Save the Life of My Child

"Save the Life of My Child"
Song by Simon & Garfunkel
from the album Bookends
Recorded	December 14, 1967 Columbia Studio A
Studio	Columbia 7th Ave, New York City
Genre	Psychedelic rock
Length	2:49
Label	Columbia
Songwriter	Paul Simon
Producers	Paul Simon Art Garfunkel John Simon

"Save the Life of My Child" is a song by American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fourth studio album, Bookends (1968).

Background

"Save the Life of My Child" was one of many songs on Bookends recorded with production assistant John Simon. ^[1]

Composition

An audio sample of the band's first hit, "The Sound of Silence", softly plays during a cacophony of sounds near the end of "Save the Life of My Child". ^[2] John Simon, who was credited with production assistance on the song, created the bassline by playing a Moog synthesizer with help from Robert Moog himself. ^{[2] [3]} James Bennighof, author of The Words and Music of Paul Simon, considers the churning, distorted groove and electronic instrumentation an accompanying textural element to the subject matter: suicidal suburban youth. ^[4] "Save the Life of My Child" is a dramatic story involving drugs, violence and a mother and child relationship. According to Bennighof, the song "deals with individual crises in crowded urban settings, along with references to larger societal forces and at least a hint of some transcendent perspective." ^[4]

References

1. Fornatale 2007, p. 66.
2. Eliot 2010, p. 95.
3. Trevor Pinch, Frank Trocco. Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer. Harvard University Press, 2004.]
4. Bennighof 2007, p. 34.

Bibliography

• Bennighof, James (2007). The Words and Music of Paul Simon. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN   978-0-275-99163-0.
• Eliot, Marc (2010). Paul Simon: A Life . John Wiley and Sons. ISBN   978-0-470-43363-8.
• Fornatale, Pete (2007). Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends. Rodale. ISBN   978-1-59486-427-8.