During the 1960s, the United States experienced an intense social revolution, driven by the youth of the time period’s countercultural ideals of the youth.  The population that made up this revolution was attracted to a way of life and set of values that was opposite to the social norm.  Many factors aided the progression of this movement, but the following are some of the most influential.  The evolution of recording technology, along with the popularity of psychedelic drugs, led to the creation of a new style of music that the counterculture identified with.  Psychedelic drugs brought about strong themes of personal freedom and individuality, encouraging the occurrence of the two in music and every day life, while discouraging societal conformance.  Artists used the messages in their music to make others aware of social and political injustices, and the feelings of the counterculture community.  In Jim DeRogatis’ article, “Old Friend Never Sounded Better”, Simon and Garfunkel’s are affected by the social and political changes during the 1960s.  Simon and Garfunkel’s album, “Bookends”, was successful in large part due to the 1960s counterculture.

The counterculture of the 1960s was responsible for the social and political changes that came about during the time period.  Several factors affected the movement through out the ‘60s and even beforehand.  Between 1946 and 1957, the group belonging to the counterculture of the1960s, were born.  In the eleven years following World War II, a record twenty two million babies were born.  These “baby boomers”, as stated by Sheila Whiteley, were “born into an affluent economy, and a growing media technology”, and “they were to be an important part of the emergent youth culture of the 1960s” (81).  By the mid 60s, ninety percent of households owned at least one television (Miller).  June 25th, 1967 was a revolutionary day for television. An estimated four hundred million people in twenty-six different countries, watched as John Lennon performed, “All You Need Is Love” (Whiteley 82).  The television allowed people to follow current events easily, benefiting the counterculture movement.  Record players were also common household items during the ‘60s.  The affordability and accessibility of records, paired with the widespread popularity of artists at the time, resulted in a much larger listening population and, unprecedented record sales.  The technological advances and the “baby boom”, resulted in an unintentionally united youth population due to shared experiences.  These subjects in common made it easier for this generation to relate to each other during the counterculture movement.  Counterculture developed throughout the ‘60s, allowing it to eventually become an a movement with influence in many aspects of society.

Without the cultural changes in society and music during the 1960s, Simon and Garfunkel would not have experienced success as easily as they did.  Their music career began in the late 1950’s as country-influenced rock and roll duo.  They split up because their only popular single did not bring the amount of success the two were hoping for. The folk revival during the early ‘60s brought the duo back together again, allowing Simon and Garfunkel to witness and attempt the first stages of folk-rock.  The folk revival hints the soon appearance of countercultural ideals in music.  The folk revival’s music does not capture countercultural ideals, according to Robert Rosenstone, because although “these folk songs were often serious, they were hardly contemporary” in terms of the issues they dealt with (133).  These artists called on “the traditional folk repertoire”, instead of writing songs inspired by them.  Countercultural ideals first appeared during the ‘60s, in Bob Dylan’s music.  The themes of social and political issues throughout his songs were universally felt, especially among the younger generation. The next step for the countercultural movement in music came about in the mid ‘60s, because  “recording technology had been improving steadily” (DeRogatis 278).  This and “the influence of psychedelic drugs” provided artists with the tools “to use the studio to create imaginative new worlds that existed only in the listeners’ imagination” (DeRogatis 278).   After considering Jim DeRogatis’ article “Old Friends Never Sounded Better”, three are three clear ways in which the influence of 1960s counterculture is present.  First, the message of a song needed to correspond to the feelings of the counterculture’s members, and communicate their message.  Secondly, the idea of personal freedom became a trademark of the movement, because of the popularity of psychedelics and the generation’s distrust towards society.  Lastly, the advancement of technology, abstract feelings in the audience, and the influence of psychedelic drugs birthed in a style of music that encouraged creativity and uniqueness.  Evidence that the counterculture of the 1960s influenced events in Jim DeRogatis’, “Old Friends Never Sounded Better”, can be found by looking the ideals inspired by psychedelics, the change in music style, and the relationship between the messages in songs and the corresponding feelings of their audience. 

