Today’s classic song of the day is “You Belong to Me.” You probably remember it from Carly Simon’s hit version, released in August of 1977; her single went all the way to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, #9 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #4 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart.
“You Belong to Me” was written by Carly Simon and Doobie Brother Michael McDonald. Carly wrote the words, Michael the music. The Doobie Brother’s contribution explains why it sounds more than a little yacht rocky; Carly’s version gets a 72 score from the Yacht or Nyacht? website, which is moderately yachty.
The musicians on Carly’s version of “You Belong to Me” were a who’s who of in-demand studio cats of the time. They included Richard Tee on Fender Rhodes electric piano, Cornell Dupree and Eric Gale on electric guitars, Gordon Edwards on bass, and the inimitable Steve Gadd on drums. David Sanborn played the sax solo, and Carly’s ex, James Taylor, sang backup. That was good enough to earn Ms. Simon a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female. (She lost to Anne Murray and “You Needed Me.”)
Mr. McDonald was playing keyboards and singing lead for the Doobie Brothers at the time, and that group released their version of “You Belong to Me” on their 1977 album, Livin’ on the Fault Line. That version actually came out before Carly’s, but it wasn’t released as a single. The Doobies finally released a live version of “You Belong to Me” as a single in August of 1983; that version peaked at #79 on the Billboard Hot 100.
