Editing Carly Simon (section)

===1978–1979: ''Boys in the Trees'', MUSE concerts, and departure from Elektra===
Simon's career took another upward swing in 1978 with the Top 10 album ''[[Boys in the Trees]]''. The album produced two Top 40 singles: the jazzy and sensual "[[You Belong to Me (Carly Simon song)|You Belong to Me]]" (written with Michael McDonald), which hit the Top 10 on both the Pop and Adult Contemporary charts, and "[[Devoted to You (song)#Carly Simon and James Taylor version|Devoted to You]]", a duet with James Taylor which hit No. 2 on ''Billboard's'' Adult Contemporary chart. ''Boys in the Trees'' was a major success, and returned Simon to Platinum album status in the U.S. "You Belong to Me" later earned Simon yet another nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the [[21st Annual Grammy Awards]], where the album also won Best Album Package.<ref name=carlysimonawards>{{cite web |website=Carlysimon.com |url=http://www.carlysimon.com/timeline/Awards.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071019020216/http://www.carlysimon.com/timeline/Awards.shtml |archive-date=October 19, 2007 |title=Awards |access-date=March 18, 2015}}</ref> She was featured on the front covers of ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'' and ''Rolling Stone'' magazines that year.<ref>{{cite web |last=Jerome |first=Jim |magazine=[[People (magazine)|People]] |title=Carly's Road to Success |date=July 17, 1978 |url=https://people.com/archive/cover-story-carlys-road-to-success-vol-10-no-3/ |access-date=May 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317050032/https://people.com/archive/cover-story-carlys-road-to-success-vol-10-no-3/ |archive-date=March 17, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> Also in 1978, Simon and Taylor sang backing vocals on two songs for Taylor's sister [[Kate Taylor|Kate]]'s album ''[[Kate Taylor (album)|Kate Taylor]]'': "Happy Birthday Sweet Darling" and "Jason & Ida".<ref>{{cite web |title=Kate Taylor |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/kate-taylor-mw0000555945 |publisher=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=April 3, 2022 |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130033304/https://www.allmusic.com/album/kate-taylor-mw0000555945 |url-status=live}}</ref> They sang backup on three songs on [[John Hall (New York politician)|John Hall]]'s debut solo album ''[[John Hall (album)|John Hall]]'': "The Fault", "Good Enough", and "Voyagers".<ref>{{cite web |title=John Hall |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/john-hall-mw0000844547 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=April 3, 2022 |archive-date=December 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211211170754/https://www.allmusic.com/album/john-hall-mw0000844547 |url-status=live}}</ref> They also sing backup on one song, "Power", from Hall's next album, also titled ''[[Power (John Hall album)|Power]]'' (1979).<ref>{{cite web |title=John Hall – Power |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/power-mw0001878939 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=April 3, 2022 |archive-date=November 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129103812/https://www.allmusic.com/album/power-mw0001878939 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Carly Simon - 1978.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Simon smiling b&w|1978 publicity photo]]

