Concept album, career-making moment, industry-defying creation, years-long pursuit of perfection: Simon & Garfunkel’s Bookends adheres to all those descriptions and more, the record at once a defining statement of the late 1960s and salient reflection on relationships, identity, society, and mortality whose enduring relevance attests to its exceptional merit. Ranked by countless sources as one of the greatest records of all time, the 1968 work exposes the human condition from the inside-out amid an environment that isn’t what it often appears — or what we originally sought. Mastered on MoFi’s renowned system at the label’s California studio, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g SuperVinyl 33RPM LP and numbered- edition hybrid SACD present the timeless effort in reference-quality sound. These collectible reissues magnify the brilliance of the extended production sessions that took place over the course of 18 months at Columbia’s iconic 52nd Street Studio. Simon himself said that Bookends possesses “the most use of the studio” of any Simon & Garfunkel effort. The truth of his observation comes to fore on these audiophile editions. The full bloom and natural decay of notes; weight and impact of low-end frequencies; lushness, breathiness, and air of the omnipresent harmonies; separation and imaging of the wood, string, and brass instruments: these critical traits and more are rendered with elevated accuracy, detail, and presence. In short, Bookends has never sounded more transparent, lifelike, or balanced.