Torch (Carly Simon album)

Torch is the 10th studio album by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, released by Warner Bros. Records, in August 1981.

Torch
Studio album by Carly Simon
Released	August 1981
Studio	Power Station, New York City
Genre	Traditional pop
Length	35:02
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Mike Mainieri
Carly Simon chronology
Come Upstairs (1980) Torch (1981) Hello Big Man (1983)
Singles from Torch
"Hurt" Released: 1981 "I Get Along Without You Very Well" Released: 1981

It was Simon's first album devoted to standards, namely torch songs, relating unrequited love or rejection. The album also features one Simon original, "From the Heart".^[1] The album was recorded during her marriage breakup to James Taylor, which was announced shortly after the release of the album.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Rolling Stone	[3]

Writing in Rolling Stone, Stephen Holden called the album "a gorgeous throwback", stating Simon's "magnificent alto, with its rough-and-tumble lows and wistful highs, has never sounded better." He singled out the track "Not a Day Goes By" as "Torch's moment of truth", a "big, direct ballad", and "Simon's vocal makes you feel each stab of pain." He concluded "though Torch may be too sophisticated to storm the charts, it's nevertheless a superb example of modern mood music, performed with grace, gusto, sensuality, and intelligence."^[3]

In a retrospective review from AllMusic, William Ruhlmann similarly singled out the track "Not a Day Goes By", stating that Simon delivers it "with heartbreaking conviction."^[2] Simon later included the track on her two-disc career spanning collection Anthology (2002).^[4]

"Hurt" was released as the albums lead single; it just missed the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 106 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

"From the Heart" was included on Simon's 2015 career retrospective Songs from the Trees (A Musical Memoir Collection).^[5]

Cover artwork

The man whose arm Simon is tugging on the cover is American actor Al Corley, known for playing Steven Carrington on the 1980s soap opera Dynasty. The photographer was Lynn Goldsmith.^[6]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.^[7]

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Blue of Blue"	Nicholas Holmes Carly Simon[a]	3:38
2.	"I'll Be Around"	Alec Wilder	2:30
3.	"I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good"	Duke Ellington P.F. Webster	3:46
4.	"I Get Along Without You Very Well"	Hoagy Carmichael	3:23
5.	"Body and Soul"	Edward Heyman Robert Sour Frank Eyton Johnny Green	4:12

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Hurt"	Jimmie Crane Al Jacobs	3:21
2.	"From the Heart"	Simon	2:47
3.	"Spring Is Here"	Richard Rodgers Lorenz Hart	3:02
4.	"Pretty Strange"	Jon Hendricks Randy Weston	2:59
5.	"What Shall We Do with the Child"	Holmes Kate Horsey Simon[a]	2:44
6.	"Not a Day Goes By (from the Broadway show Merrily We Roll Along)"	Stephen Sondheim	2:40
Total length:			35:02

Notes

• ^a signifies a writer by additional lyrics

Personnel

Musicians

• Carly Simon – lead vocals
• Warren Bernhardt – acoustic piano (1, 3, 5–9, 11), synthesizers (4), arrangements (8)
• Mike Mainieri – arrangements (1–7, 9, 10, 11), acoustic piano (4), vibraphone (5), marimba (10)
• Hugh McCracken – guitar (1, 2, 6), acoustic guitar (7)
• Lee Ritenour – guitar (2, 3, 9)
• Jay Berliner – classical guitar (10)
• Anthony Jackson – bass guitar (1, 3, 6, 9)
• Eddie Gomez – acoustic bass (5)
• Rick Marotta – drums (1, 3, 9)
• Grady Tate – drums (5)
• Jerry Marotta – drums (6)
• David Sanborn – alto saxophone (1, 3)
• Phil Woods – alto saxophone (5)
• Michael Brecker – tenor saxophone (6)
• Randy Brecker – trumpet solo (9)
• David Nadien – violin solo (8)
• Don Sebesky – orchestration arrangements (1, 9, 11)
• Robert L. Freedman – orchestration arrangements (2)
• Marty Paich – orchestration arrangements (3, 4, 5, 8)

Production

• Producer – Mike Mainieri
• Production Coordination – Christine Martin
• Engineer – Scott Litt
• Second Engineer – Garry Rindfuss
• Mixing – Scott Litt (Tracks 1–7, 9, 10 & 11); Tony Bongiovi (Track 6).
• Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk (New York, NY).
• Art Direction – Bill Gerber and Simon Levy
• Design – Bill Gerber
• Photography – Lynn Goldsmith

Charts

Album – Billboard (United States)^[8]

Year	Chart	Position
1981	Billboard 200	50

Album – International

Year	Country	Position
1981	Australia[9]	77
	Canada[10]	50
	Japan[11]	56

Singles - Billboard (United States)^[8]

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1981	"Hurt"	Hot 100	106

References

1. "From The Heart lyrics". Carlysimon.com. Archived from the original on August 20, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
2. Ruhlmann, William. "Torch". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
3. Holden, Stephen (December 10, 1981). "Torch". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2014.
4. "Anthology". Carlysimon.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
5. "Songs from the Trees". Carlysimon.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
6. "Carly Simon, Torch by Lynn Goldsmith". San Francisco Art Exchange. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
7. Torch (booklet). Carly Simon. Warner Bros. 1981.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
8. "Carly Simon – Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
9. David Kent (1993). Australian Charts Book 1970—1992. Australian Chart Book Pty Ltd, Turramurra, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
10. "CAN Charts > Carly Simon". RPM. Archived from the original on January 4, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
11. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.

External links

• Carly Simon's Official Website