On November 2, 1978, Simon guested on the song "I Live in the Woods" at a live, four-hour concert by [[Burt Bacharach]] and the [[Houston Symphony|Houston Symphony Orchestra]] at Jones Hall in [[Houston]], Texas. All the songs at that concert became Bacharach's album ''[[Woman (Burt Bacharach album)|Woman]]'', which was released in 1979.<ref>{{cite web |title=Burt Bacharach – Woman |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/woman-mw0000564487 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=August 21, 2014 |archive-date=July 13, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713044634/http://www.allmusic.com/album/woman-mw0000564487 |url-status=live}}</ref> That year, shortly after the [[Three Mile Island accident|Three Mile Island]] nuclear accident, from September 19 to 22, a series of concerts were held at New York City's [[Madison Square Garden]] and sponsored by [[Musicians United for Safe Energy]] (MUSE), a group of musicians against nuclear power, co-founded by John Hall. Always politically active, Simon and James Taylor were part of the concerts which later became a documentary and [[concert film]]: ''[[No Nukes (film)|No Nukes]]'' (1980),<ref name=nonukes>{{cite web |url=https://www.carlysimon.com/music/No_Nukes.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140706121554/http://www.carlysimon.com/music/No_Nukes.html |archive-date=July 6, 2014 |title=No Nukes |access-date=December 18, 2014 |website=Carlysimon.com |url-status=dead}}</ref> as well as a live album [[No Nukes: The Muse Concerts for a Non-Nuclear Future|of the same name]] (1979).<ref>{{cite web |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |title=No Nukes |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/no-nukes-mw0000024631 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=August 21, 2014 |archive-date=March 20, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150320070703/http://www.allmusic.com/album/no-nukes-mw0000024631 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1979, Simon released her eighth studio album: ''[[Spy (Carly Simon album)|Spy]]''. The album's sales were a disappointment, peaking at only No. 45 on the ''Billboard'' 200, and it was her last album for Elektra. A hard-edged single from the album, "[[Vengeance (Carly Simon song)|Vengeance]]", became a modest hit and received airplay on U.S. album rock stations, and peaked at No. 48 on the ''Billboard'' Pop singles chart.<ref name=billboard/> ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]]'' said that it has "an urban rock feeling, with ominous guitar chording and touches of syndrums," saying that "Simon's vocals are...sharp and bold" but "less restrained than usual."<ref name=cb>{{cite news |title=CashBox Singles Reviews |date=June 2, 1979 |page=20 |magazine=[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]] |accessdate=January 1, 2022 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1979/CB-1979-06-02.pdf}}</ref> "Vengeance" earned Simon a nomination for [[Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance|Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female]] at the [[21st Annual Grammy Awards]]—the first ceremony to feature the new category.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rock On The Net: Grammy Awards: Best Rock Vocal Performance – Female |url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/grammy/rockfemale.htm |publisher=Rock on the Net |access-date=June 16, 2014 |archive-date=February 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226184449/http://www.rockonthenet.com:80/grammy/rockfemale.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> Simon made a [[music video]] for the track, and she would later become the second female solo artist to be featured on [[List of first music videos aired on MTV|MTV's first day on the air]] in 1981 ([[Pat Benatar]] was the first female solo artist to appear on [[MTV]], with "[[You Better Run#Pat Benatar version|You Better Run]]", and [[Juice Newton]] was the third, with "[[Angel of the Morning#Juice Newton version|Angel of the Morning]]").<ref>{{cite web |website=Wayback Machine |title=MTV: The First Four Hours (12am Saturday, August 1, 1981) |date=August 1981 |url=https://archive.org/details/1981.08.01_MTV_First_Four_Hours_12am_Saturday_August_1st_1981 |access-date=December 31, 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

''Spy'' also features the songs "Never Been Gone" and "We're So Close", which have become fan favorites and stand among Simon's personal favorites of her own songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.carlysimon.com/askcarly/archives/archive-042007.htm |title=Ask Carly |access-date=December 28, 2014 |last=Simon |first=Carly |date=April 28, 2007 |website=Carlysimon.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704124855/http://www.carlysimon.com/askcarly/archives/archive-042007.htm |archive-date=July 4, 2008 }}</ref> Simon later called "We're So Close" "the saddest song I've ever written. It was about how close you can pretend to be when you know it's all coming undone. How you can use excuses to make it all look okay."<ref name=carlysimontimeline70s/> In their review of the album, ''Rolling Stone'' also singled out "We're So Close", calling the track "the record's gem."<ref>{{cite web |last=Cohen |first=Debra Rae |title=Spy review |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/spy-195554/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=October 4, 1979 |access-date=May 16, 2022 |archive-date=May 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160506214642/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/boys-in-the-trees-19780615 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2009, Simon released ''[[Never Been Gone]]'', an album which includes a newly recorded version of "Never Been Gone", along with some of her other greatest hits.<ref>{{cite web |website=Carlysimon.com |title=Never Been Gone |url=http://www.carlysimon.com/never-been-gone/ |access-date=February 17, 2016 |archive-date=June 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630004837/http://www.carlysimon.com/never-been-gone/ |url-status=live}}</ref>