Overs (song)

"Overs" is a song by American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fourth studio album, Bookends (1968).

"Overs"
Song by Simon & Garfunkel
from the album Bookends
RecordedOctober 16, 1967
Columbia Studio A
(New York City)
Genre
Length2:14
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)

Background

"Overs" was one of many songs completed during the duo's sessions with John Simon, alongside "Fakin' It," "Save the Life of My Child" and "Punky's Dilemma".[1] The song concerns an old couple beginning to tire of one another.[2] In their 1968 appearance on Kraft Music Hall, Simon explained that "Overs" is a companion piece to their earlier composition, "For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her"; that song concerns the belief in true love, while "Overs" relates to the loss of that belief.[3]

It has been suggested that the song, which was originally written for but cut from The Graduate (1968), was inspired by the film’s depiction of two lovers (the Robinsons) in a loveless marriage.[2] The lyrics contain almost no rhyme.

Composition

"Overs" is a departure from Simon’s earlier work in that it reveals "increasing independence from standard diatonic, major/minor, and/or modal rock- and folk-based styles."[4] As a result, it "displays a logical consequence of both of these trends: a more jazz-oriented style," including a larger selection of chords and looser form.[4] The song contains multiple instances of wordplay related to the word over, including the final line, "I stop and think it over."[2]

The sound effects at the start of the song are of somebody striking a match to light up and inhale a cigarette.[5]

gollark: A new release and I have no slots; typical .
gollark: Am I likely to be able to trade two CB Zyus for a CB Copper? Three? Four?
gollark: Annoyingly, traders only seem to want yellow and pink zyumorphs. I caught a blue one.
gollark: I suppose you can turn the 3Gs you sell into a moneypile.
gollark: Are you planning to sell it on?

References
  1. Fornatale 2007, p. 66−68.
  2. Fornatale 2007, p. 91.
  3. "Three for Tonight". Kraft Music Hall. January 3, 1968. NBC.
  4. Bennighof 2007, p. 36.
  5. Bonca, Cornel (2014-10-10). Paul Simon: An American Tune. ISBN 9780810884823.

Bibliography
  • Bennighof, James (2007). The Words and Music of Paul Simon. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-99163-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Fornatale, Pete (2007). Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-427-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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