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Could Shirley Bassey perform in opera as perfectly as she does in romantic ballads? See “Never, Never, Never” live performance 1973. See also “With One Look/As If We Never Said Goodbye,” “ For All We Know,” all live on You Tube.
My father met them and got an autographed copy of their latest LP at the time. They were doing a show at Hershey PA. My father managed a chain tire shop. Their bus got a flat on its way to the next gig. Dad spent the next two hours talking to the brother and sister while his people replaced the tires on the tour bus. Being a fan, he was down right giddy when he got home that night. It broke his heart when he heard of her death.
Her voice is like the feeling you get when you are outside in the snow on a bitterly cold day, and you step inside and somebody puts a warm blanket on you and you sit down by the fireplace.
I've been listening to Karen Carpenter singing since the early 1970's and her voice still curls my toes. Hits that spot that need hitting. So lovely and smooth.
Richard originally formed a jazz group. Both Karen and Richard were very influenced by jazz and in fact, Karen's musical idol was Ella Fitzgerald, queen of all jazz. There is a TV performance with the two of them doing a medley together and you can see the admiration of those two legends for one another.
A reviewer from Rolling Stone magazine once said... "Karen's voice is like the sound of a lover whispering in your ear." She was known as "One-Take Karen"... and she actually performed this song reading the lyrics off of an envelope. Voice of an angel...gone too soon. Superstar was recorded by Marvin Gaye, which many be why you hear a Jazz/R&B influence.
@steve9199. Not to be picky but Karen Carpenter actually recorded the song, "Superstar" while reading the lyrics off of a cocktail napkin not an envelope.
One take Karen ... also a drummer. She was much more comfortable behind her drums. She was known for walking into the studio nailing it on one take ... no auto tune in the seventies.
The best quote i have heard about Karen's voice was by Ted Nolan in Rolling Stone magazine in 1974. He wrote "out comes that unique voice, exactly as on record, chilling perfection with much warmth, youth with wisdom, a sorrow resolved in the telling". That sums up her voice perfectly.
Karen Carpenter is still revered for having the most pitch perfect voice ever recorded. Carpenters were awarded the #1 most successful group of the decade, 1970s.
My very first record that I owned was the Carpenters and Karen Carpenter's voice is still my overall favorite all these years later along with Richard's amazing arrangements.
Karen and Richard Carpenter were brother and sister with Richard being the song writer and musical arraigner. Karen was the drummer in the Carpenters and the harmonies they did with Kren's solos were beyond unique!
Richard was a classical pianist and masterful arranger. He would find the songs he knew he could arrange to fit Karen’s contralto voice. His choices of instrumentation were impeccable. Karen had a 3-octave range but once they accidentally discovered her lower register, they knew it was her unique strength and summed it up, “the money is in the basement.” She had such rich tone, seamless transitions between registers, and incredible breath control (check out “Goodbye to Love.”) Her vibrato was beautiful. And, perhaps her greatest talent was that she made you FEEL every word. She was an incredible drummer too, in a classically jazz style (check out one of her drumming videos and be amazed.) *also, all their background vocals were Karen & Richard overdubbing various harmonies multiple times
Burt Bacharach loved this lady very much. He said she had the voice of an angel. Her death hit him very hard I was a teenager when the carpenters first came on the scene. The one thing that I loved about Karen is that she play the drums, but also had a deeper voice for all of us, deeper voice gals. It made me extremely happy that I could sing along with her without changing The keys Sounded like the percussionist part of the hanging symbols that you could take your finger and brush them. That’s what they sound like to me.
Karen and Miss Ella Fitzgerald sang a jazz medley on a 1980 Carpenters' special called Music, Music, Music. You really need to check it out. It's fantastic
Karen was one in a million as far as her tone and accuracy on her notes. I also personally think she was actually a True alto which was and is very rare. Wings of Pegasus on utube did an analysis of her voice, recorded and then live and her live version was better than the recorded version as far as pitch accuracy. She is always on the note! Thanks for this cause she truly had a one in a million voice.! Low bass Kenneth
Why is this lady reading out loud the Wikipedia biographical article on the Carpenters instead of just getting to reviewing the song, "Superstar"????? Why waste time doing that when we can read that article anytime? And the word is anyway not "anyways" !
The vocal training Karen had was from Frank Pooler who said he only worked with Karen on the upper range in her voice - he understandably did not want to touch her lower range because she had such a beautiful, natural quality to her lower register. As I recall from reading about the Carpenters, Pooler was the choirmaster at Long Beach State when Karen and Richard attended Long Beach State.
This lady music reviewer, who has a really nice singing voice in her own right, spotted something in the Carpenters' rendition of "Superstar" that I had not noticed before - she is right that the sound just before Karen sings the lyric, "Don't you remember you told me you loved me baby" does have a slight James Bondish/John Barry sound to it! Of course the late, great movie music composer John Barry's musical origins/influences were in jazz music - the John Barry Trio!
