No Secrets (Carly Simon album)
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No Secrets is the third studio album by American singer and songwriter Carly Simon, released on November 28, 1972 by Elektra Records.
The album was Simon's commercial breakthrough. It spent five weeks at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart and quickly went Gold,[2] as did its lead single, "You're So Vain", which remained at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for three weeks, and topping on the Adult Contemporary chart for two weeks.[3] 25 years after its initial release, the album was officially certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 12, 1997.[2]
Recording and packaging
At the invitation of producer Richard Perry, Simon recorded the album at Trident Studios in London, where Perry was keen for Simon to work with engineer Robin Cable. Trident Studios had previously been the venue for the recording of notable albums including The Beatles' White Album, David Bowie's Space Oddity and Elton John's second album.
The photograph for the cover, taken by Ed Caraeff, was shot in front of the Portobello Hotel, on Stanley Gardens in London's Notting Hill.[4]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau | (B-)[5] |
| Rolling Stone | (positive)[6] |
Initial reviews for No Secrets were mixed to positive. Robert Christgau, writing in Creem, rated the album a B- and stated that "if a horse could sing in a monotone, the horse would sound like Carly Simon, only a horse wouldn't rhyme 'yacht', 'apricot', and 'gavotte'. Is that some kind of joke?"[5] Stephen Holden in Rolling Stone concluded that "what finally makes No Secrets so refreshing is her singing, which conveys the finest spirit of patrician generosity."[6]
More recent reviews have been much more positive. For example, AllMusic's William Ruhlmann gave the album four-and-a-half stars (out of five). Ruhlmann noted that "You're So Vain", "set the album's saucy tone, with its air of sexually frank autobiography and its reflections on the jet-set lifestyle." He also stated that "now that she felt she had found true love, she was as willing to acknowledge her own mistakes and regrets as she was to point fingers." He concluded that "Perry paid particular attention to Simon's vocals and gave her music a new pop/rock 'buoyancy that previous albums lacked'."[1]
"You're So Vain" is ranked at number 72 on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All-Time.[7] The song was also voted number 216 in RIAA's Songs of the Century. It remains Simon's biggest hit and is considered her signature song.
Awards
Grammy Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | "You're So Vain" | Record of the Year | Nominated |
| Song of the Year | Nominated | ||
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female | Nominated | ||
| No Secrets | Best Engineered Recording[8] | Nominated | |
| 2004 | "You're So Vain" | Grammy Hall of Fame Award | Inducted |
Track listing
All songs written by Carly Simon, unless otherwise noted.
Side one
- "The Right Thing to Do" – 2:57
- "The Carter Family" (Simon, Jacob Brackman) – 3:29
- "You're So Vain" – 4:17
- "His Friends Are More Than Fond of Robin" – 3:00
- "We Have No Secrets" – 3:57
Side two
- "Embrace Me, You Child" – 4:06
- "Waited So Long" – 4:14
- "It Was So Easy" (Simon, Brackman) – 3:06
- "Night Owl" (James Taylor) – 3:47
- "When You Close Your Eyes" (Simon, Bill Mernit) – 3:05
Personnel
- Carly Simon – lead vocals, backing vocals (1, 7), acoustic guitar (5-8), piano (1-4, 10), string arrangements (3), ARP synthesizer arrangements (4)
- Andy Newmark – drums (1, 2, 6, 8, 10)
- Jimmy Ryan – acoustic guitar (2-5, 10), bass guitar (1, 10) electric guitar (3, 6-9)
- Klaus Voormann – bass guitar (2, 3, 5-9)
Additional personnel
- Paul Buckmaster – string and woodwind arrangements (10), synthesizer arrangements (6, 10), choir arrangement (6), orchestration (3, 6)
- Kirby Johnson – string arrangements (2, 5), woodwind arrangements (2), electric piano (5)
- Ray Cooper – congas (1, 9)
- Jim Gordon – drums (3, 5)
- Nicky Hopkins – piano (7, 9)
- Jim Keltner – drums (7, 9)
- Paul Keough – acoustic guitar (5, 8)
- Vicki Brown – backing vocals (1)
- Liza Strike – backing vocals (1)
- Richard Perry – percussion (3)
- David Hentschel – ARP synthesizer (4)
- Peter Robinson – piano (6)
- Lowell George – slide guitar (7)
- Bill Payne – organ (7)
- James Taylor – backing vocals (7)
- Bonnie Bramlett – backing vocals (9)
- Bobby Keys – tenor saxophone (9)
- Linda McCartney – backing vocals (9)
- Paul McCartney – backing vocals (9)[9]
- Doris Troy – backing vocals (9)
- Mick Jagger – backing vocals (uncredited) (3)
Production
- Produced by Richard Perry
- Engineer: Robin Geoffrey Cable
- Remixing: Bill Schnee, Robin Geoffrey Cable
- Mastering: Doug Sax
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
Certifications
|
References
- ^ a b c Ruhlmann, William. No Secrets at AllMusic. Retrieved 14 March 2006.
- ^ a b RIAA (2010-02-28). "RIAA - Gold & Platinum - February 28, 2010". RIAA. Retrieved 2010-02-28. (table of RIAA certifications for artist Carly Simon in format ALBUM)
- ^ RIAA (2010-02-28). "RIAA - Gold & Platinum - February 28, 2010". RIAA. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) (table of RIAA certifications for artist Carly Simon in format SINGLE) - ^ Walter Neff. "Carly Simon - Album Covers: No Secrets (1972)". carlysimonalbumcovers. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (April 1973). "The Christgau Consumer Guide: Carly Simon: No Secrets". Creem. Retrieved 7 November 2011. Also included in "Carly Simon > Consumer Guide Reviews". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 14 March 2006.
- ^ a b Holden, Stephen (January 4, 1973). "Carly Simon No Secrets > Album Review". Rolling Stone. No. 125. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Billboard Hot 100 Chart 50th Anniversary". Billboard.com. 1994-05-21. Retrieved 2009-08-17.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1974". Awards&Shows.com. Retrieved 2015-04-11.
- ^ Castleman, Harry; Podrazik, Walter J. (1977). "1972 – Never Tell Your Mother She's Out of Tune". All Together Now – The First Complete Beatles Discography 1961–1975 (Second ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. p. 117. ISBN 0-345-25680-8.
- ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 20, 2013
- ^ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on May 6, 2013. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Hit Parade Italia - Gli album più venduti del 1973" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
- ^ "norwegiancharts.com Carly Simon – No Secrets" (ASP). Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Chart Stats – Carly Simon – No Secrets (original soundtrack)" (PHP). UK Albums Chart. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "allmusic ((( No Secrets > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Album Search: Carly Simon – No Secrets" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1973 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on October 27, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Top Pop Albums of 1973". Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ^ "British album certifications – Carly Simon – No Secrets". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved February 20, 2013. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type No Secrets in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- ^ "American album certifications – Carly Simon – No Secrets". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 20, 2013.