "Bookends") And sturdy...they held that pristine sound through many playings. I've had Mobile Fidelity and Half-Speed Master vinyls that didn't sound as good as these standard priced records did.
Agree about the timelessness of Simon & Garfunkel. If you haven't heard some of Simon's individual music, you might want to look into Graceland. And listening to this, a newer band popped into my head. Have you ever listened to The Shins? New Slang, Phantom Limb and Red Rabbits will give you lyrics to digest.
Long while since you did any Simon and Garfunkel Daniel, hope you move on to listening Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, there's some great songs on that album
Joe DiMaggio resented that lyric, where have you gone? At the time in the 70s, he was known on TV commercials as a spokesman for Mr. Coffee, a line of Coffee makers. He never really went away.
I always wondered if the lyric "heaven holds a place for those who pray" was a type of double entendre. Every printed lyrics uses the spelling pray but what if it was also cleverly disguised referencing "prey?" Mrs. Robinson (in the film) was clearly a sexual predator even though her prey was of legal age. Does heaven hold a special place for those who prey upon others in this manner? We can only pray it is so. Since the song predates the film it is difficult to know. Sometimes the word choice is simply what completes the rhyme.
@Pandora Z Her character was made as such that people would be sympathetic. She appeared to dissatisfied and discontented with her life to me. Still and all any mother who seduces her own daughters boyfriend is predatory and has commuted a huge betrayal of her daughter. The dialogue is not what my observations are based on. Her behaviour is the basis of what I conclude.
A little trivia... Joe DiMaggio was married to Marilyn Monroe from 1954-55 until their divorce. She then married the playwright Arthur Miller from 1956-61. You might remember him from your High School English class if you studied “The Crucible” among others.
joe DiMaggio was a rock solid dependable baseball player. When song was written America was going through the turbulent 1960s. According to song America needed a reliable figure to lead it through this era. Paul Simon picked DiMaggio because he was a huge Yankee fan . Do we a Jolting Joe today?
Paul is the sole songwriter of the duo and he’s quite a brilliant one. I find that there are some songwriters who are extremely good at melody yet might be weaker lyrically and vice versa but Paul is definitely extremely competent with both. Hi all just about every one of Paul Simmons albums both as a solo artist and with Garfunkel. The one pattern I noticed is that he writes from a very metaphorical style. I’ve researched the meanings of many of the songs and I always end up surprised because it’s never what I was thinking the meeting was and of course I’m only talking about when Paul gets that meaning himself and not someone else’s interpretation that can be just as wrong as mine lol. Every now and then Paul doesn’t have an explanation for the meaning of his songs because he is not even sure and he writes from what he calls a stream of consciousness. Now I know that is a term that many are familiar with but when I heard Paul talk about it that was my first time even hearing that terminology. Here is what I remember him saying about this song which actually wasn’t much about the song as a whole but one particular line of the song that seems to be the line that most people seem to like the most which is the mention of Joe DiMaggio. Paul said that that was a complete stream of consciousness and he doesn’t even know what it means but he felt very strongly that it meant something and that’s almost a quote LOL. I also saw an interview where he was talking about where he came up with that melody for that rift that the song starts out with. He was specifically asked to write a song as a soundtrack for the movie “The Graduate”. he was given film footage of the movie to aid him even though the movie was not yet finished and released and he said he was watching a race car scene when he came up with that melody and rhythm rift for the song. I never saw the movie I was only four or five years old when it was out you know I keep telling myself I should check it out someday LOL.
David Frost: So, where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, a nation turns it's lonely eyes to you. What does that mean exactly Paul? Paul Simon: Well, you know, it'll mean something to somebody somewhere. (paraphrasing)
One of those songs i have heard too many times...great on the first 500 times. Nostalgic even in the sixties (Joe Dimaggio was a NY Yankee in the fifties). I can"t imagine what today's generation thinks about it.
The Graduate is a great movie! It’s an excellent commentary on the times. DiMaggio’s playing days were long before my time, but he was famous as an old timer and for his Mr. Coffee ads. I think Michael Jordan of 2021 might be a good comparison to what DiMaggio was in the late 60s through the 70s and 80s.
