Here’s an impromptu “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” featuring the brilliant Patti Austin, recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival last July.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Right-click to download

Sunday Gospel, a new feature here at Paul Simon Web, examines the threads of Gospel music that run through Paul Simon’s work, an impressive collection considering Simon is a short, white, Jewish guy from Queens. Here’s a monster of a first take -- Paul Simon, Luther Vandross, Jennifer Hudson and a Gospel choir with an over-the-top take on “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” You my recognize the arrangement from Aretha Franklin’s chart-climbing cover of “Bridge” and from Simon’s own Live Rhymin’ performance from the early 1970s.