Britten initially came up with the riff and the title, but he "realized that it would take someone who knew what they were doing to make it into a proper song", so he got Robertson to come up with the story.

[2] "Carrie" was released in the majority of territories with the B-side "Moving In", which was written and produced by Richard.

[2] The single release of "Carrie" is an edit of the album version and also actually runs slightly faster.

To be producing high-pop songs like this after 25 years in the Biz is extraordinary", adding that Richard's "delivery is immaculate and his timing superb.

[9] In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Dave Thompson described the song as "a deliberately sinister and enthrallingly atmospheric number, revolving around the search for a mysteriously missing friend ("Carrie had a date with her own kind of fate")" and that "in other hands, such lines as "you're just another message on a payphone wall" and "the young wear their freedom like cheap perfume" could sound trite.