@@Hartlor_Tayley in the part of the song Daniel was asking about - put it in the pantry with the cupcakes/hide it from the kids - yes I think this stanza refers to Mrs Robinson's alcoholism, but there is another layer about Elaine's questionable parentage with the "just the Robinson's affair" line. I wrote that comment when Daniel was asking about that line/stanza in particular.
@@emanonfox1709 thats interesting. Im not sure how tied into the movie the lyrics actually were. Simon was writing a song Mrs Roosevelt and changed the name for the movie. The song doesn’t seem to follow the movie at all, to me anyway.
@@Hartlor_Tayley Nichols chose the song while it was still a work in progress, specifically for the film, which relies heavily on the "dee deedeedee deet dee" lyrics, Paul did not finish writing all the verses until after that. Search "film version Mrs Robinson" and it's very different even in composition and rhythm as well as vocally. And lyrically, there is just the one stanza about "Jesus loves you more than you will know..." The lyrics in question were not written before being associated with the film.
I believe it's about an affair a college age man has with an older married woman..it comes from the movie, "The Graduate", starring a young Dustin Hoffman ..I always enjoy your reactions to these songs ❤
Would love to see you do a movie reaction to The Graduate. Nice reaction, to me the song is a typical Paul Simon loneliness song, from a lonely person to a lonely America. That's just my take.
Daniel , my love, WATCH THE FRICKEN’ MOVIE! On here, and react to it! “The. Graduate’ is a MASTERPIECE! Absolutely not a waste of your time! You will know how Mrs. Robinson got into the mental hospital!
Joe DiMaggio didn't leave the public eye. He sold Mr. Coffee on TV for like 15 years. A whole generation knew him as Mr. Coffee. So songfacts gets it completely wrong.
The Graduate is a high quality classic, and better than it probably sounds like. So I definitely concur with what others have said - you should watch it at some point, especially considering your acting ambitions. (No need to react imo, just watch and enjoy.)
You must check out the album cover art of Austrian triphop/down beat DJs Kruder & Dorfmeister: 'G-Stoned'. It's an hommage to Simon and Garfunkel's 'Book Ends.' Very well done. Cheers D!
My mother really liked this song, at least until she saw "The Graduate" This song is about a woman who goes crazy, and gets put in a rest home; "We'd like to learn a little bit about you for our files.....Stroll around the grounds until you feel at home." Oh, and she does drugs: hide it from the kids.
@@tinypurplefishesrunlaughin8052 I learned that through the reaction I left my comment before he had finished or correctly stated I had finished watching the reaction
In keeping with the tie to politicians, Marilyn Monroe, who overdosed in 1962, was rumored of having affairs with both JFK and RFK. I like the idea that the whole song is actually about politics.
Anne Bancroft became forever associated with the role of Mrs. Robinson in the THE GRADUATE and this song. When she died, her husband Mel Brooks asked Paul Simon if he would perform the song at her funeral. As soon as he began to sing the lyrics both Paul and Mel realized that in the context of Anne's funeral, the lyrics took on a whole new meaning. Chills. TRUE FILM FAN
Wow!
You're just going to have to sit down and watch The Graduate. A classic of early 70s cinema. Dustin Hoffman is amazing as a young actor.
And Anne Bancroft was a marvelous adversary for him.
1967
I concur!
Exactly. Context is everything.
We watched it in my film class back when I was a junior in high school. Amazing movie. Hoffman kills it
The part where it goes into the Joe DiMaggio bit is so brilliant because the song is expanded from Mrs Robinson lamenting a brighter past, to implying that all of America is Mrs Robinson. Do see the movie, it’s really really good. Thanks
Paul Simon is so good at expanding his songs at the end.
It's also ironic that Paul actually wanted to use Mickey Mantle - but he said that it didn't really fit that well within the rhythm
For a young man about to face the decisions that go with college and career, the movie 'The Graduate' is a beautiful exploration of life and Dustin Hoffman's performance is outstanding. Anne Bancroft is also spectacular in this film. Simon & Garfunkel's contributions to the soundtrack are superb. I am sure you would enjoy it.
Anne Bancroft was a great actress! She's not gone yet, I think.
@@christinerobinson9372 Anne Bancroft (Mrs. Mel Brooks) died in 2005, age 73.
It’s pretty amazing that in reality, Ann Bancroft was only six years older than Hoffman.
