Bell TV Show 1969 US TV - Simon & Garfunkel

Nov 30 1969

Released as VHS videotape in Italy with bonus tracks of S&G TV appearances 1966-67

Reissued in Italy as VHS videotape in 1991 by DeAgostini

Released as home DVD in 2004 Label Silvertone Films

1. Context and intent
   The program is designed as a music-documentary: it combines Simon & Garfunkel performances with on-the-road footage (backstage moments, travel, conversations) and edited news/social imagery. The goal is to portray the duo within an America marked by intense social and political tension at the end of the 1960s (Vietnam, protests, violence, poverty, and broader unrest).
2. Overall structure (how it’s built)
   The special constantly alternates between three kinds of sequences:

• Musical performances: songs filmed in concert during the 1969 tour, plus rehearsal/studio moments tied to the Bridge Over Troubled Water era.
• Behind-the-scenes / daily life: hotels, dressing rooms, travel shots, and exchanges between Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, showing fatigue, pressure, and reflection on their public role.
• “America in the late 1960s” (documentary montage): news and social footage showing demonstrations, war, injustice, and key figures/events of the period. The editing repeatedly contrasts an “idealized America” with a harsher reality.

3. A striking opening
   The program is introduced by actor Robert Ryan, then quickly shifts into a more serious tone. The contrast between a “TV special” format and a documentary feel is immediate, setting up the idea that this is an artistic portrait in a troubled time.
4. The main thread: the artist’s role
   A central theme is the implicit question: “What is a song worth when the country feels like it’s burning?”
   Through direct moments and the overall editing, the film raises:

• what it means to be an artist in a political crisis,
• the boundary between entertainment and engagement,
• how songs can function as commentary on their era.

5. Why the special remains notable
   This is not just a filmed concert. The songs are placed in dialogue with current-events imagery, giving the program a strong documentary and political dimension. That approach also helps explain its “controversial” reputation: the project was originally conceived as a sponsor-backed special (often linked in accounts to Bell/AT&T), but the sponsor reportedly withdrew before airing, and the program ultimately ran on CBS.

Sound B+/A-

America ( Remixed Version )
Talking
Cuba Si Nixon No ( Studio Rehearsal )
So Long frank Lloyd Wright ( Studio rehearsal )
Talking
Bridge Over Troubled Water ( Studio Version )
At The Zoo ( Concert rehearsal )
Talking
America ( Concer rehearsal )
Scarborough Fair ( Studio Version )
Talking
El Condor Pasa ( Studio Version )
Punky's Dilemma ( Studio Version )
Bridge Over Troubled Water ( Concert rehearsal )
Talking
Mrs Robinson ( Concert Version )
Talking
Feelin Groovy ( Improvisation )
Talking
Talking
For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her ( Concert Version )
Talking
The Boxer ( Concert Version )
Talking
Homeward Bound ( Concert Version )
America ( Concert Version )
Talking
The Sound Of Silence ( Concert Version )