The Carpenters: Perbedaan antara revisi

 

== The Carpenters ==

Richard and Karen received their breakthrough with the [[1970]] release of the [[Burt Bacharach]]-[[Hal David]] song "[[(They Long to Be) Close to You]]", which rose to #1 and stayed atop the charts for four weeks. The Carpenters' version of "[[We've Only Just Begun]]" (written by [[Paul Williams (songwriter)|Paul Williams]] and [[Roger Nichols (songwriter)|Roger Nichols]]) reached #2 to become the duo's second major hit in the fall of 1970, and is considered by Richard Carpenter as the group's signature song (it has been re-recorded over 100 times by other singers). Both songs featured on the album ''[[Close to You (Carpenters album)|Close To You]]'', which became a bestseller, earning Richard and Karen two Grammy Awards. The duo rounded out the year with a holiday release, "Merry Christmas Darling", which Richard co-wrote with Frank Pooler, who had been the duo's choral director at Long Beach State. The single scored high on the holiday charts in 1970 and made repeat appearances on the charts in subsequent years.

 

 

During the first half of the 1970s, the Carpenters' music was a staple of Top 40 playlists and Middle-of-the-Road, Easy Listening and Adult Contemporary radio. The duo produced a distinctive sound featuring Karen's expressive [[contralto]] on lead vocals, with both siblings contributing background vocals that were overdubbed to create densely layered harmonies. To his role as vocalist, keyboardist, and arranger, Richard added that of composer on numerous tracks. Several of his compositions with lyricist John Bettis became hit records, including "Goodbye to Love", "Yesterday Once More", and "Top of the World".

To promote their recordings, the Carpenters maintained a demanding schedule of concert tours and television appearances. Among their numerous television credits were appearances on such popular series as ''[[American Bandstand]]'', ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'', ''[[The Tonight Show]]'' starring [[Johnny Carson]], and the ''[[The Carol Burnett Show]]''. In 1971 the duo appeared in a television special on the [[BBC]] in the United Kingdom and were the featured performers in a summer replacement series, ''[[Make Your Own Kind of Music]]'', which aired on [[NBC]]-TV in the U.S. In May 1973, the Carpenters accepted an invitation to perform at the [[White House]] for President [[Richard Nixon]] and visiting [[West Germany|West German]] chancellor [[Willy Brandt]].

 

Extensive touring in 1973–74 left the duo with little time for recording new material. As a result, the Carpenters did not issue a new album in [[1974]]. Instead, the pair chose for single release the Williams-Nichols composition "I Won't Last a Day Without You". Originally recorded as an album track for 1972's ''Song for You'' LP, the single version became the fifth and final selection from that album project to chart in the Top 20, reaching #11 on the U.S. charts. Also in 1974, the Carpenters achieved a massive international hit with an up-tempo remake of Hank Williams' "Jambalaya", which, while not released as a single in the U.S., reached the top 30 in Japan and sold well in [[United Kingdom]], among other countries. In late 1974 a Christmas single followed, a jazz-influenced rendition of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town".

 

In early [[1975]], the Carpenters scaled the charts with a remake of [[the Marvelettes]]' hit "[[Please Mr. Postman]]". Released in late 1974, the single soared to #1 on the U.S. charts in January 1975, becoming the duo's third and final number one single. Later that spring, the pair scored a final top five hit with the Carpenter-Bettis song "Only Yesterday" peaking at #4. Both singles appeared on the LP ''Horizon'', which also included covers of [[The Eagles]]' "Desperado" and [[Neil Sedaka]]'s "Solitaire", which became a moderate hit for the duo that year. The LPs ''Horizon'' and ''A Kind of Hush'', released in 1975 and [[1976]], respectively, achieved [[Music recording sales certification|"gold" status]] but failed to peak as high as previous efforts. Their singles releases in 1976 likewise followed a pattern of diminishing returns. The duo's highest charting single that year was a cover of [[Herman's Hermits]]' "There's a Kind of Hush", which peaked at number 12. The follow-up single, the Carpenter-Bettis song "I Need to Be in Love" (Karen's favorite of all of the duo's singles), charted no higher than 25, while the 1930s novelty song "Goofus" failed to reach the Top 40 entirely, and was also the first Carpenters single not to reach #1 or #2 on the Adult Contemporary chart since "Ticket to Ride". The disco craze was in full swing by 1977, and adult-appeal "[[easy listening]]" artists like the Carpenters, as well as [[John Denver]], [[Helen Reddy]], and [[Olivia Newton-John]] (before her starring role in the movie musical ''[[Grease (film)|Grease]]'' brought her back to prominence) were getting somewhat less airplay.

