60 Years: Art Garfunkel 1966 – His First TV Appearance in Europe After the Success of “The Sounds of Silence”
- 6 days ago
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On August 28, 2026, the Swedish television music program Popside marks the 60th anniversary of a special broadcast featuring Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon. The program documents an important early phase of Art Garfunkel’s international career and is connected to Art Garfunkel’s first TV appearance in Europe following the international success of “The Sounds of Silence.”
For Art Garfunkel, this early European television presence was an important step toward reaching an international audience. Art Garfunkel’s first TV appearance in Europe came at a time when the success of “The Sounds of Silence” was opening new opportunities for the duo beyond the United States.
The broadcast featured footage recorded during Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon’s time in Sweden. This included images from the historic railway station in Mariefred, where Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon filmed footage for “Homeward Bound” on July 4, 1966. The station was operated by Östra Södermanlands Järnväg. The filming was directed by Peter Goldmann, who later directed, among other projects, The Beatles’ music video for “Penny Lane.”
The footage was created during a period when Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon were personally introducing their success to European audiences for the first time. Following the breakthrough of “The Sounds of Silence,” their summer 1966 journey took them through several European countries. Alongside concerts, radio and television appearances were important stops on this international promotional tour.
Sweden was a particular focus of the journey. Around the turn of June and July 1966, several performances were scheduled, including concerts at Ängby Park in Knivsta and Skogsvallen in Östervåla on July 2, followed by a performance at Tyrolen (Gröna Lund) in Stockholm on July 3.
The European tour also produced notable television footage in the Netherlands. On June 29, 1966, Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon recorded an acoustic set at the historic De Waag building in Haarlem for the youth program Twien on NCRV. The program was broadcast on August 12, 1966.
The various television and film recordings from the summer of 1966 offer a glimpse into a defining period in Art Garfunkel’s career. Art Garfunkel’s first TV appearance in Europe stands as an example of the time when his distinctive voice was first reaching a wider European audience.
Sixty years after the broadcast of Popside, the surviving documents recall this early European phase and the period when Art Garfunkel was first bringing his musical success to a wider audience beyond the United States.
