Half a Chance

1976 single by Carly Simon

"Half a Chance"

Single by Carly Simon

from the album Another Passenger

B-side

"Libby"

Released

1976

Recorded

1976

Genre

Pop, rock

Length

2:55 (album version)

Label

Elektra

Songwriter(s)

Carly Simon, Jacob Brackman

Producer(s)

Ted Templeman

Carly Simon singles chronology

"It Keeps You Runnin'"
(1976)

"Half a Chance"
(1976)

"Nobody Does It Better"
(1977)

"Half a Chance" is a song written by Carly Simon and Jacob Brackman, performed by Simon, and produced by Ted Templeman. The song served as the second single from Simon's sixth studio album, Another Passenger (1976). Simon made her only appearance on Saturday Night Live on May 8, 1976, where she performed the song, along with "You're So Vain".^[1] It was a pre-taped performance—a rare occurrence on that show—because Simon suffered terrible bouts of stage fright.^[2]

Reception

"Half a Chance" reached No. 39 on the Billboard Easy Listening chart.^[3] Cashbox said of the single that "the chorus is authoritative, filled with confidence, and, as usual, her words are striking."^[4] Ken Tucker, writing in Rolling Stone, referred to it as "entertaining, loping, slick."^[5]

Track listing

7" single^[6]

"Half a Chance" – 2:49
"Libby" – 4:38

Charts

Chart (1976)	Peak Position
US Billboard Easy Listening	39

References

^ Saturday Night Live: The First Twenty Years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 1994. pp. 124–127. ISBN 0-395-70895-8.
^ McDuffee, Allen. "Carly Simon Did Something On Saturday Night Live That Will Likely Never Be Done Again". MSN. Archived from the original on September 3, 2023. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
^ "Carly Simon Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2014.
^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cashbox. September 4, 1976. p. 20. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
^ Tucker, Ken (August 12, 1976). "Another Passenger review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2014.
^ "Half a Chance 7" single". Discogs. Retrieved September 1, 2023.