Thats her brother on piano and singing backround vocals. Karen Carpenter was also the drummer in this band. Sadly she passed away from Anorexia at a very young age. 🥺
If this song doesn't move you emotionally to tears then you are not a human being. Leon Russell and Bonnie Bramlett wrote this song in 1969, it is about a woman who falls for a rock star, has a tryst with him, but then in a bout of delusion awaits his return, apparently falling for it when he said he loved her. "Superstar" was recorded by Karen on her first take, singing the lyrics that had been scribbled by Richard onto a napkin. It took a while for Karen to warm up to the song. "For some reason that tune didn't hit me in the beginning," she recalled in a 1981 interview. "It's the only one. Richard looked at me like I had three heads. He said: 'Are you out of your mind?' When I heard his arrangement of it I fell over, and now it's one of my favorites too." When the Carpenters version became a hit, Bette Midler took some shots at Karen Carpenter, often mocking her wholesome image. Karen claimed the jokes didn't bother her; after her death, Midler apologized in Redbook magazine, saying she often thinks of Karen. The alternative rock band Sonic Youth covered this in 1994 for the Carpenters tribute album "If I Were A Carpenter" It is a beautiful and powerful version. Karen was also an awesome Drummer.
One take Karen. She wanted to be known as a drummer who could sing rather than a singer who could drum. She was only 32 when she passed away from complications of anorexia.
It was their THIRD studio album (the "tan album" as it's called). She did it in a SINGLE TAKE, reading the lyrics scribbled on a napkin. This is the lip-synced studio version (Karen and Richard did ALL the background vocals in studio). All you are hearing is the TWO of them! Richard arranged everything and handled keyboards; Karen (who would have been 74 (3/2/24) was one of the first female drummers in the music world, had "perfect pitch," and a three-octave vocal range!
Just as Dimash is widely regarded as the best male vocalist of our time, Karen Carpenter is arguably (undoubtedly, in my opinion) the best female vocalist.
Richard Carpenter doesn’t get enough credit for his outstanding arrangements. He provided the carefully crafted, sophisticated and memorable vehicles for her amazing voice and success. Bottom line: You can’t have one without the other!
The most romantic song!!!! Karen's voice and her brother's arrangement, his piano playing and harmonies make this song spectacular. Loved your excited reaction to this fabulous song!
Hi Neverender! Welcome to the Carpenters rabbit hole. I see some have arrived to help guide you. I’ll do my part, too. First, the drums.that was the amazing Hal Blaine on drums. He is worthy of a Google search all by himself. Carpenters are Richard and Karen older brother and sister. To get past the bad right now; Karen left us in 1983 at the age of 32. She was a victim of her Anorexia and died from a heart attack as a result of her weakened condition. She left us with a legacy of beautiful music, but the thought of what could have been always haunts us. As some have mentioned Karen was also a drummer. She called herself a drummer who sang. Her voice was so unique that she was essentially forced to do less drumming and more standing and singing at the front. There is still a good sized library of her drumming. She sang simultaneously to drumming, a very rare thing especially in the 70’s, especially for a female. I’ll recommend two songs where a Karen is also drumming. One is a lip-sync so she’s miming the drumming and singing, but you can’t tell. The second is fully live and amazing even more so. First is Rainy Days and Mondays; this isn’t live but might as well be. It’s a top tier Carpenters song and just plain delicious. You can see by 60M views, it’s popular. th-cam.com/video/PjFoQxjgbrs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=JEdKLdCSMzoom_N- Second is a lesser known but live and amazing “song.” It’s the Bacharach/David Medley. It was filmed live in front of Veterans at a military hospital in November of 1970. For The Ed Sullivan Show. It is the music of Burt Bacharach and Hal David. (Google if needed) Burt asked Richard to make a medley of some of his songs. He did. This was it. th-cam.com/video/yrsuLCF9FtI/w-d-xo.htmlsi=lAxTV5gaPquRuO0J You also mentioned that no one is making music like this anymore. You are ALMOST correct. There is one. She isn’t well known, yet. She is amazing and at 20 she’s a Carpenters super-fan. She sings like an angel. I’ll link a sample, she covered Superstar as a Short. So you get a taste but no spoilers really. If you like what you see. I can help with some recommendations. She’s fairly new so not a big library of full length songs,,, yet. Her name is Tori Holub. The link below is a “proof of concept.” th-cam.com/video/SkUizGYJeK4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=jG5IsOIqPlhDcoqo Keep on your Carpenters journey. It’s a good way to build a channel. One last thing. The harmonies, for the vast majority of their studio songs it was ONLY Richard and Karen. There were some artistic exceptions and after Karen died, they had to. Side note, Tori does all her own harmonies and engineers them. Joe
Carpenter had so many great songs. My two faves are Close To You (pick the version with Karen drumming while singing), and Merry Christmas Darling, both absolute classics with superb arrangements by Richard & Karen's golden voice❤
Hello, your reaction was the most enjoyable moment I've had in watching videos. Karen was the epitome of perfection as a vocalist & a drummer. When they made her, they broke the mold. She's One of One.