@@JamesLachowsky Thank you, I didn't know.
A lot of the people who don't understand how a reactor has never heard a song forget how young some of these people are. The songs they are reacting to were popular 20 or 30 years before they were born. A lot of this music is no longer played on the radio and kids don't listen to the radio anyway. Where would they hear it?
"Where would they hear it?" From any parent worth their salt!!! :-)
@@fewwiggle you are correct! (aside to my kids - you're welcome)
@@normamcgillis4983 kids..."it's boring!" even if that is not the refrain, where do you start or stop...20's onward? standards? big band? jazz? (which genres of jazz) pop? etc. I looked at a list compiled by Ytubus of groups and artists, some 2,000 plus (my rough count) and there were lots missing that I loved....but I had heard of or listened to some 90% that they listed. But that takes more than a few years....
@@dhamma58 Ahhh, the trick is to start "poisoning" their minds while they are still very young -- I still remember my sisters playing Beatles records for me when I was about 5.... :-)
@@fewwiggle pretty sure mine was 78's but the contents of which never stuck....but since we kids were all 18 months apart, nobody got to inflict taste except the parent unit...
Check out "Hazy Shade of Winter". One of my favorite Simon and Garfunkel songs. Thank you
Yes!
Then compare it to The Bangles version
@@mikeh020011 I actually like The Bangles version as well.
Just as a bit of trivia, Joe DiMaggio owned a restaurant on San Francisco's "Fisherman's Wharf" (imaginatively named "DiMaggio's") and would often stroll through, talking with customers and signing autographs. When I saw him, he was an older man, with snow-white hair...I've seen a lot of impressive people in my 64-years, but, I've never seen anyone who could command a room so quickly and so thoroughly...complete silence descended and quite literally every eye was on DiMaggio...a quiet dignity and grace, and incredible charisma...he was a gentleman, back when that term had much more meaning than it does today.
They did the soundtrack to the movie
The Graduate. A classic
fairly close alignment of meaning with the movie, Mrs Robinson trying to hang onto lost cultural ideals, lost youth, and making mistakes along the way that society prefers to hide in scorn. Something like that.
Simon coupled craftsmanship and art in unique fashion. His solo canon is equally deep; kodachrome, me & julio down by the schoolyard, slip-sliding away, graceland, and many more.
You Can Call Me Al would be a great one to analyze.
Paul Simon is one of the top tier singer-songwriters of all time. Bob, Neil, The other Paul, David only a few reach that pinnacle of greatness.
@@danieljodrey8863 Gordon Lightfoot and Leonard Cohen I'd add as well. Harry Chapin, Jim Croce and Don McLean would get honorable mentions on my list. I totally agree with your list as well.
Paul Simon has been married to Edie Brickell since 1992 (meaning my wife and I have 10 years longer!) but you might enjoy Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians' song "What I Am", because purportedly she was singing the song, saw Paul Simon out in the audience, and it led to their relationship, marriage, and three children.
It's definitely worked out (married for almost 30 years), but another case of an older entertainment person married to a younger beautiful girl - he was 51 and she was 26
Less than 500 subs to 20K...here's to you Daniel, a Legion turns it's lonely eyes to you :) Oh, great analysis.
Coo coo ca choo was a popular phrase in the 1920s and 30s, when Mrs. Robinson would have been young. It's a a reference to her younger, better days - like Joltin' Joe is a reference to our collective younger, better days.
The Graduate is my favorite movie. Watched it about a hundred times. This song can be interpreted in many ways. My best guess that it is a collaboration of the original song and the movie theme. I always thought the line "Hide it in a hiding place where no one ever goes" referred to the affair between Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson. The song really fits the movie.
I think you nail it. 'with the cupcakes' is so nasty, ironic.
Some of the best acoustic guitar work ever -- so melodic and percussive
Love the channel listening for about a yr now keep getting better thanks for all the hard work
Great harmonies, great songwriting, GREAT guitar playing. Paul Simon is a seriously underrated guitarist. His finger picking style on so many songs is just wonderful. Keep exploring them and of course both their solo careers. Garfunkel's "All I Know" was a big hit and really shows off his angelic voice
Both Simon & Garfunkel are craftsmen; that is what keeps them timeless.
