Participating in this roundtable are The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava, and me, Jim; Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude; Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man; C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review; Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills); Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix; Mike of Mikey Likes It!; Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz); Ruth of Ruth's Report; Trina of Trina's Kitchen; Wally of The Daily Jot; Marcia of SICKOFITRDLZ; Stan of Oh Boy It Never Ends; Isaiah of The World Today Just Nuts and Ann of Ann's Mega Dub. Mike, give us an overview.
Dona: In addition, other Carly albums -- that we're not counting -- include the first collection of hits The Best of Carly Simon, Reflections, the three-disc set Clouds In My Coffee, The Carly Simon Anthology. Similarly, we didn't include Romulus Hunt, released on the Angel label, as a Carly Simon album. We didn't include the soundtrack to This Is My Life either and were on the fence on how to count that. Unlike other soundtracks Carly has worked on, she's on every track.
Jim: We noted we'd be doing a Carly roundtable weeks ago and there's not a week that goes by when it's not the topic of several e-mails. Among our readers e-mailing on Carly's music, the top two mentioned albums are 1978's Boys In The Trees and 1987's Coming Around Again. That said, there's no album that someone hasn't cited as a favorite in an e-mail and that also includes Carly Simon's work with her sister Lucy Simon as The Simon Sisters. They were a folk act and we aren't including their recordings in this roundtable. In addition, there's a wonderful Yahoo discussion group on Carly which is a private group by invitation only, run by Bill, entitled Carly Simon Conversations. But long before there were discussion groups or the internet, people were discussing Carly Simon's songs and work. Her most discussed song is "You're So Vain." That's her number one hit and the one everyone talks about. It isn't her only discussed song. As with "The Joni Roundtable," we're discussing the albums. We haven't discussed our choices with each other ahead of time so let's get started. C.I., kick it off with your favorite album?
C.I.: I'd pick The Bedroom Tapes. This was a wonderful, amazing and brave album which had the misfortune of being released by Arista when Arista was beginning its long slide into obscurity. This was Carly's home studio album and you can really feel an energy and presence in the songs. This is the perfect Carly album. It opens with the rocker "Our Affair" which probably surprised some who thought Carly had set that part of herself to the side. Then it moves into one of her finest ballads, "So Many Stars." Carly's humor is a hallmark of her albums and "Big Dumb Guy" is a wonderful example of that. Then comes "Scar" which is my favorite of all of her songs. In this one, she's addressing not only her breast cancer but also the reactions to it. "And a really big man, loves a really good scar." It's an amazing song made all the more amazing by the powerful vocal Carly puts on, climbing and swooping with the notes on passages such as, "And the night is cold, As the coldest nights are, There's a wise woman, She comes from an eveing star, She says, 'Look for the signs, You won't have to look far, Lead with your spirit and follow, Follow your scar'." Carly's a confessional songwriter and she is our bravest confessional songwriter. She's also our most mature. If you ever doubt that, look to her work and not just "Scar." Look to the songs she's been writing in the 80s, 90s and today and grasp that many of her male peers are still trying to pretend they're the James Deans of Light Rock -- all these marriages and relationships later, they're still pretending they're a fresh faced, young boy about to find love for the first time. Carly's brought perspective to the popular song and she's done it from the start of her solo career and she's the only one of the confessional songwriters -- Joni Mitchell doesn't claim the genre so I'm not referring to her but I am referring to a ton of male songwriters -- who has anything to say because she's never hidden her pain or her growth or tried to play like she just emerged from the womb. Now I love the entire album, The Bedroom Tapes. and could go through it track by track but I'll go ahead and stop there and let someone else speak.
Jess: I can pick another if I have to but that was actually my choice as well.
Jim: Go ahead and stay with that one then. What do you have to add to what C.I. just said?