The song was originally called "Groupie". Its about a Super Fan who gets to sleep with her favorite guitarist. He tells her he loves her. He doesn't. He tells her that he will be around to see her when he is back touring in her area. He's not coming back. She is lying to herself. She's trying to figure out what to say to get him back. Her heart is breaking as she realizes she's never going to see him again
The Carpenters had SO many fantastic songs, Karen's voice was unmatchable & her brother Richard's musicality & arrangements were off the chain! Please check out more of their work - possibly starting with "Rainy Days & Mondays" - you WON'T be disappointed!
NeverEnder, thank you for your perceptiveness and enthusiasm regarding the Carpenters' superb rendition of Leon Russell's classic ballad Superstar. It is wonderful that young people such as yourself are discovering the brilliance of Karen and Richard Carpenter, true musical legends.
I had a friend who thought I was joking when I said I have always loved the Carpenters. I guess because I love other styles that are very different, including Free Jazz and Blues, Traditional Country, Punk Rock, etc. How can a music fan find their music hard to like?
Im not quite sure why some people CANNOT control themselves while the music is actually playing. This is why all of the jokes from decades ago started, as it pertained to attending a movie with certain people. Jeezuz......contain yourself until the song is over. Sigh.
Karen Carpenter, the greatest sounding voice of all time!
Amen! Also the greatest breath control and vibrato of any female singer. As evidenced by this performance...
Thats her brother on piano and singing backround vocals. Karen Carpenter was also the drummer in this band. Sadly she passed away from Anorexia at a very young age. 🥺
If this song doesn't move you emotionally to tears then you are not a human being.
Leon Russell and Bonnie Bramlett wrote this song in 1969, it is about a woman who falls for a rock star, has a tryst with him, but then in a bout of delusion awaits his return, apparently falling for it when he said he loved her.
"Superstar" was recorded by Karen on her first take, singing the lyrics that had been scribbled by Richard onto a napkin. It took a while for Karen to warm up to the song. "For some reason that tune didn't hit me in the beginning," she recalled in a 1981 interview. "It's the only one. Richard looked at me like I had three heads. He said: 'Are you out of your mind?' When I heard his arrangement of it I fell over, and now it's one of my favorites too."
When the Carpenters version became a hit, Bette Midler took some shots at Karen Carpenter, often mocking her wholesome image. Karen claimed the jokes didn't bother her; after her death, Midler apologized in Redbook magazine, saying she often thinks of Karen.
The alternative rock band Sonic Youth covered this in 1994 for the Carpenters tribute album
"If I Were A Carpenter" It is a beautiful and powerful version.
Karen was also an awesome Drummer.
One take Karen. She wanted to be known as a drummer who could sing rather than a singer who could drum. She was only 32 when she passed away from complications of anorexia.
Its great to see this younger generation enjoying the music of my generation.
