"Bridge Over Trouble Water" sounds artificial

So many versions with differing dynamic range which is yours. (click on each "album" to find out)
I usually find the later ones and most streamed/downloaded not only more compressed but also much louder mean level recorded.
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list?artist=Simon+%26+Garfunkel&album=Bridge+Over+Troubled+Water

Cheers George

Key quote:

With my upgraded equipment the hi resolution audio sounds very synthetic, with one track on top of another, not like real music at all. 

Key phrase: "high resolution audio".
Simple hack that will serve you well in life: whenever one simple word is replaced with a whole bunch of syllables, run. In this case the word "record" is replaced with "high resolution audio." Where in your life have you ever heard anyone describe the sound of a record as "high resolution audio"? Its a record. It sounds like music. You're listening to a file. Expecting a file to sound like music is... oh wait, what? Digital forum? 

Nevermind. Sorry. Probably went right over your heads. Forget I said a thing. Carry on as you were.

Done something wrong? Not at all!

What have you upgraded recently?
It seems likely that your changes have resulted in a more revealing combination of equipment which sharply illustrates deficiencies in production, miking, mixing techniques, and possibly, listening room acoustics.  
Recently I upgraded my primary source to digital streaming, my amplification to a newish brand integrated amp with DAC onboard that has been highly praised for its sound quality, and finally, my speakers to Spatial Audio M5 Sapphires.

The changes were done one at a time with one or more weeks between each piece being added. This allowed a fairly long period to discern the difference in sound quality that each     swap made.
To be brief, upgrading the amp and then the source while using my old speakers moved me to tears when listening to choral and classical music that I have known (and performed) for decades. 
Adding the M5 Sapphires Increased my pleasure in the classical and choral recordings BUT a surprising number of rock, c&w, jazz and folk recordings became decidedly LESS SATISFYING TO LISTEN TO.  

The problem? They sounded ‘synthetic’!  Doubled voice tracks with added reverb and peaked up frequency balance were now much more obvious.  Individual tracks with distortion added stood out clearly with the much more transparent M5Sapphires. 
I’ve rambled on too long so I’ll close by saying that one of the costs of upgrading to ever better, more revealing gear might well be diminished satisfaction from some recordings in your collection.

I haven't listened to Simon &Garfunkel for a very long time for this very reason.It sounds better on a car radio.I need to pull the boxed set out and give it another try I guess.I've been trying for years to get my favorite 60s and 70s recordings to sound pleasing(if not fabulous) on my system.I've had to sacrifice some transparency and detail in order to thoroughly enjoy the old rock and blues that I love.There are always trade offs.

Remember the studio dubbed that song to havea  certain spatial, **oceanic* effect.. Sail of silver girl, sail on by,,,
so maybe with your upgardes, you might had the same exp i had listening to Diana Krall after adding a  new component/upgrades.
I could detect a  bit studio tweaking on Diana's voice ,,  a tad over dubbed.
anyway, so yeah, the Simon song now has lost that *old charm* *more organic* *monoish* flavor you remember from when we 1st heard that song wayyy back in 1971.
Your system back then did not have the same fq resolution you have now,,  the experience changes as the resolution becomes greater , ... take my LS9 preamp, modded with new M caps, Johnny Winter LIVE AND, sounded *raunchy*, ,  not like I recall back on my LP days with crappy equipment,.,,, Resolution was not near what I have now,, Then i gota  Jadis DPL modded with new M caps, and sure the raunchy, rawness was still there,,,but somehow ~~enjoyable vs the LS9's resoltion. The LS9 revealed thev studio sounds perfectly, but the Jadis DPL not only exposed the rawness, but added soundstage, making the cd much more listenable. 
So a preamp definetly  reveal whats on the cd, a  great preamp not only reveals, but also gives depth and resolutions. 
We had cheap sound systems back then, but not once did we say,,*man that Johnny Winter LIve Andlp sounds so *raunchy*. 
Now with high resolution components/mods, ,, our old favs,  are not going to have the same listening experience, Whether athst good or bad, depends on how we feel at that moment.
That song was magical when it 1st came out. and we loved it even on our Zenith consoles....