When legendary folk duo Simon & Garfunkel recorded “The Sound of Silence,” they never dreamed it would be a worldwide hit covered by dozens of artists. The reason they never suspected it would do so well is that first of all; they were a new duo when they recorded it. Though new musical acts may dream of greatness, they rarely can envision the kind of success a song like “The Sound of Silence” will have. Secondly, the single flopped when they first released it. Seriously, the single and the album flopped so badly that they gave up and went back to their studies at university.
However, the producer believed in the song and remixed it, changing up some of the background and vocals. When he released it again, it became nearly an overnight hit. By 1966, “The Sound of Silence” was number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel had to quickly come back together and get on with their musical career together. Although lots of artists have covered “The Sound of Silence,” most critics agree that the all-time best cover of the iconic song was done by Disturbed, an American heavy metal band. Released on December 7, 2015, Disturbed’s cover quickly hit number one on the Mainstream Rock charts and the Billboard Hard Rock Digital Songs. Their cover also did well in other countries and reached number four on Australia’s charts.
Image via YouTube
Even better, Paul Simon himself has endorsed Disturbed’s cover and sent Disturbed lead singer David Draiman an email telling him his performance on Conan O’Brien’s show was a “really powerful performance.” Simon added it was the first time he’d seen Disturbed perform it live, and said: “Nice. Thanks.” Draiman was naturally star-struck and responded to Simon’s email, saying, “Mr. Simon, I am honored beyond words. We only hoped to pay homage and honor to the brilliance of one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Your compliment means the world to me/us, and we are eternally grateful.”
Image via YouTube
Disturbed’s version of “The Sound of Silence” has sold more than 1.5 million copies in digital downloads. Furthermore, it’s been streamed more than 54 million times, according to Nielsen Music. The official video has more than 500 million views on YouTube, and the live version you can watch below has been viewed more than 100 million times. Incidentally, this is the performance that was praised by Paul Simon. Enjoy.
