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Carly Simon Opens Up About Parkinson's Diagnosis and Symptoms
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. Singer-songwriter Carly Simon has revealed that she has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease after years of struggling with worsening mobility, opening up about the condition and its impact on her daily life in a statement released Monday.
The 83-year-old musician, best known for hits including "You're So Vain" and "Nobody Does It Better," said she had initially believed her physical difficulties were related to arthritis and recovery from multiple joint replacement surgeries. Simon underwent replacements in one hip and both knees, but she said her mobility continued to deteriorate even after those procedures.
“At times, I could not walk without considerable help,” Simon said, explaining that her family eventually realized there was a more serious underlying cause. After what she described as an extensive evaluation at the Mayo Clinic , she was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
In her statement, Simon said she had taken time to process the diagnosis before discussing it publicly.
“It has taken me some time to understand the diagnosis, to adjust to it, and to decide how much I wanted to say about it publicly,” she said. “Parkinson's is different for everyone, and it can be unpredictable.”
Simon detailed several symptoms she has experienced while living with the progressive neurological disorder. Among the most significant has been overwhelming fatigue.
“Some days I'm so tired I can't get the day moving at all,” she said. “On others, it gives me a little more room to move, think, work, and feel like myself."
She also said she has begun treatment, including medication aimed at easing stiffness and other symptoms associated with the disease. Even with treatment, however, she described Parkinson's as unpredictable.
“There is no tidy or predictable schedule to the illness,” Simon said. “It does not consult my calendar before deciding what kind of day I am going to have.”
According to the Parkinson's Foundation, approximately 1 million Americans are living with Parkinson's disease, a neurological disorder that affects movement and is caused by the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells. Symptoms can include tremors, slow movement, muscle stiffness, balance issues and speech difficulties. There is currently no cure, though medications and therapy can help manage symptoms.
Simon also revealed that she was recently treated for basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer , on her face. While the cancer was successfully removed through surgery, she said the procedure altered her appearance and contributed to her decision to step out of the public spotlight.
Simon emerged as one of the defining singer-songwriters of the 1970s, building a career that spanned more than five decades and produced some of the era's most recognizable hits. After beginning her music career alongside her sister Lucy Simon in the folk duo The Simon Sisters during the 1960s, she launched a successful solo career with her 1971 self-titled debut album. She went on to score a string of chart successes, including “Anticipation,” “You're So Vain,” “Mockingbird,” “Nobody Does It Better” and “Coming Around Again.”
Simon became known for her confessional songwriting style and distinctive voice, earning multiple Grammy Awards and an Academy Award, Golden Globe and Grammy for “Let the River Run,” the theme song from the 1988 film Working Girl . In 2022, she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, cementing her legacy as one of the most influential singer-songwriters of her generation.
Despite the health challenges, Simon said music has remained a source of comfort and purpose. She is set to release Comes in Waves on August 14, her first album of original songs since 2008. “It reminded me that illness can change your life without becoming the whole of your life,” she said.
She was married to fellow singer-songwriter James Taylor from 1972 until their divorce in 1983, making them one of music's most prominent couples of the 1970s. The pair had two children together, Sally Taylor and Ben Taylor, both of whom followed their parents into music careers.
Following her divorce from Taylor, Simon married writer, poet and businessman James Hart in 1987. The marriage lasted nearly two decades before the couple divorced in 2007. Beyond her immediate family, Simon comes from a notable artistic lineage. Her father, Richard Simon, co-founded publishing giant Simon & Schuster, while her sisters Lucy Simon and Joanna Simon both found success in the arts, helping establish the creative environment that shaped her own celebrated career.
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