[6] She shows the romanticism by disregarding her lover's problems but realistic in recognizing "her fading value in the sex-and-love marketplace.

"[6] To Weller, the latter is displayed in the lines:[6] Simon acknowledged that Taylor helped "with a lot of the changes" after she had written the original lyrics and music.

[8] Simon took the line "loving you is the right thing to do", which gave the song its title, from the movie The Last Picture Show.

[7] AllMusic critic Joe Viglione and Billboard both praised the song's production by producer Richard Perry.

[5] Simon accompanies herself on piano, and other instrumentation includes bass guitar, drums, congas, horns, and strings.

"[6] Carly Simon biographer Stephen Davis remarks on the song’s "sweet and lulling acoustics.

"[7] Viglione calls it a "great pop record" and "two minutes and fifty-seven seconds of sublime Adult Contemporary radio music", adding "There's enough tension and drama, especially in the middle eight, to lift this title above most of the introspection on the album, reaching out to all the hopeless romantics who just couldn't help but relate to it.

"[5] Viglione also suggests that Simon reused the formula of "The Right Thing to Do" a year later for her bigger hit "Haven't Got Time for the Pain.

[18] Megan Mullally sang a duet version of "The Right Thing to Do" with Simon on the TV soundtrack Will & Grace: Let the Music Out!