Art Garfunkel Feels 'Great' About Simon & Garfunkel as He Reflects on Dinner with Paul Simon: 'There Were Tears' (Exclusive)

Rachel DeSantisThu, June 25, 2026 at 1:00 PM UTC

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Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon performing in Culver City, Calif. in June 2010.Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty -

Art Garfunkel reflects on his relationship with former bandmate Paul Simon

The duo, who met as classmates in Queens, became music legends with hits like "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and sold over 100 million records

Garfunkel is currently on his What a Wonderful World tour and says his voice is as strong as ever

It's all untroubled water under the bridge for Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon.

The pair joined forces in the 1960s and became one of the most influential musical duos of all time — and after a period of breakups and makeups, Garfunkel tells PEOPLE in this week's issue that he's reached a place of peace.

"We had a dinner [last year]. It was very lovely. There were tears, there were hugs," says the singer, 84. "I don't know if it'll lead to anything. I don't think so much about him as I think about what's ahead of me. I'm feeling very positive now."

There's plenty ahead for Garfunkel to anticipate. He's currently in the midst of his What a Wonderful World tour, which will keep him on the road through Nov. 19, and is happy at home with his wife, Kathryn Luce Garfunkel, and sons Art Jr., 35, and Beau, 20.

But he knows that his legacy is largely intertwined with that of Simon, 84, with whom he won Grammy Awards and sold more than 100 million records as Simon & Garfunkel. A lifelong association between the two, he says, is "fair enough."

Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon performing in Central Park in September 1981.Credit: Ebet Roberts/Getty

"I'm proud of it," he says of the impact their music has had. "I only feel great about it."

The two first met as classmates in Queens, N.Y., and bonded over a love of James Dean, Lenny Bruce and the Everly Brothers, whose harmonies they tried to emulate.

"Before the world knew Simon & Garfunkel, our ears heard it first, and we knew it was special," he says. "We were always cracking each other up."

Their first single, released as Tom & Jerry, came out in 1957, before they'd even graduated high school, and their debut album, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., came out in 1964. The record flopped — but their next, Sounds of Silence, fared better, thanks to their sumptuous harmonies and Garfunkel's hauntingly emotive voice.

Despite their success, including No. 1 hits like "Bridge Over Troubled Water," Garfunkel says he feels he was at a "disadvantage" in the partnership with Simon, since he was a singer and Simon the songwriter in an era when writing was the more revered role.

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Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel in New York ca. 1967Credit: Columbia Records/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty

When he was offered a part in the 1970 war comedy Catch-22, he accepted, thinking it would "beef up my half" of the beloved duo. Instead their bond splintered, and Simon has said Garfunkel's career pivot "disrupted" the band.

"[Director] Mike Nichols had originally offered a role for Paul in that movie, then Paul's part was dropped," he explains. "There were too many characters, he thinned it out. And it was just bad luck. So Paul was left with that uncomfortable feeling." (In the 2024 documentary In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon, Simon said the movie's overlong filming schedule and subsequent "uneven balance of power" within the pair was "a recipe for the breakup" of the duo).

Though they parted ways in 1970, Garfunkel and Simon reunited in 1981 for an iconic concert in Central Park that drew more than 500,000 fans and was filmed for a TV special and live album.

Arat GarfunkelCredit: Troy Jensen

"I'm playing a huge lawn that people were spilling out into the Great Lawn, into the trees, and I had to connect with them," he says. "That's the greatest night of my life."

The two have toured together a number of times since, though a 2010 run of shows was canceled due to issues with Garfunkel's vocal cords.

"It goes in and out. It's got a summer and a winter," the singer says of his relationship with Simon.

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Garfunkel's vocals have healed, and he's looking forward to what awaits him on the road, where he says his voice sounds as good as it ever has.

"In a way, you're always back to square one. If you're not alive and happening now, what are you?" he says. "You can't live on your past. You've got to keep going with a meaningful agenda."

For more on Art Garfunkel, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday, or subscribe here.

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