Some of the biggest songs in rock history usually had to do with love in some form or another. Although plenty of acts may have liked to get more obscure, affairs of the heart are always perfect fodder for something destined to become a hit. As a young Taylor Swift started cutting her teeth writing songs, she got her inspiration from one of the few females in the rock world.
After breaking into the world of country music in the late 2000s, Swift was known as one of the few female figures in the genre who primarily wrote her music. Without the help of any professional songwriters breathing down her neck, Swift learned her craft by studying some of the biggest names of ’70s AM radio rock.
Among one of her biggest inspirations at the time was Carole King, whom she cited as one of the greatest songwriters she has ever heard. While King may have had an impressive streak of hits in her prime like ‘You’ve Got a Friend’ and ‘It’s Too Late’, it wasn’t until Carly Simon’s ‘You’re So Vain’ that everything clicked for Swift.
In just a few minutes, the listener gets a clear picture of what Simon is getting at when taking one of her exes to task. Although the identity of the song’s inspiration has always been up in the air, it’s clear that this man was in some major position of power and is doing everything he can to paint Simon as the bad guy.
When discussing the song with American Songwriter, Swift talked about the impact that the tune had on her musical upbringing, explaining, “After hearing that, it was like a key had just unlocked this forbidden area of storytelling for me. You can say exactly what you feel, even if it’s bitter and brazen!”
As Swift started to write her own material, most of her songs followed a similar style, with lyrics that dealt with the specifics of relationships. Despite many fans dragging her through the mud for talking about nothing but romance, it’s easy to see a clear picture of how these lovers slowly drift to enemies and later strangers on songs like ‘All Too Well’ and ‘Teardrops on My Guitar’.
The clearest evidence of Swift’s retro influences came a few years later. After combing through her back pages, the double release of Folklore and Evermore saw Swift incorporating that homespun approach to songwriting, utilising rustic styles of instrumentation just like Simon.
Rather than focus on the radio hits, though, Swift’s approach was far more delicate, writing songs that feel like stand-alone stories. Instead of making songs dealing with adolescent tension, Swift was free to paint character portraits in her music, even putting her narrators into sinister positions in songs like ‘No Body, No Crime’.
Even as she continues to push the boundaries of her songwriting on Midnights, the influence of Simon’s work is still as present as ever, as Swift tries to peel back the layers of her public image in ‘Anti-Hero’ just like Simon did in ‘Vain’. While some might consider Swift one of the best songwriters of her generation, it’s far more nuanced than that. This woman is trying to peel back layers of her heart for the world to see.
