America (Simon & Garfunkel Song)

America (Simon & Garfunkel Song)

"America", written by Paul Simon, is a song recorded by Simon & Garfunkel. It was included in their album Bookends, released on 3 April 1968, and is notable as one of the few rock records to have an almost completely unrhymed lyric. The only rhyme in the song is "Michigan seems like a dream to me now".

The song was first released in 1971 as the B-side to "Keep The Customer Satisfied" a United Sates promo-only release, then again as a single in 1972, to coincide with the album Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits, and eventually hit #97 on the Billboard Hot 100. The flip side of the single, "For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her," unexpectedly did much better, reaching #53.

The song mentions the cities of Saginaw, Michigan, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and the New Jersey Turnpike.

The song describes in first-hand terms, with non-rhyming lyrics, the physical and metaphorical journey of two companions in search of the true meaning of the United States of America. On a metaphorical level, the lovers' initial hopefulness turns to a sense of angst and maybe sadness. "'Kathy, I'm lost,' I said, though I knew she was sleeping" is a reference to Kathy Chitty, with whom Simon had had a relationship while living in England in 1965.

On a more literal level, the song describes a trip east through the United States which leads to New York City, as Simon's lovers travel from Michigan to Pittsburgh and then onto the New Jersey Turnpike leading to New York City.

In 2000, "America" was featured in the soundtrack to the film Almost Famous. The main character's sister, Anita, uses this song to represent her reason for leaving home to become a stewardess.

Subsequent compilation CDs contain the single mix of the song, which features a clean introduction (as opposed to the version on Bookends, which segues from the song that precedes it on the album, "Save the Life of My Child").