The guitar work on this song is amazing
S&G has always been among my all time favorites because of their beautiful harmony and the meaningful lyrics
To me, this song is about family secrets. The particular secret in this case is substance abuse, for which Mrs. Robinson has just checked herself into rehab. The drugs or alcohol are what she puts in the pantry with her cupcakes, and what she has to hide from the kids.
I'd love to see you react to American Tune by Paul Simon, which is a different song from America by Simon and Garfunkle. The melody (which was partly lifted from a hymn) is beautiful, and the lyrics are relevant today.
Yes! American Tune is spectacular.
My mom and I sang this song in an air-conditioned rental car in 1968 while driving across So. Dakota on our way to Oregon. This has to be one of my all time favorites!
Simon and Garfunkle's music was very much a result of its time. Sometimes they were a mirror, sometimes a teacher, sometimes a conscience. They truly are timeless. Mrs. Robinson was a perfect reflection of the character and her times and life in the film. Even though it wasn't written specifically with her in mind. The character Mrs. Robinson wanted to have her social statu, and at the same time wanted to break away from it. It is arguable that while the title character is considered the main character, the film is so much more about Mrs. Robinson. Thanks for the reaction.
Number one record in 1968 for Simon & Garfunkel. Great song. 🎼🎶🎵🇨🇦
Mrs. Robinson is from the movie The Graduate which my dad took me to see when I was going on 9 years old in 1967. I was a bit shocked from the experience since the movie has a very mature storyline as you now have learned. One word, Plastics (watch the movie to understand that reference).
I often think of that line from 1967. At the time it was just a funny throwaway line but now, now more than 50 years later, it sounds foreboding.
That was a classic scene that became real for me once. My girlfriend’s in-laws in Toledo gave us lodging on a cross country trip and at dinner I found myself conversing with a guy who worked for a plastics corporation. He was all about plastics, and I still can picture him bragging how cool it was that they last for over 2,000 yrs.
Future unboxing will give you many more to choose from that wonderful show performed in New York Central Park
Bookends shall also be available for a "LP reaction assist" in the near future
I love the acoustic guitar work in this song! So hard-driving and punchy, serving as a contrast to the soothing, harmonized vocals.
Ciao Daniel, nice surprise 😊 Really like this song! It was fun watching your reaction as you knew the song but were not familiar with the movie. And it did make sense that lyrics were difficult to decipher for you as you lacked the context. Still you were able to detect the ironic tone in the chorus, good catch 👍 I had the opposite experience as I discover the song through the movie, so it's weird to me to think about one without the other 😉
Joe DiMaggio is one of the greatest baseball players of all time. DiMaggio was a symbol of class and qualified as baseball royalty. The fact that he played for the almighty Yankees adds to his prestige. Anyone of a certain age knows who Joltin' Joe is. Anyone of a younger certain age may know DiMaggio as Mr. Coffee.
And some of us also remember him as the husband of Marilyn Monroe for a short stint
@@HamiltonRb When Monroe was married to DiMaggio she did a trip overseas to appear before the troops. She was thrilled by how much she was loved. She said to Joe that he didn't know how it felt to have thousands screaming at your every move. He quietly replied, Yes, I do."
@@JamesLachowsky Thats true. I was just a kid at that time, but from what I hear it really was a toss up who was the bigger star at that time.
@@HamiltonRb After Monroe’s death, DiMaggio had roses put on Monroe’s grave monthly for the rest of his life.
@@drieuxkoeppel8152 I’m sure Sinatra, JFK, Marlon Brando and numerous others who she had relationships with missed her too. That girl got around
The original cougar, Mrs. Robinson.
And all of a sudden, I'm back in high school. Btw, I think the "coo coo ca-choo" line is a reference to a similar phrase in "I Am the Walrus" (1967) by The Beatles. Or at least it seems to be.
Great song, one of my favorites! 👍 My mom used to play this over and over again, it was from the movie “The Graduate”.
Thank you! One of the all-time classics.
I love researching a song's history. What's even better is doing it with you Daniel.
You should try to get into some early punk rock music.
Suggestions are as follow:
* The Damned “New Rose”
* The Buzzcocks “ What Do I Get?”
