Carly Simon's Daughter Sally Taylor Debuts Silly Mother's Day Song as She Pens Sweet Tribute (Exclusive)

In the Carly Simon family, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

In light of Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 12, Sally Taylor, daughter of former music power couple Simon and James Taylor, dedicated a song to her mother called “The Star That You Are.”

Created by Songfinch’s Evan Lewis, Sally’s sweet Mother’s Day song also includes a slideshow of throwback photos together.

“On the darkest day/We can still see the sunrise/Look deep into your heart/You’ll find the star that you are,” Lewis sings on the song.

Along with the song, Sally, 50 — who is a songwriter — penned a blog post for Simon, 80, titled “The Gift,” debuting exclusively with PEOPLE. It will also be available on her newsletter Tales from the Road.

Read the full post below — and prepare to laugh, cry, and feel the urge to text your mom.

Carly Simon and daughter Sally Taylor.

Courtesy of Sally Taylor

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What to give someone who has everything? I googled furrowed brows and caught my breath. Various sponsored pages appeared on the screen offering flower arrangements, gourmet culinary delights and silk pillows, but Google didn’t understand! I needed something better than all that. I needed something huge, timeless, weightless, touching, surprising, customized and easy to pack. You see, my mother is not just anyone – she is a songwriter. The lauded, celebrated, ‘You’re so vain, you probably think this song is about you’ kind of songwriter. She’s Carly Simon. And I am her daughter, Sally Taylor—a musician in her own right, treading the paths she blazed.

Growing up, a descendant of such an iconic figure could easily be swallowed up in a shadow so vast that it might seem impossible to find one’s own light. But here’s the thing – Mom always had an uncanny way of making room for my cacophonies in the middle of her symphonies. It was the oak that made the sky for the sapling, the ocean that welcomed the stream. To me she is more than a mother; she is my first and last audience. Imagine, therefore, how you try to summarize all your gratitude and all these feelings in one gift.

I wasn’t just trying to say “thank you” in a language that transcends words. In recent years, life, in its unpredictable way, began to offer my mother a challenging result. The once unstoppable force behind the piano had to face his own vulnerability — first with hip surgery, then two knee surgeries. scary enough, but in 2023 she faced a series of other medical and emotional mishaps that would have drowned the hardiest swimmer. Every recovery was an unwelcome interruption. Sometimes I feared her bed would swallow her whole as she lost bone density and muscle mass between the sheets.

Carly Simon and daughter Sally Taylor.

Courtesy of Sally Taylor

But never make the mistake of betting against Carly Simon, folks. My mom is one of the most resilient, funny and spiritual people on the planet. How else could she have battled a debilitating stutter, paralyzing stage fright, and countless trials as a musician in the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s to become known as one of the greatest singer/songwriters on the planet of all time? My mission, after witnessing her many challenges, was to help strengthen her greatest value of all: hope. It sharpened the focus on the need for a gift that was not only profound, but also healing, a reminder of the inner strength and resilience that was still within her, regardless of life’s cruel twists. Something that would get her out of bed and lift her spirits by making her laugh.

I needed a gift that would encompass a lifetime of memories and laughter, while also being light enough to fit in a handbag. When Google finally realized the importance of what I was looking for, it gave me exactly what I needed: Songfinch. I knew right away that it held the key to something special. It offered a platform for a song tailored to my mom, written by a professional songwriter (other than me) in a genre of my choice and peppered with personal anecdotes. I decided, after hours of listening to their song samples and imagining my mother’s smile, that this was the canvas I needed.

The process was simple; I provided some details from my mother’s life, the key messages I wanted to convey, and a few inside jokes (like how much she loves tapioca pudding and would only eat it if left to her own devices) and Songfinch took it from there. The result was exactly what I was looking for, a song that not only said “thank you”, but acknowledged the hard times and acted as a reminder of what a badass she is.

Carly Simon and Sally Taylor.

Courtesy of Sally Taylor

The song arrived in my inbox, and with it came a waterfall of laughter and joy. It wasn’t just a gift; it was a handcrafted echo of inside jokes, focused prayers, wishes and shared memories. I couldn’t wait to play it on her on my next visit.

One early morning, under the four-poster bed overlooking Central Park, I asked my mom if I could play her a song.

“Of course,” she said, always ready to hear something new. I hand wrote the lyrics on a sheet of paper which I pushed into her hands and pressed “play”. I watched her face light up from the first verse when she realized the song was about her. It brought tears, laughter and a shared moment of reflection that reiterated the history and hope of our unique relationship. When it was over, she kissed me and said:

“Let go again?”

This time we sang together. Through Songfinch, I found a way to send my prayers, express my condolences, and sing thanks in someone else’s voice to someone else’s beat. I found a way to make my mother laugh, and that, my friends, is The Gift.

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Source: HIS Education