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Let the River Run

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"Let the River Run"
SinglebyCarly Simon
from the albumWorking Girl (Original Soundtrack Album)
B-side
  • "The Turn of the Tide"
  • "Carlotta's Heart" (Europe)
Released1989
Recorded1988
Length3:43
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)Carly Simon
Producer(s)Rob Mounsey
Carly Simon
Carly Simonsingles chronology
"All I Want Is You"
(1987) 		"Let the River Run"
(1989) 		"Better Not Tell Her"
(1990)

"Let the River Run"is a song written, composed, and performed by American singer-songwriterCarly Simon,and the theme to the1988Mike NicholsfilmWorking Girl.[1]

The song won theAcademy Award for Best Original Song,theGolden Globe Award for Best Original Song(tying with "Two Hearts"byPhil CollinsandLamont DozierfromBuster), and theGrammy Award for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or Television.[2]Simon became the first artist in history to win this trio of awards for a song composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist.[3]

TheWorking Girlsoundtrackwas released in 1989 and peaked at No. 45 on theBillboard200,[4]and also contains a choral version of the track featuringThe St. Thomas Choir of Men and BoysofNew York City.[5]

Composition and reception[edit]

Simon has stated that she found inspiration for the lyrics by first reading the original script, and then the poems ofWalt Whitman.Musically, she wanted to write a hymn to New York with a contemporary jungle beat under it, so as to juxtapose those opposites in a compelling way. A statement on Simon's official website acknowledges that "the phrases 'Silver Cities Rise' and 'The New Jerusalem' seem to have taken on a new meaning for many people, but the song was not originally composed with any particular political and/or religious overtones."[6]However, the phrase "new Jerusalem" has been recognized by other observers as an allusion to the works ofWilliam Blake.[7]

A music video for the song was filmed and released, featuring Simon, along withWorking GirlactressesMelanie GriffithandJoan Cusack,aboard theStaten Island Ferry.[8]As asingle,the song reached peak positions of No. 49 on theBillboardHot 100and No. 11 on theBillboardAdult Contemporarychart in 1989. The song remains one of Simon's best loved and most recognizable hits, and has been featured on multiple compilations of her work, including the three-disc box setClouds in My Coffee(1995), theUKimportThe Very Best of Carly Simon: Nobody Does It Better(1998), the two-disc retrospectiveAnthology(2002), the single-discReflections: Carly Simon's Greatest Hits(2004), andSony Music'sPlaylist: The Very Best of Carly Simon(2014).

Cash Boxsaid that it "is perhaps the most powerful songwriting Simon has ever done. A broken drum feel underscores a brilliant anthem for the working class. The gospel-tinged melody soars, inspires; the lyric conjures visions of a nation only needing to let the river of hope run its course. Simon delivers a remarkable vocal, filled with passionate intensity."[9]

Awards[edit]

Simon became the first artist in history to win aGrammy Award,aGolden Globe Award,and anAcademy Awardfor a song composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist.[3]

Year Award Category Recipient Result Ref.
1989 Academy Awards Best Original Song Carly Simon Won [10]
Golden Globe Awards Best Original Song Won [11]
Boston Music Awards Outstanding Song/Songwriter Nominated [12]
1990 British Academy Film Awards Best Film Music Nominated [13]
Grammy Awards Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or Television Won [14]

Legacy[edit]

Simon at the61st Academy Awards(March 1989).

"Let the River Run" is the first of only two songs to have won all three major awards (Oscar,Golden Globe,Grammy) while being composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist[3]– the other being "Streets of Philadelphia"byBruce SpringsteenfromPhiladelphia.Barbra Streisandshared the Oscar, Golden Globe and Grammy for "Evergreen(Love Theme fromA Star is Born) "which she composed and wrote with lyricistPaul Williams(for which she also won theGrammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance).Annie Lennoxwon all three awards – for "Into the West"fromThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,sharing all three with co-composer and lyricistsFran WalshandHoward Shore.More recently,Adelereceived the Oscar, Golden Globe, and Grammy for her "Skyfall"theme, co-written with producerPaul Epworthfor the 2012James BondfilmSkyfall.

In 2001, the song was used for anadvertisementfor theUnited States Postal Servicein the wake of the2001 anthrax attacks.[15]

In 2004, the song was twice featured in the filmLittle Black Book,[16]Simon herself also appeared at the end of the film. That same year, the song was ranked at No. 91 inAFI's 100 Years...100 Songs.[17]

In 2009, Simon re-recorded the song for her albumNever Been Gone.[18]On September 11 of that year, Simon performed the song with her children,Sally Taylorand Ben Taylor, at theWorld Trade Center siteto honor the lives lost in thedestruction of the Twin Towerseight years earlier.[19]

In 2014, Simon released a single of the song covered byMáiréad CarlinandDamian McGintywhich had been the anthem forDerry~Londonderry'sUK City of Culturecelebrations. McGinty and Carlin sang the song with Simon during the Oceana Partners Awards Gala in Beverly Hills, Ca.[20][21]