* Siouxsie and the Banshees “Happy House”
* The Cramps “Goo Goo Muck”
* The Undertones “Teenage Kicks”
There are thousands of songs and other pieces of music I've never heard and I've been around for a long time. Who am I to question anyone who hasn't heard a piece music, it's people making assumptions that I wonder about. I agree with you about Simon and Garfunkel and have enjoyed their music for a long, long time. I was fortunate enough to see Paul Simon in concert when he and Bob Dylan toured together. It was a great show...
Check out Paul Simon solo. "Kodachrome", "Loves Me Like A Rock" and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard".
Soundtrack for The Graduate starring Dustin Hoffman. I know.... “Dustin who??” I get it and respect what you do. You are learning as you go. Can’t ask for more than that.
We must never forget the music of the ancients - it still kicketh arse
Hi Daniel, Mrs. Robinson from 1967 is a title from the Movie "The Graduate" with Dustin Hoffmann s debut.
Two overlooked gems of theirs are "Patterns" - a very dark song, and "The Dangling Conversation", beautiful and sad.
I hope Daniel reacts to dangling conversation.
To me, Dangling Conversation is their best song, at least in terms of the lyrics.
Brilliant song!
Hey Daniel, you definitely heard a lot of great bands and artist on your channel, let me suggest another one, that I miss here, Tom Waits, who is a very unique musician, singer, songwriter. Just a few songs to choose from: "Jockey Full of Bourbon", "Martha", “16 Shells from a Thirty-Ought Six”, “All the World Is Green”, “Ol’ ‘55”, "Clap Hands", "Grapefruit Moon".
Tom waits would be great to react to.
I'm not sure if he can handle Tom Waits.
@@douglasleinbach6313 Hang On St Christopher is a good introductory song. I think Daniel can handle it and will probably love it.
This song was in the film THE GRADUATE!!. WITH DUSTIN HOFFMAN. GREAT CLASSIC. VERY RELEVANT TO THE TIMES! ❤👍
Real music ... I hope it will return one day
Please react to "The Only Living Boy in New York". It is a hidden gem that wasn't played on the radio as much as their big hits, but has turned out to be one of my favorites by them.
After several unheard-of songs and groups, nice to return to a classic.
There are a lot of REALLY great lesser-known Simon and Garfunkel tracks that aren't quite as 'laid back' and 'mellow.' "Patterns" and "Poem on the Underground Wall" are pretty dark but still hauntingly beautiful, and tracks like "Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine" and "A Simple Desultory Philippic" lay on some thick Dylan-esque sarcasm and irony.
"Hearts and Bones," "Train in the Distance," "Renee and Georgette Magritte (with their dog after the war)," "Everything Put Together Falls Apart," "How the Heart Approaches What It Yearns," and "Duncan" are some of my personal faves that draw out pure emotion...
All S&G (and just S!) are legitimate masterpieces of composition/construction and emotive communication--more, more!!!! :)
"Poem on the Underground Wall". I think I know what the four-letter word is, and it doesn't begin with an F, or an S.
@@sjw5797 What do you think it is? (I'm fascinated by this, so I always ask people who know the song.) :)
@@ingridfong-daley5899 Love, of course.
@@sjw5797 I figured, but didn't want to assume--I've heard different people give their interpretations over the years, and it feels like it ruins their telling of it if I say it first, I guess? :)
I think I've heard either Art or Paul put forth 'love' as a possibility--makes sense!
@@ingridfong-daley5899 The most dangerous word!
The movie explains it. Every time I hear this song I want to watch the movie again. The ending is epic.
Songwtiter, Paul Simon explained in an interview that the dee-dee's and do'-do's in the song were Paul's grooving on the guitar riff and the lyrics came in spurts. So he reflected on certain cultural elements and characters. Beyond that, It is pure genius.
The entire BOOKENDS album is brilliant.
A complete immersion piece.
In my opinion, S&G's best album.
Although I absolutely love "Bookends", I think the "Sounds of silence" album is even better.
Bookends is my "go to" album. "Best" depends on my mood and which album I am listening to.
"The Graduate" was my favorite movie for some years. Caveat: I have an odd sense of humor. I do not know if it has aged well - but the song sure has! I think it's more a commentary on upper or upper-middle-class America, which Mrs. Robinson represents. That segment of society included such common activities as "having a nervous breakdown", "over-using prescription meds", "having affairs" and even "actually attending candidates' debates" - local candidates - where both sides were equally terrible also-rich people. So the lyrics fit in a general way, though not specifically with Mrs Robinson's actions in the movie. She's "of that ilk."