Psychedelic drugs caused the idea of personal freedom to become one of the most valued aspects of life.  In “Counterculture: The Classical View”, by Sheila Whiteley, and “The Times They Are A-Changin’”, by Robert Rosenstone, personal freedom is described as a common theme throughout the 1960s in songs and as a common value.  The pressure of society on “baby boomers” caused them to reject society’s expectations of them.  The “fear of being forced into an unwelcome slot underlies many songs of the period” because the opposite, the exercise of freedom, is viewed with such high value.  Artists began incorporating the theme of personal freedom into their works because it greatly appealed to the counterculture population.  In “Old Friends Never Sounded Better”, Jim DeRogatis’ summarization Simon and Garfunkel’s song, “America”, exemplifies the type of freedom that’s so frequently mentioned.  “Two playful, daydreaming lovers who set out to find “the heart of America” by hitchhiking through Michigan and taking the Greyhound bus out of Pittsburgh” (DeRogatis 277).  This couple has no restrictions, no requirements, and a total disregard for society’s expectations.  This is the personal freedom the counterculture adores.  The counterculture of the ‘60s saw personal freedom as a valuable necessity, causing artists like Simon and Garfunkel to incorporate into their works.

Up until the counterculture movement was underway, “nobody took popular music very seriously” (Rosenstone 132).  Music prior to the 1960s contained messages and themes that the audiences could not relate to their own lives.  The messages in music during the counterculture period could be directly identified with by the youth of the time period.  In Simon and Garfunkel’s song, “Mrs. Robinson”, Simon sings, “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.” (DeRogatis 278-279).  These lyrics are expressing a generation’s desperate need of a hero to save them from a nation in seemingly poor condition.  This is an example of how “songwriters and lyricists saw it as their artistic responsibilities to respond directly to current social and political issues” (Whiteley 83).  These songwriters acted themselves as heroes for the countercultural generation by acting “as a social force, expressing issues of cultural and political significance over a wide geographic” and demographic area (Whiteley 82).  These artists communicated their own stress, and the stress of others, through the meanings of their songs, for example the implication that their generation needs saving in the song, “Mrs. Robinson”.  These messages were widespread because, “for the first time, popular songs became relevant to the lives of the teen age audience, the main audience buying records” (Rosenstone 133).  The expression of issues through messages in popular music, like the example from Jim DeRogatis’ article, provided the counterculture movement with the voice needed to communicate their feelings.  

The availability of new musical resources and a strong psychedelic influence resulted in the creation of a music style unique to the countercultural era of the 1960s.  This musical style used by many of the artists during this time period “broke down old forms and began using a variety of musical traditions and instruments” (Rosenstone 133).  This process is similar to the actions of the counterculture movement.  Customs of the past were replaced by the desire to try new thing.  “The slicks and tricks of production”, the Beatles were known to love, influenced greatly their album, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (Whiteley 82).  This album was unprecedented and encouraged other artists to explore the style.  Jim DeRogatis claims the light-hearted and energetic style of this music, benefitted the creative nature of Simon and Garfunkel.  Garfunkel took it so far as to record conversations on the street and create a meaningless collage of them (DeRogatis 279).  The freedom of this new music style can be seen as another representation of the importance of personal freedom throughout the counterculture movement.  “The music industry thought revolution might be the next big marketing concept” along with Simon Garfunkel’s producer, Roy Halee, who encouraged the psychedelic experimentation of the duo in their album, “Bookends” (Whiteley 82; DeRogatis 279).  The encouragement to produce music of this style benefited the countercultural movement because their style of music was becoming increasingly more popular.  The music style that emerged during the late ‘60s symbolized the freedom of the countercultural movement, and spread the ideals of the movement due to its popularity.

Without the knowledge of the countercultural movement that took place during the 1960s, the success of Simon and Garfunkel Jim DeRogatis writes about cannot be understood fully.  DeRogatis does not communicate the magnitude of the social reformations America underwent during the time period he writes about.  He recognizes the influences of psychedelics and recording technology on the music that became popular during the late ‘60s without going into detail.  The importance of personal freedom during this time period is also discussed briefly, but with research, one can realize that the popularity of psychedelic drugs and the refusal to conform to society primarily made this ideal so valuable.  Understanding the countercultural movement during the ‘60s the background knowledge necessary to understanding the importance of personal freedom, the evolution music itself experienced, and the impact the messages in songs had on their audience.  