In January 2019, the song was the subject of an episode ofBBC Radio 4'sSoul Music,examining the song's cultural influence.[22]

In October 2019, the song was used behind the closing credits ofSeason 31, Episode 2of theFoxTV showThe Simpsons.[23]

In October 2019, as well as being the episode title, the song was used during several key moments during the first episode of Season 2 ofCastle Rock.[24]

Track listing[edit]

7 "single[25]
  • "Let The River Run" – 3:40
  • "The Turn Of The Tide" – 4:04

Personnel[edit]

Charts[edit]

Chart (1989) Peak
position
Australia (ARIACharts)[26] 91
UK Singles Chart (Official Charts Company)[27] 79
USBillboardHot 100[28] 49
USBillboardAdult Contemporary[29] 11

References[edit]

  1. ^Roberts, David (2006).British Hit Singles & Albums(19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 136.ISBN1-904994-10-5.
  2. ^"Carly Simon Official Website - Awards".Archived fromthe originalon October 19, 2007.RetrievedDecember 7,2016.
  3. ^abc"Carly Simon - ASCAP Founders Award".Archived fromthe originalon September 1, 2018.RetrievedSeptember 1,2018.
  4. ^"Soundtrack Chart History:Billboard200 ".Billboard.Archived fromthe originalon May 31, 2022.RetrievedJanuary 3,2020.
  5. ^"Working Girl [Original Soundtrack]".AllMusic.Archivedfrom the original on November 4, 2021.RetrievedJuly 18,2014.
  6. ^"Carly Simon Official Website - Ask Carly".Archived fromthe originalon March 26, 2012.Retrieved2014-07-26.
  7. ^And did those feet in ancient time
  8. ^"Let The River Run - Carly Simon".YouTube.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-12-21.RetrievedAugust 31,2021.
  9. ^"Top of the Pops"(PDF).Cash Box.February 4, 1989. p. 20.Retrieved2022-12-21.
  10. ^"Academy Awards Acceptance Speech Database - Carly Simon".Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.Archivedfrom the original on August 29, 2021.RetrievedAugust 17,2020.
  11. ^"Winners and Nominees - Carly Simon".Hollywood Foreign Press Association.Archivedfrom the original on August 29, 2021.RetrievedAugust 17,2020.
  12. ^"Boston Music Awards 1989".Boston Music Awards.Archivedfrom the original on October 30, 2021.RetrievedOctober 30,2021.
  13. ^"Original Film Score in 1990".British Academy of Film and Television Arts.Archivedfrom the original on October 20, 2021.RetrievedAugust 21,2020.
  14. ^"Carly Simon".The Recording Academy.Archivedfrom the original on March 20, 2022.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  15. ^Coloribus Creative Advertising Archive."USPS" PRIDE "TV Commercial".Archived fromthe originalon July 16, 2015.RetrievedAugust 21,2014.
  16. ^"Little Black Book".IMDb.RetrievedJune 22,2014.
  17. ^"AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs".AFI.Archived fromthe originalon February 11, 2020.RetrievedJune 16,2014.
  18. ^"Carly Simon Official Website - Never Been Gone".Archived fromthe originalon September 19, 2010.Retrieved2014-08-09.
  19. ^"9/11 Victims Honored at Ground Zero".Nbcnewyork.September 9, 2009.Archivedfrom the original on June 14, 2021.RetrievedMay 13,2014.
  20. ^Kehoe, Michael (January 16, 2014)."McGinty and Carlin represent Derry".Irish Music Daily.Archivedfrom the original on January 25, 2014.
  21. ^"Carly Simon Official Website - News".Archived fromthe originalon June 26, 2014.Retrieved2014-08-09.
  22. ^"Soul Music - Let the River Run".BBC Radio 4.January 23, 2019.
  23. ^"Go Big or Go Homer".IMDb.October 6, 2019.RetrievedApril 24,2021.
  24. ^"Let the River Run".IMDb.October 23, 2019.RetrievedApril 24,2021.
  25. ^"Let the River Run".Discogs.January 1989.Retrieved3 Jan2020.
  26. ^David Kent (1993).Australian Charts Book 1970—1992.Australian Chart Book Pty Ltd, Turramurra, N.S.W.ISBN0-646-11917-6.
  27. ^"UK Charts > Carly Simon".Official Charts Company.Archivedfrom the original on May 13, 2022.RetrievedFebruary 20,2012.
  28. ^"Carly Simon – Chart history - Hot 100".Billboard.Archivedfrom the original on November 17, 2021.RetrievedJanuary 4,2015.
  29. ^"Carly Simon – Chart history - Adult Contemporary".Billboard.Archivedfrom the original on November 17, 2021.RetrievedJanuary 4,2015.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Let_the_River_Run&oldid=1226584445"