In those days you had to either see a film in the cinema or wait five years before it was shown on TV. I was 17 when I saw "The Graduate " on TV and I still think it's a wonderful film. The Simon and Garfunkel music adds to the atmosphere. You should watch it.
Great pick, Daniel! An interestingly good analysis video! I own almost every album & tape S&G came out with...
It’s time for a movie night, Daniel. “The Graduate” belongs at the top of your list.
This is a long way down my list of favourite simon/garfunkel songs. But it is still such a great song. There are so many great songs.
Hi! Just for fun -- Anne Bancroft, who played Mrs. Robinson in the film, was married to Mel Brooks. Katharine Ross, who played her daughter, is married to Sam Elliot.
🇨🇦❤️Hi Daniel! Thank you for reviewing this song.
It holds special significance for me because I was 13 when The Graduate was released and I believe that it’s an excellent representation of universal cultural cynicism.
My mother, like hundreds of thousands of other women at the time, became addicted to Valium, or Mothers Little Helper, as it was known. She was more fortunate than some women that quit the highly addictive drug cold turkey against the advice of their doctors. Some of them landed in insane asylums.
My opinion is that Valium was utilized to keep wives and mothers under control because a foggy brain is less likely to rebel against the status quo, of course.
Anne Bancroft, who portrayed Mrs. Robinson so perfectly, sadly passed away in 2005, and she’s survived by her husband, the great Mel Brooks.
(The inventor of Valium, Leo Sternbach, also died in 2005 at the age of 97).
People have used terms like 'cougar', 'sugar mummy' or the 'Mrs Robinson Syndrome' to refer to older women dating younger men which would have been seen as purely transactional - for sex, money or both.
Thank you for your very insightful comment.
Great song writing, harmony and message. Perfect song for the movie the Graduate. Your opening statement - Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends - Check out Emerson Lake and Palmer - the first song from that live album - Hoedown. Who played keyboards as well as Keith Emerson......
Song is from one of the seminal movies of a generation. The Graduate, like Easy Rider and Apocalypse Now, was a movie that reflected the times and trials of young people in the late 60's ,early 70's. You really have to see it, soundtrack by Simon and Garfunkel.
The Joe DiMaggio lines are referencing the WWII generation, which to young people in the 60's seemed remote. It was only 20 years...
Hey Daniel, Great old song which takes me back to first seeing the movie too. Life was sure good being an 11 yr old paperboy with money to burn, buying singles and going to the theater every weekend !
Pivoting to request mode, I have an idea for you ~
Railroad themed songs ! (It doesn’t get more classic American than that). Here are a few good folk songs :
- “City of New Orleans” , Arlo Guthrie
- “Casey Jones” , Tom Rush
- “ End of the Line “, Travelling Wilburys
'It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry' by Bob Dylan
For CONO I would consider the original instead of the guthrie cover (there was a lawsuit over that).
Casey Jones is also the name of a song by the Grateful Dead but their version is very different.
The Grateful Dead also did a song called "Monkey and the Engineer" which is about railroading.
The greatest railroad song I have heard is Gordon Lightfoot's Canadian Railway Trilogy.
@@maruad7577 Great suggestions, especially “Monkey and the Engineer”. I almost put Gordon’s masterpiece on my list except it’s so long. I totally love his music and that one in particular - it is GOAT of railroad songs.
BTW , noticed you seem like you’re into GD. Thought you might be interested in a new channel I found called “Garloo”. He’s posting some great vids from Dead history, especially 60s era. Cool stuff ! Two excellent interviews of Jerry also.
The original version appeared in the movie The Graduate. When the movie became a hit they immediately recorded a radio version.
The Graduate was one of the first films that the Late Roger Ebert reviewed.
Where have you gone, Roger Ebert... 🎼 He lived with wit and gusto and died with courage and dignity. ♡
Daniel I'm a New York Yankees fan so the Joe DiMaggio reference strikes a happy chord and the song is featured in the " The Graduate" I'm a big fan of the movie.0pù
It’s about an older woman who is an alcoholic and is experiencing an intervention. They are sending her to rehab.
