Carpenters

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Carpenters
Studio album by The Carpenters
Released	May 14, 1971
Recorded	1970–1971
Genre	Pop
Length	31:35
Label	A&M Records
Producer	Jack Daugherty Productions
Professional reviews
Rolling Stone (Not Rated) link
The Carpenters chronology
"Close to You" (1970) "Carpenters" (1971) "A Song for You" (1972)

Carpenters is the third studio album by The Carpenters. Released on May 14, 1971, the album was successful, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200 chart and #12 in the United Kingdom. With the hit songs "For All We Know", "Rainy Days and Mondays" and "Superstar", Carpenters solidified Karen Carpenter as one of her generation's most endearing pop vocalists. Amongst many fans, the album has simply been referred to as The Tan Album, because the album itself is like a tan envelope^[1][2], and is presumably a play on The Beatles' so-called White Album. In Cash Box's Top 100 Albums of 1971, Carpenters peaked at #8.^[3]

This is not the first album featuring tracks with Richard Carpenter singing lead vocal, with Karen in the background, as opposed to the other tracks. "Druscilla Penny" and "Saturday" are both led by Richard Carpenter, though neither were released as singles nor charted as hits.

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Side One

1. "Rainy Days and Mondays" (Roger Nichols/Paul Williams) - 3:40
2. "Saturday" (John Bettis/Richard Carpenter) - 1:20
3. "Let Me Be the One" (R. Nichols/P. Williams) - 2:25
4. "(A Place To) Hideaway" (Randy Sparks) - 3:40
5. "For All We Know" (Fred Karlin/Arthur James/Robb Wilson) - 2:34

[edit] Side Two

1. "Superstar" (Bonnie Bramlett/Leon Russell) - 3:49
2. "Druscilla Penny" (J. Bettis/R. Carpenter) - 2:18
3. "One Love" (J. Bettis/R. Carpenter) - 3:23
4. "Bacharach/David Medley": - 5:25
   1. "Knowing When to Leave"
   2. "Make It Easy on Yourself"
   3. "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me"
   4. "I'll Never Fall in Love Again"
   5. "Walk on By"
   6. "Do You Know the Way to San José"
5. "Sometimes" (Henry and Felice Mancini) - 2:52

[edit] Track information

[edit] Rainy Days and Mondays

Main article: Rainy Days and Mondays

"Rainy Days and Mondays" was composed by Roger Nichols and Paul Williams. It was released as a single and charted well in the United States at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Rainy Days and Mondays" was The Carpenters' second Nichols/Williams hit, second to "We've Only Just Begun" of the Close to You album the previous year.

[edit] Saturday

"Saturday" is a short, upbeat song with a runtime of 1:18. It was used as the B-side of "Rainy Days and Mondays". The song talks about how joyful Saturday is, and how joyful it is to finish Friday. In 1973 on the TV program Robert Young with the Young, Richard and Karen perform "Saturday" and talk about its meaning.

[edit] Let Me Be the One

"Let Me Be the One" has a runtime of 2:25. There was a remix in 1991, with an extended beginning, end, and a different piano line. The 1991 remix of "Let Me Be the One" can only be found on the From the Top box set. It starts with Karen counting off, and Richard's piano line is different from the original mix. The fadeout is also removed.

[edit] (A Place To) Hideaway

"(A Place To) Hideaway" is a song originally composed by Randy Sparks, the ex-manager of a nightclub in Westwood, Los Angeles, California. According to Richard Carpenter, Randy Sparks was the opening act for Richard Carpenter at his club in Westwood in late 1967-early 1968. ^[4] Sparks had played "(A Place To) Hideaway" for the duo. Three years later, Richard remembered the tune, and felt it would be suited for the album. The Carpenters performed it on their television series, Make Your Own Kind of Music on August 10, 1971 on a set where Karen wears a white and red ensemble with a dark blue background with a big letter "K".^[5]

[edit] For All We Know

Main article: For All We Know (1970 song)

"For All We Know" had been written for the film Lovers and Other Strangers. It was originally for the wedding scene of Lovers and Other Strangers, and was originally sang by Larry Meredith, a relatively undiscovered singer. ^[6] The Carpenters released their version as a single in January 1971. Later that year, the Carpenters performed it on The Andy Williams Show, with Karen in a lacey outfit with a blue background. Although the song only peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, it still remains a favorite amongst many Carpenters fans. The video from The Andy Williams Show is not largely visible, with the exception of snippets of their documentary, Close to You: Remembering the Carpenters.

[edit] Superstar

Main article: Superstar (Delaney and Bonnie song)

"Superstar" was written by Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell. The Carpenters' version, released as a single in mid-1971, became an international hit for them. In the liner notes for "Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition", Richard notes that he was home one night when he saw Bette Midler singing the song on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, and felt that the lyrics would be perfect for Karen's voice. After making a few adjustments like changing "I can hardly wait to sleep with you again" to "I can hardly wait to be with you again", Karen and Richard recorded the song, with Karen holding and reading the lyrics from a napkin. Karen's poignant, yet haunting vocals makes this song a classic Carpenters tune. Also, the vocals heard on this song was the first time that Karen sang the song. Richard felt that her performance was perfect as it was and that there was no need for a second take.

[edit] One Love

"One Love" was written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis in the late 1960s, when they had jobs at Disneyland^[7]. It was originally called "Candy". On the television series, "Make Your Own Kind of Music", both Karen and Richard performed the song. Richard replaced the strings solo with a live piano solo for that performance.

Richard Carpenter remixed the song by adding a heavier bassline and refining the vocals, and was released on 2003's Carpenters Perform Carpenter. ^[8] The song was also released as the B-side of "I Won't Last a Day Without You" in 1974.

[edit] References