Had you been in high school in the 70s as I was you'd have "We've Only Just Begun" drilled into your head. Every.single one of my sister's friends had it played at their weddings.... Every. Single. One. 😄
High School Music Instructor helped her identify 3 octaves but no formal voice training. Richard Carpenter no doubt encouraged her to bring out the low notes
Good voice analysis Maggie. Herb Alpert heard Karen's voice on a demo in 1969 and signed her brother, Richard, and her to A&M records. Karen received 3 or 4 Grammys in the 70s and sold over 80 million records by 1982. She was 1975 rock drummer of the year according to Playboy. Perhaps THE most beautiful voice-ever. She was truly born with an incredible singing talent. She compels you to listen to her sing to you, not at you. KC's enunciated emotion almost always had a haunting timber. No auto-tune or gimmicks. No professional voice or drum instruction. She was known by the studios as 'one take'. She rarely, if ever, recorded more than one take of any song. She was also the ONLY female harmony/background voice in all her songs. Documentaries point out the accolades to her voice, such as, Paul McCartney said she had the most angelic voice after hearing her sing 'Ticket To Ride'. John Lennon ran into her at an LA restaurant and told her "you have a fabulous voice, luv". Supposedly Frank Sinatra stated that Karen was the only singer he'd pay to hear. KC has a list of 'perfect' songs such as, Yesterday Once More, Rainy Days And Mondays, This Masquerade, Need To Be In Love, Hurting Each Other, Only Yesterday, I Can Dream Cant I ('Big Band' sound), Crescent Noon, We've Only Just Begun, Ordinary Fool, Close To You, A Song For You, Solitaire, etc. KC never knew true love. One of her few friends included Dionne Warwick. 5'3" KC really lost weight, due to anorexia, in earnest, beginning in 1975. Amazingly, still sounded fantastic. She died in Feb 1983 at age 32 due to heart complications from anorexia. [some info here from documentary "Only Yesterday"]
Richard commented in an interview a few years back that they were just getting started. it is heartbreaking to think of the music that they might have made but for her untimely passing.
Karen sang in her college choir. Plus she had two formal singing lessons, when her teacher told her she was a natural and that she didn't need any lessons.
Karen and her brother were in jazz bands, and she just wanted to be a drummer. Not a singer. But, listen to her voice! She was pressured into being a lead vocalist.
I think the soft trill might have been a xylophone with an extra soft covering on the baton (not sure what they're called). It sounds similar to hanging chimes but softer.
I saw Karen sing and drum in 1972. She was one of the greatest singer/drummers of all time. Check out her cover of the Beatles Help and Dancing in the Streets, where she sings and drums effortlessly. As for her very best songs ? Solitaire and Trying to get the Feeling Again, Yesterday Once More and Only Yesterday are masterpieces. Trying to get the Feeling Again was recorded in 1975,then lost. It was found again eventually and released in 1994 -19 years after it was recorded and 11 years after Karen died, Karen sang duets that are on TH-cam with John Denver, Ella Fitzgerald, Perry Como, Andy Williams and Carol Burnett.
Karen carpenter has a movie in 1989 for TV. Karen carpenter story. Also she has a movie out and it's called Starving for Perfection. Just amazing singer. She was a drummer first. Outstanding drummer. Buddy Rich called her Outstanding. She called herself a drummer that sang. Paul McCartney called her the best. John Lennon came up to her in LA restaurant to tell her she had an outstanding voice love"
Karen didn't have classical voice training. She did sing in the choir in college. She went to take lessons and was told by the teacher that there is no need for lessons!
I'm 65 and was one of the first Carpenters fan club members back in the 70s. There is one term i use to describe Karen's voice and that is Angelic. I was lucky enough to see the Carpenters live in Savannah Georgia met them both after the concert, Karen was short like 5-4 and Richard was going through the addiction thing at the time so he only thanked us for coming to the show then left but Karen sat and talk to all the fans for about half an hour. The true story of what happened to Karen is even sadder than what the movie implied. She was one of a kind. The only training she had was in High School Choir. She also played the drums on some of the studio recordings and even a few videos like Close to You. I won't bore you anymore, most of what I could tell you can be found on the net, but there is a truth that was never shared outside the fan club members like what caused her heart failure and what really caused her eating disorder. Richard Carpenter did release a statement to the fans only but it was and still is a secret to the public as far as I know. Oh Did you every react to LILIAC? Holy Diver is a great cover of theirs and they do have some original songs now.. the singers voice is crazy.
The song was originally titled "Groupie". The young lady has managed to have a brief affair with her favorite guitarist from the band she loves. He told her he loves her. He doesn't. He tells her he will see her when he comes around to her area again. He isn't. He is out on the road now. She loves him. She is lying to herself. She writes him letters that he doesn't answer. He's not coming back. Her heart is slowly breaking. That's the reason for the somber and melancholy tone. She has experienced joy, and now its turning into sadness.
Maggie! Did you notice Karen doesn't breathe where other singers do. She'll go through two lines of lyrics without a breath, while other singers take a gulp halfway through. Her phrasing is uncommon.
A very early Carpenters performance is The Dick Carpenter Trio performing Dancing in the Street on a local TV talent competition. There is a video on TH-cam, Karen was 19 or 20 at the time and drummed and sang.