There are three movies you need to watch in order to get many 1970s-80s references. The Graduate, MASH (the movie that inspired the TV series), and The Godfather.
Simon new how to relate to the common man!
Paul Simon is one of the best songwriters of the last hundred years!
I don't know what Columbia was doing in 1968, but their records were awesome sounding. (Blood, Sweat and Tears 2nd album as well as "Bookends") And sturdy...they held that pristine sound through many playings. I've had Mobile Fidelity and Half-Speed Master vinyls that didn't sound as good as these standard priced records did.
The movie (The Graduate) was great, and the song "Mrs. Robinson" was good as well 1967.
Agree about the timelessness of Simon & Garfunkel. If you haven't heard some of Simon's individual music, you might want to look into Graceland.
And listening to this, a newer band popped into my head. Have you ever listened to The Shins? New Slang, Phantom Limb and Red Rabbits will give you lyrics to digest.
May I suggest a quick 2 minute Simon & Garfunkel song: A Hazy Shade of Winter.
It transcends the cultural point in which they were sung
much like the Beatles. They even reference I Am The Walrus, Koo Koo Kachoo
Long while since you did any Simon and Garfunkel Daniel, hope you move on to listening Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, there's some great songs on that album
Joe DiMaggio resented that lyric, where have you gone? At the time in the 70s, he was known on TV commercials as a spokesman for Mr. Coffee, a line of Coffee makers. He never really went away.
I always wondered if the lyric "heaven holds a place for those who pray" was a type of double entendre. Every printed lyrics uses the spelling pray but what if it was also cleverly disguised referencing "prey?" Mrs. Robinson (in the film) was clearly a sexual predator even though her prey was of legal age. Does heaven hold a special place for those who prey upon others in this manner? We can only pray it is so. Since the song predates the film it is difficult to know. Sometimes the word choice is simply what completes the rhyme.
I thought the song was finished after the movie. The film has early fragments not the complete song. Interesting point about “prey”.
Brilliant observation, Cary Levin!
@Pandora Z Her character was made as such that people would be sympathetic. She appeared to dissatisfied and discontented with her life to me. Still and all any mother who seduces her own daughters boyfriend is predatory and has commuted a huge betrayal of her daughter. The dialogue is not what my observations are based on. Her behaviour is the basis of what I conclude.
A little trivia... Joe DiMaggio was married to Marilyn Monroe from 1954-55 until their divorce. She then married the playwright Arthur Miller from 1956-61. You might remember him from your High School English class if you studied “The Crucible” among others.
joe DiMaggio was a rock solid dependable baseball player. When song was written America was going through the turbulent 1960s. According to song America needed a reliable figure to lead it through this era. Paul Simon picked DiMaggio because he was a huge Yankee fan . Do we a Jolting Joe today?
Paul is the sole songwriter of the duo and he’s quite a brilliant one. I find that there are some songwriters who are extremely good at melody yet might be weaker lyrically and vice versa but Paul is definitely extremely competent with both. Hi all just about every one of Paul Simmons albums both as a solo artist and with Garfunkel. The one pattern I noticed is that he writes from a very metaphorical style. I’ve researched the meanings of many of the songs and I always end up surprised because it’s never what I was thinking the meeting was and of course I’m only talking about when Paul gets that meaning himself and not someone else’s interpretation that can be just as wrong as mine lol. Every now and then Paul doesn’t have an explanation for the meaning of his songs because he is not even sure and he writes from what he calls a stream of consciousness. Now I know that is a term that many are familiar with but when I heard Paul talk about it that was my first time even hearing that terminology. Here is what I remember him saying about this song which actually wasn’t much about the song as a whole but one particular line of the song that seems to be the line that most people seem to like the most which is the mention of Joe DiMaggio. Paul said that that was a complete stream of consciousness and he doesn’t even know what it means but he felt very strongly that it meant something and that’s almost a quote LOL. I also saw an interview where he was talking about where he came up with that melody for that rift that the song starts out with. He was specifically asked to write a song as a soundtrack for the movie “The Graduate”. he was given film footage of the movie to aid him even though the movie was not yet finished and released and he said he was watching a race car scene when he came up with that melody and rhythm rift for the song. I never saw the movie I was only four or five years old when it was out you know I keep telling myself I should check it out someday LOL.