Jess: I like all of Carly's albums and I love a lot of them but this was a change in her sound in that she sounds more alive and I put that down to the fact that the rough tracks were done at her home and that she pretty much was laying down all the parts long before this became an album project proper. After the tracks C.I. noted, "Cross The River" comes on and that's an amazing song and a lot of fun to sing along with on the chorus. The final track is Carly using George and Iraq Gershwin's "Embraceable You" to write some verses around and is called "In Honor of You (George)" -- it works really well and it really haunting. She plays with the tempo and uses it to convey emotions. It's the sort of touch -- and the album's filled with these touches -- that she might not have time for exploring if this was "We just booked studio time, get to the Record Plant now!" The songs, all of them have a very lived in feeling to them. And I agree with the perspective observation that C.I. was making. Carly truly does have perspective and you can find that on any album. But there is so much bravery and so much fun in this album. Both of my parents are huge Carly fans so I heard her growing up. And, on this album, it was right before school let out for the year and I had the worst flu. I was old enough to be home by myself so I was camped out on the sofa. I don't know now if it was Good Morning America or The View, just that the TV was on ABC that morning and I kept coming in and out. But that's where I heard "So Many Stars" the first time. I didn't think I'd enjoy it as much on the album because I figured she was using the -- I'm trying to think of what to call this.
C.I.: Her upper register?
Jess: Thank you. She pitches this song higher in her upper register than she normally does and it gives it a quality that's really amazing. When we got the CD, my dad and me, we listened and she does the same on the recording. I really love this album and it's not just my favorite Carly Simon album, I think it's the best album of this decade.
Jim: Okay, I'm going to skip to Ruth next. Ruth?
Ruth: Playing Possum would be my pick, from 1975. I really love that album. My husband's mother freaked out that our oldest son had the album because of the cover -- it was a big controversy back then and Sears refused to carry it because of the cover. I did not get along with my mother-in-law so that may have made me enjoy the album even more. But I found it to be a very sensual album and Carly's vocals to be more supple and flexible, jazz inflections and just really an amazing collection of songs. "After the Storm" smoulders and the whole first side -- I have this on vinyl -- really does. Side two kicks off with my least favorite song, "Attitude Dancing." That said, I do sing along even now when I put the album on. And "Sons of Summer" -- which was written by Bill Mernit, I did prep-work -- is just so much fun to hear and to try to sing along with: "Where are those sons of summer now . . ." And "Playing Possum" is a song that still entrances me. C.I. quoted it not long ago at The Common Ills and I immediately had to pull out my vinyl copy and listen again. The arrangements are a little more delicate and a little less structured than on a lot of Carly's 70s albums. This one's really something different and something special.
Jim: Playing Possum was produced by Richard Perry. This was the third album with Carly that he'd done, the two earlier ones being 1972's No Secrets and 1974's Hotcakes. This decade they reteamed for Moonlight Serenade. One of those is Dona's favorite, so let's move over to her.
Dona: Hotcakes. Ava and I were roommates in college when this website started and one thing we were doing was attempting to give ourselves a musical education. So each week, we'd add to our CD collection. We both came to college with some Carly -- Ava had The Bedroom Tapes and another disc which I'll refrain from naming because I'm expecting her to list it as her favorite. I had Greatest Hits Live and Reflections: Carly Simon's Greatest Hits. So at some point, we started noting how easy it was to check out the back catalogue of any male. They always carry those at stores. A woman gets her most recent album and a best of -- if she's lucky. So we decided we'd explore women artists. Hotcakes was one of those explorations. Carly recorded this when she was pregnant with her daughter Sally, this was her first pregnancy and there's so much in this album that I love, including Carly's sense of humor. Something like "Safe and Sound," written with Jacob Brackman, could easily make way for the dreamy "Mind On My Man." "Older Sister" is just so much fun. "Forever My Love" and "Grownup" are such favorites of mine that I got C.I. to teach me them on piano. I can play those songs and if I didn't love those two so much, I wouldn't have been able to will myself to learn them. But they're so much fun to play. And this, for me, is really a fun album. It's one of expectations and joy and that may or may not have something to do with her being pregnant at the time. The big hits from the album were "Haven't Got Time For The Pain" -- written with Jacob Brackman -- and "Mockingbird" -- written by Charles and Inez Foxx and sang with James Taylor.
