<\/p>\n
All the young girls have songs out this summer.<\/p>\n
Gracie Abrams\u2019 new album will be number 1 by Friday, and much deserved.<\/p>\n
But the catchiest pop song by a female singer songwriter this summer isn\u2019t from Gracie, or Taylor, or Sabrina, or Billie, or any of the other powerhouse pop stars of 2026.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s by the OG confessional pop singer-songwriter, Carly Simon.<\/p>\n
Long before any of today\u2019s stars were a gleam in anyone\u2019s eyes, Simon broke onto the scene with the ethereal \u201cThat\u2019s the Way I Always Heard it Should Be.\u201d The whole nature of the song \u2014 so personal and relatable \u2014 launched Carly into the stratosphere.<\/p>\n
She followed that one quickly with \u201cAnticipation,\u201d another radio hit that has also lasted for eons in the canon of pop music.<\/p>\n
Within a year came \u201cYou\u2019re So Vain,\u201d the Richard Perry-produced blockbuster that featured Mick Jagger on background vocals. The fight over who the song\u2019s subject is remains to this day. (It could easily be about a contemporary star, from Timothee Chalamet to Leonardo Di Caprio to Harry Styles.)<\/p>\n
Now comes \u201cHowl,\u201d which is so catchy that two listens and you\u2019re in. Carly sounds as contemporary as any singer out there. \u201cHowl\u201d should be added to every Adult Contemporary playlist ASAP. It\u2019s a perfectly shaped piece of pop. The refrain, \u201cCall Love a Liar,\u201d should be on T shirts.<\/p>\n
Next Friday, Simon releases another single, called \u201cPeaches,\u201d which is right in season. The samba like effect is mesmerizing.<\/p>\n
Then on the 14th comes her first new album of original material in 18 years. \u201cComes in Waves,\u201d<\/a> is a knockout, and some of the songs will have fans guessing about the subjects like crazy.<\/p>\n