The Graduate is a great movie I saw twice on TCM.
You HAVE to watch the film!
David Frost: So, where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, a nation turns it's lonely eyes to you. What does that mean exactly Paul? Paul Simon: Well, you know, it'll mean something to somebody somewhere. (paraphrasing)
Listen to The Lemonheads version too
Now you have to watch the movie
One of those songs i have heard too many times...great on the first 500 times. Nostalgic even in the sixties (Joe Dimaggio was a NY Yankee in the fifties).
I can"t imagine what today's generation thinks about it.
The Graduate is a great movie! It’s an excellent commentary on the times.
DiMaggio’s playing days were long before my time, but he was famous as an old timer and for his Mr. Coffee ads. I think Michael Jordan of 2021 might be a good comparison to what DiMaggio was in the late 60s through the 70s and 80s.
alcoholism is "the thing"
Is it. ?
@@Hartlor_Tayley in the part of the song Daniel was asking about - put it in the pantry with the cupcakes/hide it from the kids - yes I think this stanza refers to Mrs Robinson's alcoholism, but there is another layer about Elaine's questionable parentage with the "just the Robinson's affair" line. I wrote that comment when Daniel was asking about that line/stanza in particular.
@@emanonfox1709 thats interesting. Im not sure how tied into the movie the lyrics actually were. Simon was writing a song Mrs Roosevelt and changed the name for the movie. The song doesn’t seem to follow the movie at all, to me anyway.
@@Hartlor_Tayley Nichols chose the song while it was still a work in progress, specifically for the film, which relies heavily on the "dee deedeedee deet dee" lyrics, Paul did not finish writing all the verses until after that. Search "film version Mrs Robinson" and it's very different even in composition and rhythm as well as vocally. And lyrically, there is just the one stanza about "Jesus loves you more than you will know..." The lyrics in question were not written before being associated with the film.
I believe it's about an affair a college age man has with an older married woman..it comes from the movie, "The Graduate", starring a young Dustin Hoffman ..I always enjoy your reactions to these songs ❤
Love the song...And it has nothing to do with the movie The Graduate (despite the fact that it is the theme song).
Daniel. Just keep being you.✌️❤️
Can't wait until you get to Cecilia 😆😆
#Tori Amos, #The Warning #Angelina Jordan
Would love to see you do a movie reaction to The Graduate. Nice reaction, to me the song is a typical Paul Simon loneliness song, from a lonely person to a lonely America. That's just my take.
Daniel , my love, WATCH THE FRICKEN’ MOVIE! On here, and react to it! “The. Graduate’ is a MASTERPIECE! Absolutely not a waste of your time! You will know how Mrs. Robinson got into the mental hospital!
You have to be a baseball fan (a.k.a. American) to understand this song. You can start being a baseball fan today. Spring Training is underway.
Joe DiMaggio didn't leave the public eye. He sold Mr. Coffee on TV for like 15 years. A whole generation knew him as Mr. Coffee. So songfacts gets it completely wrong.
The song probably makes more sense in the context of the movie "The Graduate".
There is a fun 1990s cover-version of this song by THE LEMONHEADS!
The Graduate is a high quality classic, and better than it probably sounds like. So I definitely concur with what others have said - you should watch it at some point, especially considering your acting ambitions. (No need to react imo, just watch and enjoy.)
You must check out the album cover art of Austrian triphop/down beat DJs Kruder & Dorfmeister: 'G-Stoned'. It's an hommage to Simon and Garfunkel's 'Book Ends.' Very well done. Cheers D!
My mother really liked this song, at least until she saw "The Graduate"
This song is about a woman who goes crazy, and gets put in a rest home; "We'd like to learn a little bit about you for our files.....Stroll around the grounds until you feel at home."
Oh, and she does drugs: hide it from the kids.
It was made for a movie you got to watch the movie dude
Nope the song was already recorded before the movie got permission
@@tinypurplefishesrunlaughin8052 I learned that through the reaction I left my comment before he had finished or correctly stated I had finished watching the reaction
In keeping with the tie to politicians, Marilyn Monroe, who overdosed in 1962, was rumored of having affairs with both JFK and RFK. I like the idea that the whole song is actually about politics.
From the same album "Bookends" you should listen to a song called "Fakin' it".