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Coming Around Again (Carly Simon song)

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Not to be confused with Coming Around Again (Simon Webbe song).
"Coming Around Again"
Single by Carly Simon
from the album Coming Around Again and Heartburn soundtrack
B-side"Itsy Bitsy Spider"
ReleasedOctober 12, 1986
GenreSoft rock
Length3:41
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)Carly Simon
Producer(s)Russ Kunkel, Bill Payne and George Massenburg with Paul Samwell-Smith
Carly Simon singles chronology
"My New Boyfriend"
(1985) 		"Coming Around Again"
(1986) 		"Give Me All Night"
(1987)

"Coming Around Again" is a song by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, written for the film Heartburn (1986) and later from the album of the same name, Coming Around Again (1987). Released as a single in 1986, it became one of Simon's biggest hits, peaking at No. 18 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.[1] It was also a top-10 hit in Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

The success of the song began a career resurgence for Simon. It is featured on multiple compilations of her work, including the three-disc box set Clouds in My Coffee (1995), the UK import The Very Best of Carly Simon: Nobody Does It Better (1998), the two-disc retrospective Anthology (2002), the single-disc Reflections: Carly Simon's Greatest Hits (2004), and Sony Music's Playlist: The Very Best of Carly Simon (2014).

"Itsy Bitsy Spider"

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A similar stripped-down arrangement of "Coming Around Again" (key of C) was used in Simon's recording of the classic children's song "Itsy Bitsy Spider" (key of G), which was the B-side of the single and also included on the Coming Around Again album.[2]

When the song is sung as part of a medley, as it is on the 1987 album Greatest Hits Live which is the soundtrack to her HBO special Live from Martha's Vineyard, there is an extended turnaround acting not only as a bridge between the two songs, but also as a bridge between the two keys.

Reception

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"Coming Around Again" became a worldwide hit; in the US, it peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Simon's 12th top-40 hit on the chart,[3] and No. 5 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, becoming her 19th top-40 hit on this chart.[4] The song was a success in Brazil, as it was included in the soundtrack of the telenovela O Outro. It was released as a single in the United Kingdom in January 1987, and reached a peak position of No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart in late February.[5] Additionally, the song reached No. 15 in South Africa,[6] No. 29 in Australia[7] and No. 38 in Canada.[8] It was most successful in Sweden, Ireland and Austria, reaching No. 3,[9] No. 5[10] and No. 6,[11] respectively.

Billboard said the song's "moody sway is comparable to the Thompsons' 'Hold Me Now.'"[12]

Music video

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A music video for this song was filmed and went into heavy rotation in 1987. The video featured a home movie featuring Carly Simon as a baby and as a young child with her parents.[13]

Track listings and formats

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7-inch single (worldwide)

  1. "Coming Around Again" – 3:31
  2. "Itsy Bitsy Spider" – 3:34

12-inch and CD single (UK, Germany)

  1. "Coming Around Again" – 3:31
  2. "Itsy Bitsy Spider" – 3:34
  3. "If It Wasn't Love" – 4:18

Cassette EP single (US)[14]

  1. "Coming Around Again/Itsy Bitsy Spider" (Live at Martha's Vineyard) – 7:04
  2. "Turn of the Tide" (1988 Democratic Convention Theme/Free to be a Family) – 4:04
  3. "Let the River Run" (Theme from Working Girl) – 3:40

Personnel

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales streaming figures based on certification alone.

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The song was featured in the 1986 movie Heartburn and a 1987 episode of the US daytime soap opera General Hospital as well as a 1988 episode of The Bold and the Beautiful. It was used on the 1996–97 ITV medical drama Staying Alive with opening and end theme tunes, and it was used on the daytime serial Santa Barbara for the Mason and Julia characters.[25]

The song was used in an episode of Netflix's Firefly Lane, which premiered in 2021.

The song was covered by Irish girl group B*Witched in 1999, as the B-side to their single "Jesse Hold On".

Northern Irish rock band Ash covered the song in 2009, and their version is included on their A-Z Vol. 1 compilation.

Popular actor and singer/songwriter Maya Hawke has a song with the same name; it was released on June 25th, 2023.

References

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  1. ^ "Carly Simon - Chart history | Billboard". Billboard.com. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  2. ^ Weller, Sheila (April 8, 2008). Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon--and the Journey of a ... Simon and Schuster. p. 474. ISBN 9781416564775.
  3. ^ a b "Carly Simon Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Carly Simon Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "SA Charts 1965 – 1989 Songs C–D". South African Rock Lists. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  7. ^ a b David Kent (1993). Australian Charts Book 1970—1992. Australian Chart Book Pty Ltd, Turramurra, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ^ a b "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0763." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "Carly Simon – Coming Around Again". Singles Top 100. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  10. ^ a b "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Coming Around Again". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Carly Simon – Coming Around Again" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  12. ^ "Reviews". Billboard. September 13, 1986. p. 81. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  13. ^ "Carly Simon - Coming Around Again (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  14. ^ "Let the River Run". ASIN B0010ZITBQ.
  15. ^ "Carly Simon – Coming Around Again" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  16. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 8843." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  17. ^ "Carly Simon – Coming Around Again" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  18. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 14, 1987" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  19. ^ "Carly Simon – Coming Around Again" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  20. ^ "European Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 4, no. 9. March 7, 1987. p. 14. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  21. ^ "European Charts of the Year 1987: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 4, no. 51/52. December 26, 1987. p. 34. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  22. ^ "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1987". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  23. ^ "Gallup Year End Charts 1987: Singles". Record Mirror. January 23, 1988. p. 36.
  24. ^ "British single certifications – Carly Simon – Coming Around Again". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  25. ^ "Santa Barbara".
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