 

Their more experimental album, ''Passage'', released in [[1977]] (and no doubt partially inspired by the science fiction craze of the late '70s, due to ''[[Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope|Star Wars]]'' and ''[[Close Encounters of the Third Kind]]''), marked an attempt to broaden their appeal by venturing into other musical genres. The LP featured an unlikely mix of [[Latin music|Latin]] rock, [[Calypso music|calypso]], and pop, and included the Top 40 hit "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song". The most notable tracks included [[cover version]]s of "[[Don't Cry For Me, Argentina]]" Karen's reading of this song is considered to be one of the best of all time (from the [[rock opera]] ''[[Evita]]'') and [[Klaatu]]'s "[[Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft]]", both complete with choral and orchestral accompaniment. Although the single release of "Calling Occupants" became a top ten hit in the UK, it stalled at number 32 on the U.S. charts, and the album failed to cross the gold threshold of 500,000 copies sold in the States. Richard has said that he felt another track from ''Passage'', "I Just Fall in Love Again", could have become a success had A&M decided to release it as a single. The song did become a hit in 1979 for [[Anne Murray]], proving Richard's feelings about the song's appeal.

 

 

== Early 1980s ==

Richard sought treatment for his addiction at a [[Topeka, Kansas]] facility in early [[1979]]. Karen decided to pursue a solo album project with renowned producer [[Phil Ramone]] in New York. The choice of more adult-oriented and disco/dance-tempo material represented an effort to retool her image. The resulting product met a tepid response from Richard and A&M executives in early [[1980]], and Karen wavered in her dedication to the project. She abandoned the solo effort to launch a new LP with her brother, now recovered from his addiction. The solo LP, ''Karen Carpenter'', remained unreleased until October [[1996]], although Karen's fans got a taste of the album in [[1989]] when one of its tracks, "If I Had You," turned up on the compilation album ''Lovelines'' and was also released as a single, making #18 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

 

In [[1984]], using outtake material from the duo's first Christmas album (''A Christmas Portrait'') and recording new material around it, Richard constructed a "new" Carpenters Christmas album, ''[[An Old Fashioned Christmas]]''. In [[1987]] Richard released his first solo album, ''[[Time (Richard Carpenter album)|Time]]'',<ref>http://www.vex.net/~paulmac/carpenter/albums/time_lp.html</ref> which generated one hit single, "Something in Your Eyes" (sung by [[Dusty Springfield]]). His dedication to protecting the Carpenters' image and recording legacy has sparked criticism, as Richard has insisted on substantial project oversight in any documentary or drama about them. In 1987, he intervened to limit the distribution of the [[Todd Haynes]] short film ''[[Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story]]'' (which used [[Barbie]] dolls to relate a perspective on Karen's untimely death). Although critics found Karen's portrayal sympathetic, the film depicted the Carpenter family in an unflattering light, and Richard prevailed in pulling the film from distribution on the basis that Carpenters' tracks were used without permission.

 

A [[1989]] TV movie, ''The Karen Carpenter Story'', (with [[Cynthia Gibb]]), produced with Richard's cooperation, gained favorable notices and reached a wide audience. In the first few weeks after the movie's airdate, many record stores sold out of their Carpenters stock. A critical reevaluation of the Carpenters' followed during the 1990s. The superior technical quality of the recordings, the sorrowful undercurrents in many of their songs and the pain in Karen's voice as well as her life attracted many fans. Even '90s [[R&B]] group [[Boyz II Men]] list the Carpenters among their influences. In [[1990]] the [[alternative rock]] band [[Sonic Youth]] recorded "[[Goo (album)|Tunic (Song for Karen)]]", which depicted Karen saying goodbye to relatives as she got to play the drums again and meet her new "friends", [[Dennis Wilson]], [[Elvis Presley]] and [[Janis Joplin]]. A [[1994]] biography, ''The Carpenters: The Untold Story'', by music journalist and biographer [[Ray Coleman]], covered the duo's career and personal lives. A tribute album, ''If I Were a Carpenter'', by contemporary artists (such as [[Sonic Youth]], [[Shonen Knife]], [[Grant Lee Buffalo]], [[Matthew Sweet]], and [[The Cranberries]]), also appeared that year and provided an alternative rock interpretation of Carpenters hits. ''Karen Carpenter'', Karen's solo album, was released in October [[1996]]. ('Bootleg' copies of nine additional solo songs Karen Carpenter recorded between 1979 and 1980 are in the possession of many Carpenters fans, since there is no possibility of the recordings getting an "official release".) In [[1997]] Richard recorded and released an album that displayed his talents as a [[pianist]], [[arranger]], and [[composer]] aptly titled ''[[Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor]]''.

 

 

== Rujukan ==

* {{cite book

| last = Coleman