Thanks for keeping Karen alive with your terrific reaction ❤
I don't care where you are on the planet, Karen Carpenter was an angel. I was shocked when she died
It was their THIRD studio album (the "tan album" as it's called). She did it in a SINGLE TAKE, reading the lyrics scribbled on a napkin. This is the lip-synced studio version (Karen and Richard did ALL the background vocals in studio). All you are hearing is the TWO of them! Richard arranged everything and handled keyboards; Karen (who would have been 74 (3/2/24) was one of the first female drummers in the music world, had "perfect pitch," and a three-octave vocal range!
The magic of Karen Carpenter....before auto tune!
Just as Dimash is widely regarded as the best male vocalist of our time, Karen Carpenter is arguably (undoubtedly, in my opinion) the best female vocalist.
Richard Carpenter doesn’t get enough credit for his outstanding arrangements. He provided the carefully crafted, sophisticated and memorable vehicles for her amazing voice and success. Bottom line: You can’t have one without the other!
Karen and Richard are the background vocalists by overdubbing their voices and layering
You beat me to it!👍🏼 Also one of the first group to do this.
Wish I could give her a great big hug from my younger self. ❤
She could sing that just as good without any music she’s just that good
God Bless her. RIP
Karen had the most angelic voice God ever gifted a drummer!
The most romantic song!!!! Karen's voice and her brother's arrangement, his piano playing and harmonies make this song spectacular. Loved your excited reaction to this fabulous song!
A superb alto voice.
*Contralto
Hi Neverender! Welcome to the Carpenters rabbit hole. I see some have arrived to help guide you. I’ll do my part, too. First, the drums.that was the amazing Hal Blaine on drums. He is worthy of a Google search all by himself. Carpenters are Richard and Karen older brother and sister. To get past the bad right now; Karen left us in 1983 at the age of 32. She was a victim of her Anorexia and died from a heart attack as a result of her weakened condition. She left us with a legacy of beautiful music, but the thought of what could have been always haunts us.
As some have mentioned Karen was also a drummer. She called herself a drummer who sang. Her voice was so unique that she was essentially forced to do less drumming and more standing and singing at the front. There is still a good sized library of her drumming. She sang simultaneously to drumming, a very rare thing especially in the 70’s, especially for a female.
I’ll recommend two songs where a Karen is also drumming. One is a lip-sync so she’s miming the drumming and singing, but you can’t tell. The second is fully live and amazing even more so.
First is Rainy Days and Mondays; this isn’t live but might as well be. It’s a top tier Carpenters song and just plain delicious. You can see by 60M views, it’s popular.
th-cam.com/video/PjFoQxjgbrs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=JEdKLdCSMzoom_N-
Second is a lesser known but live and amazing “song.” It’s the Bacharach/David Medley. It was filmed live in front of Veterans at a military hospital in November of 1970. For The Ed Sullivan Show. It is the music of Burt Bacharach and Hal David. (Google if needed) Burt asked Richard to make a medley of some of his songs. He did. This was it.
th-cam.com/video/yrsuLCF9FtI/w-d-xo.htmlsi=lAxTV5gaPquRuO0J
You also mentioned that no one is making music like this anymore. You are ALMOST correct. There is one. She isn’t well known, yet. She is amazing and at 20 she’s a Carpenters super-fan. She sings like an angel. I’ll link a sample, she covered Superstar as a Short. So you get a taste but no spoilers really. If you like what you see. I can help with some recommendations. She’s fairly new so not a big library of full length songs,,, yet. Her name is Tori Holub. The link below is a “proof of concept.”
th-cam.com/video/SkUizGYJeK4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=jG5IsOIqPlhDcoqo
Keep on your Carpenters journey. It’s a good way to build a channel. One last thing. The harmonies, for the vast majority of their studio songs it was ONLY Richard and Karen. There were some artistic exceptions and after Karen died, they had to. Side note, Tori does all her own harmonies and engineers them.
Joe
Carpenter had so many great songs. My two faves are Close To You (pick the version with Karen drumming while singing), and Merry Christmas Darling, both absolute classics with superb arrangements by Richard & Karen's golden voice❤
What a great voice she had. God bless her.
That was a beautiful reaction. Thank you. I enjoyed your very much. Karen's voice hits the soul.
