Red Rubber Ball

"Red Rubber Ball" was a big hit for The Cyrkle, a group you probably haven't heard of, co-written by Paul Simon, who you certainly have. In 1964, Simon & Garfunkel released their debut album, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., which was a flop. Paul Simon relocated to England before returning to the US a year later after finding out that the song "The Sound Of Silence" had been overdubbed with electric instruments and was a now a huge hit. It was in this period when Simon was pursuing a solo career that he met Bruce Woodley, who was a songwriter and member of The Seekers, and the two wrote "Red Rubber Ball." It was intended for The Seekers, but Woodley's bandmates turned it down. The Cyrkle, a Pennsylvania band that had yet to release any music and were on the verge of breaking up, got the song through a lucky break. Their bass player, Tom Dawes, was touring with Simon & Garfunkel, and Paul Simon offered him "Red Rubber Ball." When Simon & Garfunkel finished their tour, The Cyrkle recorded it and released it as their first single. The Cyrkle were fortunate to have Brian Epstein as their manager. Epstein also managed The Beatles and hired them to open for The Fab Four's 1966 summer tour, which played to huge crowds and drew lots of media attention. In July, the song bounced all the way to #2 in America, held back by The Beatles' "Paperback Writer." Also on the chart that week: Simon & Garfunkel's "I Am A Rock" at #17.

Fittingly, this is a "bounce back" song, with the singer finding a new confidence now that his ex is finally out of his life. Typical of Paul Simon's songwriting, it has a folk influence and some clever, nuanced lyrics. Check out this line: The roller-coaster ride we took is nearly at an end I bought my ticket with my tears, that's all I'm gonna spend

The song was produced by John Simon, who would later produce the landmark album by The Band, Music From Big Pink, and also the album Cheap Thrills by Janis Joplin's band Big Brother & the Holding Company.