Personnel: Carly Simon (vocals, guitar, piano); Jimmy Johnson , David Bromberg, Jim Ryan , Buzzy Linhart (guitar); Jeff Baxter (pedal steel guitar); Harvey Shapiro (cello); Mark "Moogy" Klingman, Billy Mernit, Paul Griffin (keyboards); Doug Rauch, Gerald Jemmott, Tony Levin (bass instrument); John Siomos, Jimmy Wilkins (drums).
Carly Simon had released an obscure folkie record in 1965 and recorded with her sister Lucy as the Simon Sisters, but 1971's CARLY SIMON was her official debut. It was also one of the records that helped define the '70s singer-songwriter genre. Simon had by this time shed many of the overtly folkie aspects of her songwriting and singing style, but her songs remained rooted in simple acoustic piano or guitar-based, folk-influenced styles. The simple, low-key arrangements keep her husky voice and quietly emotive lyrics front and center.
The album kicks off with the minor classic "That's the Way I've Always Heard it Should Be," which features a character confessing ambivalence about getting married. This and the other nine songs' rich minor-key melodies and unabashedly personal, emotional lyrics hint at what would be Simon's stock in trade for the rest of her career. "Alone" and "One More Time" are particular standouts in this style. Though Simon would release more consistent albums (1972's NO SECRETS, for example), this self-titled maiden voyage was the one that started it all.
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (4/1/71, p.50) - "...Some of the songs on this album sound like Updike or Salinger short stories set to music..."
Uncut (p.115) - 3 stars out of 5 - "Piano, pedal-steel and Russ Kunkel drums abound, while strings circle about Simon's nice, folkish voice..."
