Every Friday around 11 a.m. Central, it’s time for Classic Americana on Radio Heartland. We pull a special track from the archives or from deep in the shelves to spotlight a particular artist or song.

Carly Simon, who was born on June 25, 1943, is one of the most prolific and dominant singer-songwriters of the late 20th century, and her career continues to this day.

Simon got her start in music as part of a folk duo with her sister Lucy. The Simon Sisters, as they were called, enjoyed some moderate success in the 1960s. After the group disbanded, Carly Simon set off on a solo career that has left us with so many beloved hits, including “That’s The Way I Always Thought It Should Be,” “Anticipation” and “You’re So Vain,” and the song, “Nobody Does It Better,” which Simon wrote for the 1977 James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me. 

As the 1970s concluded, Carly Simon left Elektra Records and signed with Warner Bros — now known as Warner Records. Simon’s first album on the new label was Come Upstairs, released in 1980. Much of the album featured a more rock sound than Simon’s earlier work, except for one more acoustically oriented track, “Jesse.” The song proved a major success for Simon; it stayed in the U.S. singles chart for six months, peaking at No. 11, and it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America when it sold more than one million copies. “Jesse” was also a major hit in Australia and in Canada, and it is our Classic Americana pick this week.

 Simon continued to have a successful songwriting and performing career into the 1980s, writing songs for film and television, including “Coming Around Again” for the 1986 film Heartburn and the song “Let The River Run” for the 1988 film, Working Girl; the latter earned Carly Simon three major awards: an Oscar, a Golden Globe and a Grammy, all for best original song written for film or television.

In 1997, Carly Simon was diagnosed with breast cancer, undergoing lengthy but ultimately successful treatments. Later returning to the studio, Simon released Moonlight Serenade, a collection of beloved jazz standards, in 2005. Simon has also written two memoirs: one about her life and career, and another about her longtime friendship with Jaqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Among her many accolades, Carly Simon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.

External Links

Carly Simon – official site

Carly Simon – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame