Carly Simon

This article is about the performer. For her eponymous album, see Carly Simon (album).

Carly Simon
Simon in 1972
Born
Carly Elisabeth Simon

(1943-06-25) June 25, 1943 (age 81)
New York City, U.S.
Occupations
  • Singer
  • musician
  • songwriter
  • memoirist
  • author
Years active1963–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1972; div. 1983)​
James Hart
​
​
(m. 1987; div. 2007)​
Children2, including Sally Taylor
Parents
Relatives
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • piano
DiscographyCarly Simon discography
Labels
Formerly ofThe Simon Sisters
Websitecarlysimon.com
Signature

Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation" (No. 13), "The Right Thing to Do" (No. 17), "Haven't Got Time for the Pain" (No. 14), "You Belong to Me" (No. 6), "Coming Around Again" (No. 18), and her four Gold-certified singles "You're So Vain" (No. 1), "Mockingbird" (No. 5, a duet with James Taylor), "Nobody Does It Better" (No. 2) from the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, and "Jesse" (No. 11). She has authored two memoirs and five children's books.

In 1963, Simon began performing with her sister Lucy Simon in the Simon Sisters.[1] Their debut album, Meet the Simon Sisters, featured the song "Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod", based on the poem by Eugene Field and put to music by Lucy. The song became a minor hit and reached No. 73 on the Billboard Hot 100.[2] The duo would release two more albums: Cuddlebug (1966) and The Simon Sisters Sing for Children (1969). After Lucy left the group, Carly found great success as a solo artist with her 1971 self-titled debut album, which won her the Grammy Award for Best New Artist and spawned her first Top 10 single "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" (No. 10), which earned her a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Simon's second album, Anticipation, followed later that year and became an even greater success; it spawned the successful singles "Anticipation" and "Legend in Your Own Time", earned her another Grammy nomination, and became her first album to be certified Gold by the RIAA.

Simon achieved international fame with her third album, No Secrets (1972), which sat at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for five weeks and was certified Platinum. The album spawned the worldwide hit "You're So Vain", which sat at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, and earned Simon three Grammy nominations, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. The second single "The Right Thing to Do", as well as its B-side "We Have No Secrets", were also successful. Her fourth album, Hotcakes (1974), soon followed and became an instant success; it reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200, went Gold within two weeks of release, and spawned the hit singles "Mockingbird" and "Haven't Got Time for the Pain". In 1975, Simon's fifth album, Playing Possum, and the compilation, The Best of Carly Simon, both appeared; the former hit the Top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart and spawned the hit single "Attitude Dancing" (No. 21), and the latter eventually went 3× Platinum, becoming Simon's best-selling release.

In 1977, Simon recorded "Nobody Does It Better" as the theme song to the Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, and it became a worldwide hit. The song garnered her another Grammy nomination, and was the No. 1 Adult Contemporary hit of 1977.[3] Retrospectively, it has been ranked one of the greatest Bond themes.[4][5][6] Simon began recording more songs for films in the 1980s, including "Coming Around Again" for the film Heartburn (1986). The song became a major Adult Contemporary hit, and the Coming Around Again album appeared the following year, to further critical and commercial success. The album earned Simon two Grammy nominations, went Platinum, and spawned three more Top 10 Adult Contemporary hit singles: "Give Me All Night", "The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of", and "All I Want Is You". With her 1988 hit "Let the River Run", from the film Working Girl, Simon became the first artist to win a Grammy Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for a song composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist.[7]

One of the most popular of the confessional singer/songwriters who emerged in the early 1970s,[8][9] Simon has 24 Billboard Hot 100-charting singles and 28 Billboard Adult Contemporary charting singles.[10] Among her various accolades, she has won two Grammy Awards (from 14 nominations), and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for "You're So Vain" in 2004.[11] AllMusic called her "one of the quintessential singer-songwriters of the '70s".[8] She has a contralto vocal range,[12] and cited Odetta as a significant influence.[13] Simon was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994.[14] She was honored with the Boston Music Awards Lifetime Achievement in 1995,[15] and received a Berklee College of Music Honorary Doctor of Music Degree in 1998.[16] In 2005, Simon was nominated for a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but she has yet to claim her star.[17][18] In 2012, she was honored with the Founders Award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.[19] In 2022, Simon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[20]

  1. ^ Jack Harkrider (April 27, 1963). "Smothers Brothers Visit 'Hootenanny'". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The Simon Sisters, Lucy and Carly, making their television debut, will sing "Winken, Blinken, and Nod."
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1991). Top Pop Singles 1955–1990. Record Research, Incorporated. ISBN 0-89820-089-X.
  3. ^ "Billboard Easy Listening Charts Singles". Billboard. December 24, 1977. Archived from the original on June 26, 2022. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  4. ^ Greene, Andy (October 5, 2012). "Carly Simon, 'Nobody Does It Better' (1977) – The Top 10 James Bond Theme Songs". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
  5. ^ Letkemann, Jessica (October 5, 2012). "Top 10 James Bond Theme Songs Ever". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 28, 2013. Retrieved August 31, 2014.
  6. ^ Ruggieri, Melissa (October 8, 2021). "James Bond theme songs: We rank the exceptional and unremarkable, from Adele to Madonna". USA Today. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  7. ^ "Carly Simon – ASCAP Founders Award". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Archived from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Carly Simon – AllMusic bio". AllMusic. Archived from the original on December 24, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  9. ^ "Carly Simon > Biography". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 10, 2015. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  10. ^ "US Albums and Singles Charts > Carly Simon". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  11. ^ "Carly Simon". The Recording Academy. Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
  12. ^ Weller, Sheila (April 2008). Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon—and the Journey of a Generation. Washington Square Press. p. 159. ISBN 978-0-7434-9148-8.
  13. ^ Weller, Sheila (April 2008). Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon—and the Journey of a Generation. Washington Square Press. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-7434-9148-8.
  14. ^ "Songwriters Hall Of Fame - Carly Simon". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on July 9, 2022. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  15. ^ "Boston Music Awards 1995". Boston Music Awards. Archived from the original on November 4, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  16. ^ "Doctors of Songwriting Commencement 1998". Berklee College of Music. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2015.
  17. ^ "News". Carlysimon.com. Archived from the original on August 4, 2004. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  18. ^ "32 New Stars On Hollywood Walk". CBS News. June 17, 2004. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  19. ^ Baltin, Steve (April 19, 2012). "Trent Reznor, Carly Simon, Peter Frampton Honored by ASCAP". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 30, 2019. Retrieved June 16, 2014.
  20. ^ Blistein, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa (November 6, 2022). "Olivia Rodrigo, Sara Bareilles Salute Carly Simon During Rock Hall of Fame Induction". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 6, 2022. Retrieved November 6, 2022.