Jim: Okay, Cedric?
Cedric: I don't think anyone else here will be picking this one, Another Passenger from 1976. This is, for me, just a fun album in the way Dona was describing Hotcakes. For example, I love bearing down and singing, "Because it's a cow town, a cow town!" on "Cow Town." And I love the piano runs on "Libby." "Dishonest Modesty" finds Carly having fun with a song about a woman -- right or wrong, I always picture it being about Joni Mitchell -- that uses the titles of magazines. I love the guitar work on "Be With Me" and "Fairweather Father" is just one of those examples of perspective you don't find from many of Carly's peers. As has been said many times, her ex-husband may have titled an album Dad Loves His Work, but you wouldn't know a "dad" was working to listen to any of the songs. This is a really fun album to listen to and it may have more guests sitting in on it than any other Carly album: Lowell George, Jackson Browne, Andrew Gold, Leah Kunkel, the Doobie Brothers, Linda Ronstadt and so many more.
Jim: We're discussing albums and we mean to note when an album contains a track that she's redone for her new album Never Been Gone which comes out Tuesday but I'm going to ask C.I. to back me up on that because I'm afraid I'll end up missing it.
C.I.: So far nothing.
Jim: Okay, good, I was afraid I was missing it. Okay, we seem stuck in the seventies. A good period, but do we have anyone who's picking an eighties album?
Elaine: I'll go. Mine is Hello Big Man [1983]. This album got a rave from US magazine and a strong review from People -- that may have been written by Stephen Holden -- but was largely ignored. In terms of humor, "Floundering" is a wicked send up of those chasing cure and self-help trends. And the track ends with a wicked laugh by Carly. In terms of moving songs, my two favorite Carly songs of all time are: "Damn You Get To Me" and "You Don't Feel The Same."
The guitar on "Damn You Get To Me" always get to me and the nah-na-na-na-na-na-nah-nahs make the song even more beautiful. To me, those two are the most beautiful of Carly's 80s work. "You Don't Feel The Same" includes such lines as, "I remember when you were looking up at me, like I was the only one, that you'd ever want to see." It's a very moving song. There are many more on the album including one that's remade for Never Been Gone.
Jim: "It Happens Everyday."
Elaine: I always felt that was a song everyone should have covered.
Rebecca: Right. I always thought Wilson Phillips, back in their hey day, could have had a huge hit with that, with a video where they were in high school when the couple breaks up.
Trina: And I've always felt that someone like Emmylou Harris could have done a wonderful country version of it.
Wally: It's a break up song, "It happens everyday, two loves with the best intention to stay, together, they decide to separate, just how it happens, neither is certain, but it happens every day."
Jim: Okay. Marcia, what's your pick?
Marcia: 1987's Coming Around Again. Can I start with a complaint. I got this album on cassette tape many years ago. When I got rid of my cassettes and switched to CDs, the songs were the same but the track listing was different. I really belive "As Time Goes By" works better as the third track. That's the classic song from Casablanca and Stevie Wonder plays soundtrack on Carly's version. Another guest on the album is my favorite: Roberta Flack. She sings backup on "All I Want Is You." That's a favorite of mine as is "Two Hot Girls On A Hot Summer Night" which includes, "Thanks for introducing us said Dwight, polite, as he waived goodnight, I wondered why it wasn't me, I guess it's just that time's not right." "Do The Walls Come Down" is probably my all time favorite track on the album after the title track. "Something in my pocket, that was written years ago, in faded ink says 'you are my fire,' do you think so?" I really love this album but I liked the order better on the cassette.
Jim: Okay, the title track, "Coming Around Again," is redone for the new album Never Been Gone.
