Thematically, "I Am a Rock" deals with isolation and emotional detachment. The song was not included on Simon & Garfunkel's acoustic debut album, "Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.", which was released on October 19, 1964. Some sources say that it was performed by Simon on January 27, 1965, on a promo show for the BBC. Simon likely began writing the song before the end of January 1964, and had it completed by May 1965, when he first recorded it. It was included on his solo-acoustic "The Paul Simon Songbook" LP released in the UK in the summer of 1965.