Carly Simon revealed on Monday that she has been living with Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent surgery for skin cancer — breaking a prolonged public silence that had left fans searching for answers.
The 83-year-old singer, whose catalog includes the 1972 anthem “You’re So Vain,” “Anticipation,” “Nobody Does It Better,” “Coming Around Again,” and the James Taylor duet “Mockingbird,” issued a personal statement on July 27 disclosing both diagnoses. Simon is a Grammy, Academy Award, and Golden Globe winner, and the news marks her most candid public accounting of her health in recent memory.
A Difficult Road to Diagnosis
Simon described a gradual physical decline that preceded the Parkinson’s diagnosis. After three replacement surgeries on her knees and hip, her mobility continued to worsen until there were periods, she said, when she could not walk without considerable help. A comprehensive evaluation at the Mayo Clinic ultimately confirmed the diagnosis. “Parkinson’s is different for everyone, and it can be unpredictable,” Simon wrote. “Some days I’m so tired I can’t get the day moving at all. On others, it gives me a little more room to move, think, work, and feel like myself.”
Around the same time, she was also diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer, according to PEOPLE. The surgery to remove it affected her appearance, she said, deepening a long-standing self-consciousness about being seen publicly — a tension she acknowledged with characteristic wit, noting the irony of having written “You’re So Vain.”
Still Working, Still Present
Despite both diagnoses, Simon was clear that she had not stepped away from her creative life. She has recorded a new album titled Comes in Waves, describing the work as an anchor during an uncertain period. “Working on the music gave shape to days that did not always have much shape,” she wrote. “It reminded me that illness can change your life without becoming the whole of your life.”
Simon continues to live on Martha’s Vineyard, where she is surrounded by family, including her two children with first husband James Taylor — daughter Sally, 52, and son Ben, 49. The existence of Comes in Waves suggests that, despite everything, new music from one of American pop’s most enduring voices may still be on the horizon.
