Simon Sings

Carly Simon Sunday, Aug. 20, at The Gorge

Carly Simon, a sufferer of stage fright?

Naah.

She sure didn’t convey it Sunday night at The Gorge, her first live concert in the Northwest.

In fact, she performed as if she’s been entertaining audiences for years.

In a black dress, Simon danced and grooved around the stage. She displayed natural charisma. She sang with fervor and conviction. She opened herself to her legions of fans and charmed them, too.

It was obvious her recent return to the stage has inspired her.

Vocally, Simon, 49, sang dead-on all night long.

Where many middle-aged singers’ voices lose their keenness, Simon’s voice remains confident, strong and emotive. What’s more, she continually reached the high notes ever so gracefully.

With a solid backing band behind her, which sometimes included as many as 10 musicians, Simon touched on several periods of her illustrious career.

There were chestnuts like “You’re So Vain,” “Nobody Does It Better,” “A Legend In Your Own Time,” and “Anticipation.” And there were recent hits such as “Jesse.”

Present nuggets “Letters Never Sent” and “Touched By The Sun” from her new album “Letters Never Sent” were exceptional.

Simon rendered an especially magnificent performance of “Touched By The Sun,” an emotionally driven song she said helped her overcome her fear.

Daryl Hall and John Oates not only opened the show, they frequently sang alongside Simon.

Mostly, Hall and Oates sang their big hits like “You’re Out Of Touch,” “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do),” “She’s Gone” and “Say It Isn’t So.”

Their solid harmonies often recalled those of the Temptations.

Toward the end of their performance, a number of people in the crowd continually yelled for “Maneater” as if it were Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird.”

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: HIGHLIGHT Simon’s emotionally driven rendition of “Touched By The Sun.”