Lucy Elizabeth Simon (May 5, 1940 – October 20, 2022) was an American singer and composer for the theatre and of popular songs. She recorded and performed as a singer and songwriter, and was known for the musicals ''

The Secret Garden ''The Secret Garden'' is a children's novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett first published in book form in 1911, after serialisation in ''The American Magazine'' (November 1910 – August 1911). Set in England, it is seen as a classic of English c ...

'' (1991) and '' Doctor Zhivago'' (2011). In 1963, Simon began performing with her sister

Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Billboard Hot 100, top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation (song), Anticipatio ...

as the Simon Sisters. The duo released three albums, beginning with '' Meet the Simon Sisters'', which featured the song " Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod"; based on the poem by

Eugene Field Eugene Field Sr. (September 2, 1850 – November 4, 1895) was an American writer, best known for his children's poetry and humorous essays. He was known as the "poet of childhood". Early life and education Field was born in St. Louis, Missouri ...

, the song became a minor hit and reached No. 73 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Simon won a Grammy Award in 1981 with her husband, David Levine, in the Best Recording for Children category for '' In Harmony'', and again in 1983 in the same category for '' In Harmony 2''. Simon received

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

and

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

nominations for composing the music for the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

musical ''The Secret Garden''.

Early life and education

Simon was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

on May 5, 1940. Her father, Richard L. Simon, was the co-founder of the book publisher Simon & Schuster, Inc.; her mother, Andrea (Heinemann) Simon, was a former switchboard operator, civil rights activist, and singer. She was the older sister of musician

. Her father was from a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family, while her maternal grandfather Friedrich was of German descent. Lucy's maternal grandmother, known as "Chibie", was a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

from

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, and was of

pardo In the former Portuguese and Spanish colonies in the Americas, ''pardos'' (feminine ''pardas'') are triracial descendants of Europeans, Indigenous Americans and Africans. History In some places they were defined as neither exclusively ...

heritage, a freed-slave descendant (the show ''

Finding Your Roots ''Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.'' is an American documentary television series hosted by Henry Louis Gates Jr. that premiered on March 25, 2012, on PBS. In each episode, celebrities are presented with a "book of life" that is com ...

'' tested Carly Simon's

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

as "10 percent black"), and was sent to England and raised by nuns until the age of sixteen. In addition to her younger sister Carly, she had an older sister, opera singer

Joanna Joanna is a feminine given name deriving from from . Variants in English include Joan, Joann, Joanne, and Johanna. Other forms of the name in English are Jan, Jane, Janet, Janice, Jean, and Jeanne. The earliest recorded occurrence of th ...

, and a younger brother, photographer Peter. Simon grew up in Fieldston, a section of Riverdale in

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

.Jackson, Nancy Beth
"If You're Thinking of Living In/Fieldston; A Leafy Enclave in the Hills of the Bronx"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', February 17, 2002. Accessed May 3, 2008. "After World War II, Richard Simon, founder of Simon & Schuster, bought a Georgian red-brick Baum house where he brought up his three musical daughters: Joanna, Lucy and Carly." She attended the Fieldston School, before studying at

Bennington College Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont, United States. Founded as a women’s college in 1932,

, graduating in 1962.

Career

Simon began her professional career singing folk tunes with sister

as the Simon Sisters and later folk-rock. Simon's setting of "

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod" is a poem for children written by American writer and poet Eugene Field and published on March 9, 1889. The original title was "Dutch Lullaby". The poem is a fantasy bed-time story about three children sailing and fishi ...

" has been recorded by many diverse artists, including

the Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five decades, with their greate ...

, Mitzie Collins, and the Big Three (

Cass Elliot Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Cass Elliot, was an American singer. She was also known as "Mama Cass", a name she reportedly disliked. Elliot was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the P ...

Tim Rose Timothy Alan Patrick Rose (September 23, 1940 – September 24, 2002) (unofficial website by long-term correspondent of Rose's) was an American singer and songwriter who spent much of his life in London, England, and had more success in E ...

, and James Hendricks).

Biography and listing A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, accessed February 2, 2010 In the mid-1970s, after a number of years away from recording, Lucy released two albums on the

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

label of mostly original compositions, along with a few collaborations and covers. Her self-titled debut album was more folk-rock in orientation while her second album, ''Stolen Time'', had a contemporary pop sound. Carly Simon and

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. Taylor achieved his breakthrough in 1970 with the single "Fi ...

provided backing vocals on half of the songs from ''Stolen Time''. Simon won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in 1981 with her husband, David Levine, in the Best Recording for Children category for '' In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record'', and again in 1983 in the same category for '' In Harmony 2''. Simon made her

debut as the composer of ''

'', for which she was nominated for a 1991

Tony Award for Best Original Score The Tony Award for Best Original Score is the Tony Award given to the composers and lyricists of the best original score written for a musical or play in that year. The score consists of music and/or lyrics. To be eligible, a score must be written ...

and a 1991 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music. She also wrote songs for the Off-Broadway show '' A... My Name Is Alice''. She composed the music for a musical version of the Russian novel '' Doctor Zhivago,'' with lyricists

Michael Korie Michael Korie (born April 1, 1955) is an American Libretto, librettist and lyricist whose writing for musical theater and opera includes the musicals ''Grey Gardens (musical), Grey Gardens'' and ''Far from Heaven (musical), Far From Heaven'', and ...

and Amy Powers and book writer

Michael Weller Michael Weller (born September 26, 1942) is a Brooklyn-based playwright and screen writer. His plays include '' Moonchildren'', ''Loose Ends'', ''Spoils of War'' and ''Fifty Words''. His screenplays include ''Ragtime'', for which he was nomina ...