Betty: It's an interesting comeback -- this song was Carly's first trip back to the top forty since 1980's "Jesse" -- because it's not the "I just fell in love and I'm a virgin" type song that generally populates the top 40. "Baby sneezes, Mommy pleases, Daddy breezes in" are not lyrics you generally get in the top 40. Nor "So you break a window, burn a soufle, scream a lullaby." This goes to the points made earlier about how Carly has perspective and what is a writer without perspective? An overgrown man-child in the final chapter of his life? That would appear to be the case for her male peers.
Wally: This is a fun song musically. There's a little figure that goes through the song, before "I know nothing stays the same," that's really ear catching.
Mike: Dad wanted me to pass this on. My dad has a big vinyl collection, huge. And he has that in the room that's his. Always was his. It's really supposed to be a laundry room but the washer and dryer are in the garage and it's where Dad set up most of his vinyl. So anyway, there are a lot of posters in there and one of them is Carly from this album. If you were among the first to purchase the album, fill out a survey for Arista and mail it in to them, they would send you the poster -- which was the back cover of the album. And Dad was among the first and that poster is framed and up in Dad's vinyl room.
Jim: I found it interesting that only one song from this album made Never Been Gone. And Betty was speaking of "Jesse" and that's not on the album.
Stan: Wait, let me go. Come Upstairs is my pick. From 1980. This is one of the vinyl albums I got from the head shop earlier this decade when I was in college. This was a fun one to listen to with the headphones. The first track really should be done again by Carly because it's a really good one. It's got a new wave feel to it as she stacatto sings, "Sitting in the car here, after a party where we've seen, everyone we've known for years." The drums are really good on this song, by the way. Then there's "Them" which is also new wave. "What do they want, what shall we do about them, what do they want, what shall we do about them, what do they want, what shall we do about them, what do they want!" "Them" is men, by the way. I love "Take Me As I Am" for the verses and wish she'd included it on the album because I wonder how it would sound as an acoustic song. "The Desert" is different than what I expect from Carly. And, of course, there's "Jesse." With the kids singing the la-las and the finger-snapping bridge of "quick come here, I won't tell a soul, not even myself." It's probably got the best opening of any Carly Simon song, "Oh mother say a prayer for me." Right away you're hooked and she pairs it up with, "Jesse's back in town it won't be easy." The chorus is just perfect. Everything about this song is perfect. I would rank it as my favorite Carly song. And that album really requires you to listen with headphones. You really need to hear all the nuances.
Jim: And again, I was a little surprised "Jesse" wasn't included on the new album. Now six of Carly albums are her performing songs mainly written by others. Those albums are 1981's Torch, 1990's My Romance, 1997's Film Noir, 2005's Moonlight Serenade and 2007's Into White -- as well as Christmas Is Almost Here. Did anyone pick one of those as their favorite?
Wally: I did. Into White. I really enjoy that one. "Love Of My Life" is redone in an acoustic setting and she changes the lyrics a bit. I also really love her version of the Beatles' "Blackbird." But I love her version of all the songs and think they work as an album. It creates a mood and works through a theme. And it's nice to hear her and her daughter Sally sing together, their voices form an interesting blend.
Jim: Okay. So no one else? Okay, Rebecca, Betty, Trina, Ann, Mike, Kat, Ava, Ty and I haven't offered our pick yet and Betty asked to go last. So how about we move to Trina?
Trina: My pick would be Letters Never Sent. I don't think it holds together as an album because it's too diverse musically but that's why I rank it as my favorite. "Like A River," for example, works in a bit from her opera at the end. Then you've got "Halfway Round The World" which is like a sea chanty and like "You're So Vain" all at the same time. "I'd Rather It Was You" would sound at home on Anticipation. The title track is more of a funk song. It's just a really diverse blend. The theme is, of course, letters that were never sent. "The Reason" is an example of Carly using her sense of humor on a fine song. This album came out in 1994. I'm not sure how many people are aware of it -- even Carly fans. But there are at least six songs that would sound great on any Carly compilation.
