Yesterday’s classic song of the day was Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain,” and today’s classic song of the day is by her ex-husband, singer-songwriter James Taylor. The song is “Your Smiling Face” which, when released in September of 1977, went to #20 on the Billboard Hot 100, #12 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #6 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart.
James Taylor and Carly Simon married in November of 1972 and had two children together, Ben and Sally. The couple stayed together a little over a decade, divorcing in 1983.
Many people think “Your Smiling Face” is a love song for Carly, but they’re wrong. Listen to the lyrics carefully and you realize he wrote it for their daughter Sally, who was then three years old. All dads are in love with their daughters, especially when they’re three years old:
Whenever I see your smiling face
I have to smile myself
Because I love you, yes, I do
And when you give me that pretty little pout
It turns me inside out
There’s something about you, baby
I don’t knowI thought I was in love a couple of times before
With the girl next door
But that was long before I met you
Now I’m sure that I won’t forget you
And I thank my lucky stars
That you are who you are
And not just another lovely lady
Set out to break my heart
The musicians on the track were the usual suspects, including Danny Kortchmar on electric guitar, Clarence McDonald on piano, Leland Sklar on bass, and Russ Kunkel on drums. James played acoustic guitar and Peter Asher produced.
And here’s today’s daily bonus video of the day, Mr. James Taylor singing about his daughter Sally at the Blossom Music Festival on July 18, 1979. Yeah, that’s a not-yet-gray Lee Sklar on bass and a not-yet-bald Russ Kunkel on drums. They groove.