Don't cut the ending too short...you really get this recording. Imagine being 19 years old in love with the Carpenters playing every day on the radio!
Memphis '71--at Coliseum, incredible--Karen Carpenter, so beautiful and the 'VOICE of the BOOMER Generation'!!!
Angel's voice .. God is very pleased with this creation.
RIP Karen C.
Love your reaction. Karen’s voice was angelic. She now sings praise to God.
Hello, your reaction was the most enjoyable moment I've had in watching videos. Karen was the epitome of perfection as a vocalist & a drummer. When they made her, they broke the mold. She's One of One.
Have you done we've only just begun by Carpenter's. It was played at every wedding in the 70s 80s and 90s.
Richard and Karen do most of their own backup vocals which makes the studio version (which this is) better than the live performances.
Great song. Excellent performance.
Love watching you discover new old artists LOL!
She usually played drums with the band as well. One of the very few drummer/ singers in the business.
Absolutely love your reaction…just imagine if you grew up to em…..❤
Oh my gosh. You gave me that smile for the day. So fun to watch you appreciate too.😊
The song was originally called "Groupie". Its about a Super Fan who gets to sleep with her favorite guitarist. He tells her he loves her. He doesn't. He tells her that he will be around to see her when
he is back touring in her area. He's not coming back. She is lying to herself. She's trying to figure out what to say to get him back. Her heart is breaking as she realizes she's never going to see him again
Thank you, I was coming here to explain this very thing, now I don’t have to, lol!
Fortunate to have seen them in concert.
Superstar was their best.
The Carpenters had SO many fantastic songs, Karen's voice was unmatchable & her brother Richard's musicality & arrangements were off the chain! Please check out more of their work - possibly starting with "Rainy Days & Mondays" - you WON'T be disappointed!
NeverEnder, thank you for your perceptiveness and enthusiasm regarding the Carpenters' superb rendition of Leon Russell's classic ballad Superstar. It is wonderful that young people such as yourself are discovering the brilliance of Karen and Richard Carpenter, true musical legends.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I highly recommend you to react to Solitaire next !
I enjoy watching your reactions soooo much❤❤❤
I really enjoyed your comments and how you clearly enjoyed Karen and the Carpenters… refreshing… keep up your good work
That. Voice.
amazing!
You've just been ambushed by sheer talent, bro. Karen was the Princess of Song 🎵
A Song For You from Leon Russel will leave you speechless. 😶
One of the greatest female Alto singing voices of the last 100 years.
Correction. The greatest.
She's number 1, correct!
You are just adorable so glad you are covering Karen Carpenter She has so many songs for you to delve into. 😊
Love to watch you review a song you really love. Your joy and happiness are golden. Thank you ❣️
She makes all ok.
Sr. such a fine hearing you have...
❤❤❤your reaction
thank you
Just beautiful 🙏❤️
Very few people have a pure alto voice. Karen Carpenter definitely had it.
Great reaction. Ir's easy to see her voice really hit you.
The NeverEnder Karen Carpenter plays drums..
its their voices overdubbed brilluiant aren't they
I had a friend who thought I was joking when I said I have always loved the Carpenters. I guess because I love other styles that are very different, including Free Jazz and Blues, Traditional Country, Punk Rock, etc.
How can a music fan find their music hard to like?
❤❤❤
Check her out in Rainy Days and Mondays and We've Only Just Begun!
Listen to her play the drums and sing on Rainy Days and Monday’s
Luther Vandross cover of this still makes me cry😂 😂😂
Luther was amazing
Now thats music. Not todays crap
Joe Bonamassa and Eric Gales. ,,ballad of John Henry,, please. Live version.
Im not quite sure why some people CANNOT control themselves while the music is actually playing.
This is why all of the jokes from decades ago started, as it pertained to attending a movie with certain people.
Jeezuz......contain yourself until the song is over. Sigh.
Tell me you're racist without telling me you're racist
@@theneverenderreacts Did the jokes that I was alluding to exist? If so, why? I didnt make them up.
Tell me you're racist without telling me you're racist
Xxxtentacion documentary please - Look at me ! Ill love to see u react
We want hear her, not you.