Jim: Alright. Rebecca?
Rebecca: I'll pick the one that's always beat up in the playground: 1985's Spoiled Girl. Even Carly doesn't appreciate this one as evidenced by the boxed set. "Tired of Being Blonde" was a good single whose biggest problem was that it peaked at different times in different markets. The song made it to number 70 and if it had been worked better, I think it would have been top forty easily. To listen to the album, you'd never agree with me because the album track was not the single. The album track goes on forever and ever and the last minute of the album track is bascially combined into twenty seconds on the single. Carly didn't write this song but it was the perfect fit for her. "My New Boyfriend" is the opening track and if the first single had been worked properly, I think this could have been a big hit as well because it sounds a great deal like what Eurythmics were doing this same summer. "Come Back Home" is one of my favorite Carly love lost songs and it has a great opening: "Summertime, kids on the street, we were up on the roof, laughing at the heat, that was the last I ever saw of you." "Make Me Feel Something" is so adult and so confessional it's shocking. There's not a track on this album I don't sing along with. I really think this album is treated badly because of the sales and not because of what's on it. "Tonight and Forever" is a great song.
Jim: Ann?
Ann: I'm going to go with Boys In The Trees, from 1978. The hits from it were a duet with James Taylor, "Devoted To You," and "You Belong To Me" which she wrote with Michael McDonald. My favorite song on the album is "You're The One." "Well I spent all night alone with you and you weren't even there . . ." I just love that song and I love how the chords are so bright and sharp. It's got a really crisp sound to it. I wish she was redoing this song for the new album. After that, my favorite is "Back Down To Earth" but I really love everything except "One Man Woman." I hate that song. I can't stand it. But I love everything else which allows this to speed past No Secrets and become my favorite.
Jim: Now there are two tracks from Boys In The Trees that are redone on Never Been Gone: "You Belong To Me" and the title track. I'll let Ann weigh in first on either.
Ann: I'm interested in hearing "You Belong To Me" because I think it could be really interesting as a guitar strummer. But "Boys In The Trees"? It's already pretty much an acoustic on the 1978 album.
Elaine: I agree with Ann. There are some songs that you know would have to be on Never Been Gone. "You Belong To Me" would be among the ones that would have to be on. But to include "Back Down To Earth" as well? I don't know but, honestly, no offense to Ann or to Carly Simon, but Boys In The Trees really is my least favorite Carly album. Carly's vocals are good but the music is usually arranged and produced to sterile. My opinion.
Ruth: And the thing is, we're all going to wonder why X did not make the album and Z did. Twelve songs, ten of which have been released by Carly before, really does not allow for a wide range of choices. I would also add that I wish she'd included that theme song she did for the Judith Light TV show.
C.I.: "The Promise and The Prize" from Phenom.
Ruth: Right. I wish that had been on the album. I really love that song. The only time I ever heard the song was when the show was still on ABC, so not since 1994, but it has always haunted me.
Cedric: And Ruth's right that there are songs you expect, like "You're So Vain." You know that has to be on there. And "You Belong To Me" and a few others and then it's a scramble and you really want yours to win. I don't think most people will feel their personal favorite won because we are talking a solo career that is in its fourth decade. There are just so many songs.
Jim: Kat?