. The musical had its world premiere at the

La Jolla Playhouse La Jolla Playhouse is a nonprofit professional theater on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. History La Jolla Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, and Mel Ferrer. In 1983, it was revived under the ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, California, in May 2006. A new version of ''Doctor Zhivago'' ran in

Sydney, Australia Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, and

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in 2011 under the title ''Doctor Zhivago – A New Musical'', starring

Anthony Warlow Anthony Warlow (born 18 November 1961) is an Australian musical theatre performer, noted for his character acting and considerable vocal range. He is a classically trained lyric baritone and made his debut with the Australian Opera in 1980. ...

in the title role and

Lucy Maunder Lucy Maunder is an Australian cabaret and theatre performer. She originated the role of Lara in the Australian premiere of ''Doctor Zhivago (musical), Doctor Zhivago'' in 2011 opposite Anthony Warlow, and toured with her own cabaret ''Songs in t ...

as Lara, the sensitive doctor's secret muse. The musical was produced by John Frost with

Des McAnuff Desmond Steven McAnuff (born June 19, 1952) is the American-Canadian former artistic director of Canada's Stratford Festival and director of such Broadway musical theatre productions as '' Big River'', '' The Who's Tommy'' and ''Jersey Boys''. ...

directing. Anthony Warlow starred in the Australian production of ''The Secret Garden'' and at that time Simon said of him, "There is my Zhivago". The musical premiered on Broadway on March 27, 2015 (previews), with an official opening on April 21, 2015, at the

Broadway Theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, American and British English spelling differences), many of the List of ...

, but was not successful, closing after 26 previews and 23 regular performances. She also contributed to the Off-Broadway musical ''Mama and Her Boys''.

Personal life

Lucy Simon married David Y. Levine in 1967. They remained married for 55 years until her death. Together, they had two children: Julie and James. She died on October 20, 2022, aged 82, at her home in

Piermont, New York Piermont is a village incorporated in 1847 in Rockland County, New York, United States. Piermont is in the town of Orangetown, located north of the hamlet of Palisades, east of Sparkill, and south of Grand View-on-Hudson, on the west bank of ...

. She had suffered from metastatic

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

prior to her death, which came just one day after her sister Joanna died of thyroid cancer.

Awards and nominations

Drama Desk Awards

The

Drama Desk Awards The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. The awards are considered a significant American theater distinction.

Grammy Awards

The

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

are awarded annually by

The Recording Academy National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...

of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry. Often considered the highest music honour, the awards were established in 1958.

Tony Awards

The

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cere ...

recognize the excellence in live

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, American and British English spelling differences), many of the List of ...

. The awards are presented by the

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

and

The Broadway League The Broadway League, formerly the League of American Theatres and Producers and League of New York Theatres and Producers, is the national trade association for the Broadway theatre industry based in New York City. Its members include theatre ow ...

Discography

Studio albums

The Simon Sisters * 1964: '' Meet the Simon Sisters'' * 1966: '' Cuddlebug'' * 1969: ''

The Simon Sisters Sing the Lobster Quadrille and Other Songs for Children ''The Simon Sisters Sing The Lobster Quadrille and Other Songs for Children'' is the third and final studio album by the Simon Sisters, released by Columbia Records, in 1969. The album features musical settings of classic children's poetry. ...

'' * 1973: '' Lucy & Carly – The Simon Sisters Sing for Children'' * 2006: '' Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod: The Kapp Recordings'' * 2008: '' Carly & Lucy Simon Sing Songs for Children'' Solo * 1975: ''Lucy Simon'' * 1977: ''Stolen Time''

Singles

The Simon Sisters * 1964: " Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod" Solo * 1975: "Sally Go 'Round the Sun" * 1977: "If You Ever Believed"

Other appearances

* 1980: "I Have a Song" by Lucy Simon – '' In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record'' * 1981: "Maryanne" by Lucy & Carly Simon – ''

In Harmony 2 ''In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record'' and ''In Harmony 2'' are two compilation albums of children's music performed by various artists, released in 1980 and 1981, respectively. Of the two albums, only the first album charted, reaching No. 156 ...

'' * 1981: ''The Rodgers and Hart Album'' (Simon appears on two cuts of this

William Bolcom William Elden Bolcom (born May 26, 1938) is an American composer and pianist. He has received the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Arts, a Grammy Award, the Detroit Music Award and was named 2007 Composer of the Year by Musical America. He ...

and

Joan Morris Joan Morris (born February 10, 1943) is an American mezzo-sopranoProfile
, bolcomandmorris ...

album)

References

External links

* *
Pop Music and the New Musical
– ''Working in the Theatre Seminar'' video at

.org, September 2005
Biography at filmreference.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Lucy Carly Simon 1940 births 2022 deaths Deaths from breast cancer in New York (state) American musical theatre composers Broadway composers and lyricists Bennington College alumni Musicians from the Bronx People from Riverdale, Bronx Grammy Award winners Jewish American songwriters American people of German-Jewish descent American people of Swiss-German descent American musicians of Cuban descent Simon family (publishing)