"You're So Vain" | ||||
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![]() Side A of US single | ||||
Single by Carly Simon | ||||
from the album No Secrets | ||||
B-side | "His Friends Are More Than Fond of Robin" | |||
Released | November 8, 1972 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Studio | Trident | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:19 | |||
Label | Elektra | |||
Songwriter(s) | Carly Simon | |||
Producer(s) | Richard Perry[3] | |||
Carly Simon singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"You're So Vain" on YouTube |
"You're So Vain" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, released as a single in November 1972. The lyrics describe a self-absorbed lover. The subject's identity has long been a matter of speculation. Simon said the song refers to three men, one of whom she has named publicly: the actor Warren Beatty. The bass guitar intro was played by Klaus Voormann.[4] The strings were arranged by Simon and orchestrated by Paul Buckmaster.
In early 1973, "You're So Vain" reached No. 1 in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. In 1994, it was ranked 72nd in the Billboard 50th anniversary all-time chart.[5] At the 16th Annual Grammy Awards in 1974, it was nominated for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. It was voted No. 216 in RIAA's Songs of the Century, and in August 2014, the UK's Official Charts Company named it the ultimate song of the 1970s. In 2021, the song was ranked 495th on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
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was invoked but never defined (see the help page).The meta-pop song that keeps on giving, with a central mystery so all-consuming that it can take time to notice the subtler brilliances of its writing, production and performance.