Kat: 1972's No Secrets. It was a huge deal when it came out and remains one. If this had been stocked by stores, by your Tower and Sam Goody and everything else, the way Jackson Browne's Late For The Sky or whatever by any male artist, this would be one of the best sellers and one of the touchstone albums. But by 1978, this album disappears from the shelves and the only way you get it is at a garage sale or by special ordering. Carly's not wearing a bra on the cover and that does two things at the same time, (a) makes for a sexual cover and (b) captures the mood of that time. Women didn't feel they had to wear bras. Or be bound in any way. And it's that freedom that you find on No Secrets. "You're So Vain" is the mammoth hit and everyone knows the song so you almost feel like there's nothing else to add. I think Carly finds something new on Never Been Gone and encourage everyone to listen especially to that track. This is the portrait of a young woman, the album. "The Carter Family" lopes through early childhood to adulthood and the album's exploring what being a woman means throughout. There are issues involving fathers, involving religion, involving love, involving loss. This really was a monster album for Carly and it's really amazing how stores rushed not to stock it but remember that stores were assisted by the label. Carly was on Elektra and she'd never see this success again because, after this album, Elektra merges with Asylum and David Geffen didn't care for the Elektra artists.
Jim: We've noted that "You're So Vain" is on Never Been Gone. "The Right Thing To Do" is also on No Secrets and it too is redone for Never Been Gone. Thoughts?
Betty: At her Grand Central Station concert, Carly did a calypso version of "We Have No Secrets" and that version really charged the song. I was really hoping that would be included on the new album, an acoustic, calypso version of "We Have No Secrets." Obviously, the thing that everyone will be doing on first listen to Never Been Gone is attempting to guage whether the songs that made the album live up to it -- meaning, is it a strong album or would their own personal favorites have made it a stronger album?
Jim: "Let The River Run" appeared on the soundtrack to Working Girl. It's never been on a studio album. So Never Been Gone will be it's first appearance. Anyone want to talk about that song?
Wally: That's one of her great songs. It's got a wonderful production but I'm talking just about the song. This is an amazing song: "We the brave and small." It was the best thing to use after 9-11 because it was the sort of song that spoke of all and didn't divide. I really love this song and I do love the new version of it on Never Been Gone.
Mike: I'd agree with everything Wally said. And add that "your sons and daughters" is probably part of the reason it's an inclusive song. But it has some really beautiful lyrics and imagery.
Cedric: And a really strong melody. My nephew's high school choral group includes that as one of two non-standards. The other song is Boys II Men's "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday."
Jim: Okay, still to go are Ava, Ty, Betty and me. I'm surprised my favorite hasn't already been picked. Wait, Mike hasn't picked yet. Okay, as I was saying, I'm surprised my favorite hasn't been picked already. Let's go to Mike next.
Mike: I'm going to go with Anticipation.
Jim: My favorite.
Mike: Mine too. This is more guitar based and I really love it. "The Girl You Think You See" is a great song and that's got a lot of piano on it so I'll start with it. Kris Kristofferson's "I've Got To Have You" is just amazing. "Share The End" has pertinence today. "Legend In Your Own Time" is just fun to sing along with -- "turn on the radio" is a favorite phrase to sing along with, for example. And I really love "Three Days."
Jim: And, of course, the title track.
Mike: Right. I can't ever remember when I didn't know the song "Anticipation." It seems like I learned that song as a kid the same way you learn "This Old Man." And who can't love "These are the good old days"? That coda's really important to the song.
Jim: And it's one of her best known hits so it had to be included on Never Been Gone. I really like that recording, the new recording, by the way. In terms of the album Anticipation, I'll note "Julie Through The Glass" is another piano based tune and that's a great song as well. I actually wish Carly had made more albums like this. I think the fact that she's working with real producers prevents her gifts from being appreciated in the manner that some of her peers are. Richard Perry, for example, added a lot of polish that probably prevents some of the purity crowd from embracing a lot of Carly's work. Okay, Ty or Ava. Who's next?
Ty: Ava's pointing to me. I think she knows my pick because I've been listening to it all month. It's the debut album, the self-titled one, 1970's Carly Simon. I didn't know this album. I knew the hit from it and that was it. I had never listened to it until this month when I figured I should make a point to hear all the albums before the roundtable. I'm sure it being new to me is part of the reason it ranks so high on my list currently but I really love it. "The Best Thing" is a fun song to listen to for what she's doing with the lyrics and also for the piano work. "Another Door" and "Just A Sinner" really contain some strong, full bodied singing. I'm really amazed at how strong her voice is on those songs. She has really incredible breath control which is why a lot of these songs will never be recorded by anyone else. Most singers can't do the songs on her debut album. They don't have the ability to. The hit from the album is "That's The Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" which she wrote with Jacob Brackman. And it's one of the songs she's redone for Never Been Gone.
