59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)

About This Lesson

In today’s lesson I’ll walk you through the fingerpicking waters of the 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy) by Simon & Garfunkel (1966). Musically, this song may seem simple at first glance — it’s just four chords played over a repeating two measure sequence. But from a fingerpicking standpoint, there’s a whole lotta subtle complexity at play.

I’ll walk you through things step-by-step, demonstrating a few easy-to-play strum & fingerstyle options before settling into Paul Simon’s Travis-style fingerpicking approach. Simon himself keeps things hard to pin down, changing things up in this way & that throughout the song (and between each recording). No matter your skill level or preferred technique, you’ll be in good hands with what I teach… so let’s get into it!

• 0:00 Overview
• 1:20 Chords & Voice Leading
• 3:33 Rhythm & Progression
• 5:53 Travis Picking Basics
• 10:47 Fingerstyle - Main Pattern
• 13:53 Fingerstyle - Pattern #2
• 17:01 Fingerstyle - Pattern #3
• 19:36 Final Tips & Farewell

Quick Links

• Official music video on YouTube
• Paul Simon & Stephen Colbert Backstage Duet on YouTube
• Simon & Garfunkel Live in 1993 on YouTube
• Song wikipedia page
• Recommended lyric & chord sheet

Practice Notes 3 pages

Lesson Discussion

Part 2 - Percussive Fingerstyle Riffs

Here’s a totally different take on fingerpicking these same chords — and doing so with a percussive silencing-of-the-strings on the 2 and 4 counts. If the Travis Picking technique (alternating strings for the thumb) gives you trouble, you may like this approach — as I keep the thumb fixed on each chord’s bass note.

Part 3 - Travis Picking Exercises

Here’s the three suggested Travis Picking exercises I demonstrate in my main video tutorial. These will help get your right thumb & index finger up to speed & ready to take on the full riff. Remember, if this is new to you, it takes time for the muscle memory to settle in… be patient!

Part 4 - Full Playthrough

Here’s me putting everything I teach together, into one single package. I fingerpick the intro using four different variations of the main riff, and then use a bass-note strum while singing the verse sections. About singing and fingerpicking at the same time, I find it incredibly difficult in this song — which is why I use the simplified strum I show here.

“That’s not how Paul Plays It!”

In the three recordings I referenced for this lesson, Paul Simon’s fingerpicking pattern is slightly different each time. My lesson takes all of these versions into account — and I came up with a few variations on the riff that are all in the spirit of what he’s playing across all versions. As I say in my tutorial, feel free to embrace the riff variations that work best for you — and feel free to leave the rest behind.

Just the same, here’s a few videos for you to watch & hear the slight variations in what he’s playing. For example the bass note patterns, whether or not he plays the thinnest string on the final “G” of each sequence, etc. My advice to any aspiring guitar player — don’t feel burdened to exactly recreate what the artist plays in all cases.

New to Fingerstyle?

If you’re new to Travis Picking, check out my fingerstyle lesson roundup — including the two lessons below. They’ll give you an overview of this picking style, with plenty of tips.

Need Help with Strumming & Rhythm Dynamics?

If you’re interested in a strum-friendly way to approach this song (as I demonstrate it in my playthrough video), these lessons may help you out. Bass-note strumming really helps accentuate the descending bass-line used throughout the song. Likewise, I have more info on voice leading if you’re curious to learn more about the ways a song’s melody can be integrated into the highest-pitch note of each chord. Finally — the hybrid fingerpicking, shuffle rhythm, and percussive “slap” techniques all come up in my Part 2 video above.

Looking for more Paul Simon?

If you’re after more Paul Simon guitar songs — I have a few you may enjoy!