Hotcakes (album)
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Hotcakes is singer-songwriter Carly Simon's fourth studio album. Released in 1974, it became one of her biggest selling albums. The album featured the hits "Mockingbird", a duet with her then-husband James Taylor (a cover of a 1963 hit for Inez and Charlie Foxx), and "Haven't Got Time for the Pain", as well as many other songs that reflected Simon's upbeat mood during her pregnancy with her first child. On the album cover, Simon sits in a gleamingly white kitchen, robustly pregnant, smiling brightly and wearing a somewhat bohemian white linen dress.
The album went gold immediately and it stayed on the charts for eight months, yet it was overshadowed commercially by two other major albums released by Simon's own label, Elektra/Asylum, in the same month as Hotcakes, Joni Mitchell's Court and Spark and Bob Dylan's Planet Waves. These took the #2 and #1 spots, respectively, on the Billboard album chart while Hotcakes peaked at #3.
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| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
Reception
Jon Landau, writing in Rolling Stone, stated Simon's ...past albums were serious-sounding with playful overtones; Hotcakes is playful-sounding with some serious overtones — a balance that best suits her for the time being. He continued by writing, ...But lest she is mistakenly stereotyped as a mere light artist, "Think I'm Gonna Have a Baby," "Forever My Love" and especially "Haven't Got Time for the Pain" are substantial songs and performances, superior to almost everything else she has so far recorded.
William Ruhlmann's more recent review for Allmusic rated the album four out of five stars. Ruhlmann wrote, Hotcakes was an autobiographical concept album that defined domestic bliss at a time when Simon's listeners also were catching their breath and turning inward. Since the album's release, it has been certified Gold by the RIAA, for sales of over 500,000 copes in the United States alone.
Track listing
All tracks composed by Carly Simon, except where indicated.
Side one
- "Safe and Sound" (Simon, Jacob Brackman) - 3:36
- "Mind on My Man" - 2:57
- "Think I'm Gonna Have a Baby" - 3:55
- "Older Sister" - 3:06
- "Just Not True" - 5:16
- "Hotcakes" - 1:07
Side two
- "Misfit" - 3:04
- "Forever My Love" (Simon, James Taylor) - 3:25
- "Mockingbird" (Inez and Charlie Foxx, with additional lyrics by Taylor) – 4:11
- "Grownup" - 3:44
- "Haven't Got Time for the Pain" (Simon, Brackman) - 3:50
Personnel
- Carly Simon - guitar, piano, vocals
- Dr. John - guitar, keyboards
- Robbie Robertson - guitar
- James Taylor - guitar, backing vocals
- Michael Brecker - saxophone
- Richard Davis - bass guitar
- Bucky Pizzarelli - guitar
- Howard Johnson - tuba, saxophone
- Ralph MacDonald - percussion
- Jim Keltner - drums
- Jim Gordon - drums
- Tasha Thomas - backing vocals
- Kenny Ascher - keyboards
- Larry Brean - slap bass
- Paul Buckmaster - strings
- Billy Cobham - tuba, saxophone
- George Devens - percussion
- Benny Diggs - backing vocals
- Todd Graff - backing vocals
- Lani Groves - backing vocals
- Carl Hall - backing vocals
- Bobby Keys - saxophone
- Russ Kunkel - drums
- Steve Madaio - trumpet
- Rick Marotta - drums
- Andy Newmark - drums
- Richard Perry - backing vocals
- Barry Rogers - trombone, trumpet
- Jim Ryan - guitar, bass guitar
- Lucy Simon - backing vocals
- David Spinozza - guitar
- Klaus Voormann - bass guitar
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Pop Albums | 3 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | "Haven't Got Time for the Pain" | Adult Contemporary | 2 |
| 1974 | "Haven't Got Time for the Pain" | Pop Singles | 14 |
| 1974 | "Mockingbird" | Adult Contemporary | 10 |
| 1974 | "Mockingbird" | Pop Singles | 5 |