Jim: Ava?
Ava: I'm really surprised because I thought my favorite would have been snapped up early on. It's 1990's Have You Seen Me Lately? The title track appears --with instruments and Carly humming -- in the film Postcards From The Edge. But to hear the song, you have to get the album. And it's really something. "Didn't I?" is a delicate ballad, "Life Is Eternal" is just amazing especially with all the vocals. "Better Not Tell Her" is a flamenco hit. "Don't Wrap It Up" is a sexual song that appears to have sailed over many heads. I love the humor and gentle rhythm of "Happy Birthday." Most of all, though, I love "We Just Got Here." I think it is one of Carly's finest songs and finest recordings. I wish she'd included this song on Never Been Gone. Whenever I'm depressed, I'll put that song on repeat and it will really provide -- here's that word we've been using this roundtable -- perspective. I love this album.
Jim: Okay, that's everyone but Betty.
Betty: I asked to go last because there are about six albums I could pick as my favorite. So I figured I'd go last and grab one that wasn't already picked. I believe the choices are Spy from 1979 or last year's This Kind Of Love and, sadly, that doesn't help a great deal. I guess This Kind Of Love wins by a hair. I love the rhythm of "People Say A Lot." "How Can You Ever Forget" is probably the most amazing song on the album. I really love it and it sounds like something Rogers & Hart wrote that only just was discovered.
Jim: Who wrote the song?
Betty: Carly and David Saw. Sally Taylor contributes a really strong song as well, "When We're Together." And Ben Taylor contributes "Island" which can breeze past you before you absorb the darkness in that song. Best of all, I can listen to this album straight through. That really is the main criteria for me when it comes to rating an album: Can I listen to it all the way through, every track? Carly's got at least six albums that I can do that with.
Jim: Spy, which didn't get picked, is where "Never Been Gone" first appears. Carly offers a live version on Greatest Hits Live. I think we've covered all the tracks on the album now, on the new album, Never Been Gone. Spy didn't end up picked and I know a few readers have noted it as their favorite so I'll ask if there any comments on any of the songs on that album?
Stan: "Memorial Day" is a strong song, including the drum solo. It's really an epic and it's one of my favorites. "And I was in the get away car, giving him a chance to get away, get away, get away, get away."
Betty: "Just Like You Do" has some wonderful sax work by David Sanborn and a great line in "I wish you were an ocean so I could jump into you."
Elaine: "We're So Close" is a heart breaking song.
Ty: I like "Pure Sin" -- mainly for the humor -- "and splash it all over my face."
Rebecca: "Oh, I'm going to get me a judge who is a lady, maybe she knows about having a baby." That's from "Coming To Get You."
Trina: I've always loved the lyrics to "Love You By Heart." "The lies that you tell, Will leave you alone, They'll keep you down , They'll catch you and trip you up, Keep you hanging around, The habit is old, You don't need it no more, Go on kiss it goodbye, Cause you've got me and I can see, Who you really are."
Jim: Tuesday, Carly Simon's Never Been Gone comes out. It's an album in which ten of the tracks are classic songs that she's redoing and the album also includes two songs she's never recorded before. Carly's a major talent and one of the strongest singer-songwriters the country has. You can find special offers on the album at her website. This week, she'll be promoting the album Monday on Good Morning America (ABC), Wednesday on Today (NBC), Thursday on Tavis Smiley (PBS) and Talk Of The Nation (NPR). Our e-mail address is thirdestatesundayreview@yahoo.com. This is a rush transcript.