That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be

About That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be

"That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" is a 1971 song performed by Carly Simon, and the lead single from her self titled debut album Carly Simon (1971). Her friend and frequent collaborator Jacob Brackman wrote the lyrics and Simon wrote the music. The song reached peak positions of No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. It is an art song with a semiclassical melody in the style of Gabriel Fauré, and Elektra staffers were worried the single was too emotionally complex to be released as Simon's first single. With subject matter that includes "the parents' bad marriage; the friends' unhappy lives; the boyfriend's enthusiasm for marriage but controlling nature; the woman's initial resistance and ultimate capitulation."Simon was quoted as saying, "When I first wrote it I thought it was an unusual thing for people to break up, and now all my friends are divorced."  more »

Year:

1971

4:15

146 Views

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#3

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My father sits at night with no lights on
His cigarette glows in the dark
The living room is still
I walk by, no remark
I tiptoe past the master bedroom where
My mother reads her magazines
I hear her call sweet dreams
But I forgot how to dream

But you say it's time we moved in together
And raised a family of our own, you and me
Well, that's the way I've always heard it should be
You want to marry me, we'll marry

My friends from college they're all married now
They have their houses and their lawns
They have their silent noons
Tearful nights, angry dawns
Their children hate them for the things they're not
They hate themselves for what they are
And yet they drink, they laugh
Close the wound, hide the scar

But you say it's time we moved in together
And raised a family of our own, you and me
Well, that's the way I've always heard it should be
You want to marry me, we'll marry

You say we can keep our love alive
Babe all I know is what I see
The couples cling and claw
And drown in love's debris
You say we'll soar like two birds through the clouds
But soon you'll cage me on your shelf
I'll never learn to be just me first
By myself

Well okay, it's time we moved in together
And raised a family of our own, you and me
Well, that's the way I've always heard it should be
You want to marry me, we'll marry
We'll marry

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Carly Simon

Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 hits include "You're So Vain", "Nobody Does It Better", and "Coming Around Again". Her 1988 song "Let the River Run" was the first to win a Grammy Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for a song written and performed by a single artist. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994. more »

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