Fakin' It (Simon & Garfunkel song)

"Fakin' It" is a song recorded by American music duo Simon & Garfunkel for their fourth studio album, Bookends (1968). The song was initially released only as a single on July 7, 1967 through Columbia Records. It was later compiled into the second half of Bookends.

The song's lyrics stem from Simon wondering about his occupation and life had he been born a century earlier as well as reflection on his insecurities, facing a situation akin to impostor syndrome. All the same, the dramatic interplay between the burden of said insecurities and a simultaneous air of outwardly cool confidence generate significant interest for the listener. Even after numerous listenings, due to the concealment of specifics the fertile ambiguity that permeates "Fakin' It" allows for both of the two competing interpretations (faking contentment with a mediocre situation, or faking competence in order to hold down a more favorable one?) to be plausible, probably even as disparate aspects of the same situation.

Musically, it features a spoken word piece by musician Beverley Martyn as a sort of cameo appearance. The song was a minor hit in the United States, peaking at number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.