Carly Simon sang about who?
There were conflicting stories over the weekend as to whether Carly Simon revealed the subject of her 1973 hit You’re So Vain. The list of possibilities was endless as evidently back in the day, Carly’s lady parts were as popular as Storm’s (you probably shouldn’t click on that link at the office).
I’ve always assumed it was about Mick Jagger, mostly because I thought it was double-funny that she got him to sing on the record.
The Sun newspaper postulated on Friday that she was singing about David Geffen, which is weird because, you know, Geffen is gay. The lyrics, they say, weren’t so much about love gone wrong as they were about getting screwed, so to speak, by Geffen who preferred Joni Mitchell.
Whatever. The song isn’t about David Geffen. How do I know? Because Carly told us it wasn’t six years ago.
Regis : Isnt’ it time for you to tell the world – who’s the guy you’re singing about? Is it Warren Beatty? Is it Mick Jagger? Or is it me? Tell us!Carly: If I tell it, it’s going to come out in dribs and drabs. And I’ve given out two letters already, and “A” and an “E”. But I’m going to add one to it. I’m going to add an “R”, in honor of you.
D-A-V-I-D G-E-F-F-E-N.
Do you see an “R” in there? Me neither. You know who’s name does have an “A”, an “E”, and an “R”? Well, besides Mick Jagger? And James Taylor?
Warren Beatty.
Fun fact: Beatty was famously gelded a number of years later by Madonna. The moment was captured on film during the 1990 Blond Ambition Tour, but it was left out of the final cut of Truth or Dare. The scene in question was spliced into a print of the Stones’ 1969 concert film C*cksucker Blues, which I screened at a Rick Emerson listener party after-after-show gathering in 2006. Watching Warren get emasculated as Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger worked out an early version of “Bitch” was…weird. What became of Beatty’s balls after that has been a source of mystery for a number of years. The story I heard at the after-after-party was Annette Bening had found them at a yard sale Madonna held sometime in mid-’91, as The Material Girl was getting rid of Warren’s stuff because Vanilla Ice was starting to get jealous. Who knows. It’s all Hollywood legend.
A couple years ago, Dick Ebersol, the guy who just finished ruining the Winter Olympics here in the states, paid $50,000 for the privilege of finding out who the song is really about. He would only say the name contained an “E”. I wonder if he’ll confirm the rumor. Maybe…maybe not.
Look, Simon was what…24? 25? when she wrote that tune. As talented as the 25-year-old Ms Simon was, I doubt she could come up with something this clever to just bitch about a record executive. That’s just my hunch. I’m gonna go on believing the tune is about Jagger, because it remains the most fun answer.
