Simon and Garfunkel: The Boxer (1969)

"The Boxer" took Simon and Garfunkel over 100 hours to record. They brought in Fred Carter Jr. to play guitar on the track. Paul Simon struggled with the chorus and used "lie-la-lie" as a space filler until he could develop one. He couldn't and the refrain remained. Some thought the song was a veiled shot at Bob Dylan, but in reality, it was autobiographical. At the time, Simon felt people were beating him mercilessly. He even included the Biblical phrases "workman's wages" and "seeking out the poorer quarters" to accentuate his isolation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3LFML_pxlY


Live:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy1hXDOenOY