Hi Maggie, excellent reaction. A few things you should know is, Karen was barely 21 when she recorded this in One Take, reading the lyrics off a napkin. She never thought about her pitch, phrasing, vibrato or timing; All that came from her natural talent. She was P H E N O M E N A L! Most of their songs were done on first take for her.
I was a kid and played with Mom's record player, Johnny Mathis, Nat King Cole, then came Karen, and I was forever in love. At age 65 I have a huge music collection, but nobody yet has come close to my first love, Karen.
Great reaction, wish I could have joined the live premier (especially since Y--Tube dropped ads in every 45 seconds). Hope to see more of your Carpenters reactions!
Search TH-cam for Kiss Me The Way You Did Last Night. It was recorded in 1981 for their Made In America but mysteriously cut, then added to their cut song album Lovelines in 1989.
Richard always said about Karen "The money is in the basement" referring to how magical her low notes were. They almost exclusively wrote in the same key to take advantage of this.
As mentioned in the bio you read they were a jazz trio (on the A jazz circuit ) before they turned to pop.....Karen was Buddy Rich's fav young jazz drummer at that time
Before there was Angelina Jordan being the voice that emotionally connected me to music, Karen Carpenter was that voice that made made my much younger self feel the power that music had. May the lessons learned by Karen 's life and death never be forgotten or ignored by the younger generations
I didn't see this info given ... This song is about a "one-night-stand" between a woman(not necessarily Karen), and a musician she saw and later met after the show he was doing, who told her everything she needed to hear to get into her bed. He promised to come back and see her again, but he never came back.
Karen Carpenter was originally the drummer of a trio with her brother Richard. The record company wanted vocals and Richard put her behind the mic and said Karen has dies some singing. That's where the Carpenters were born.
Yes, jazz was a big influence for her. She was also a drummer, and very heavily influenced by jazz drumming. Richard and Karen’s first recordings were as a jazz trio, with Karen on drums.
The correct name of the brother and sister duo is "Carpenters" not "The Carpenters". This is also a cover version. The original recorded version is by husband-and-wife duo Delaney & Bonnie (Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett). It was first recorded under the name "Groupie (Superstar)", and was released in December 1969 as the B-side of the Delaney & Bonnie single "Comin' Home". The full credit on the single was "Delaney & Bonnie and Friends featuring Eric Clapton." This song is written and composed by Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell; Eric Clapton added some embellishments to the music. Rita Coolidge came up with the song idea, based on observing the relationships of female groupies with rock stars in the late 1960s.
Karen was such a magnificent drummer. Also, she sang so well that when she went on tour, they had a touring drummer so that she can sing front of stage. Cubby O'Brian (Mickey Mouse Club, Lawrence Welk) played drums while The Carpenters were on tour. One of my favorite bands while I was growing up. My parents had a few of their albums.
Maggie, that's so cute that you didn't know about quaaludes. :) They were a big thing in the 70s. If you ever hear someone in an old movie say something like "vitamin Q", that's what they mean.
Karen’s death most likely saved my sisters life. My mom was hyper sensitive after Karen’s death, suspecting my sister would throw up after eating. One evening mom caught her just as she came out of the bathroom.
Who should I react to next: www.maggierenee.com/book-me/sponsor-a-reaction-live What should I sing next: www.maggierenee.com/book-me/sponsor-a-song-liveAnd just for you: ‘Sing Better Instantly" my FREE Singing Course: skl.sh/3aHdSuy and for EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS AND PERKS: www.patreon.com/MaggieRenee
what are you talking about the whole world luv the carpenters and karen both singing and drumming !
can you also react to a another smooth great singer olivia newton john the song Sam live will amazed you !
Linda Rondstadt. I can't pick a genre because she did country, pop, rock, torch, and mexicana.
Could Shirley Bassey perform in opera as perfectly as she does in romantic ballads? See “Never, Never, Never” live performance 1973. See also “With One Look/As If We Never Said Goodbye,” “ For All We Know,” all live on You Tube.
My father met them and got an autographed copy of their latest LP at the time. They were doing a show at Hershey PA. My father managed a chain tire shop. Their bus got a flat on its way to the next gig. Dad spent the next two hours talking to the brother and sister while his people replaced the tires on the tour bus. Being a fan, he was down right giddy when he got home that night. It broke his heart when he heard of her death.
Her voice is like the feeling you get when you are outside in the snow on a bitterly cold day, and you step inside and somebody puts a warm blanket on you and you sit down by the fireplace.
Hello, Dear Maggie! This will be a treat. Karen had one of the best voices I have ever heard.
I've been listening to Karen Carpenter singing since the early 1970's and her voice still curls my toes. Hits that spot that need hitting. So lovely and smooth.
Richard originally formed a jazz group. Both Karen and Richard were very influenced by jazz and in fact, Karen's musical idol was Ella Fitzgerald, queen of all jazz. There is a TV performance with the two of them doing a medley together and you can see the admiration of those two legends for one another.
A reviewer from Rolling Stone magazine once said... "Karen's voice is like the sound of a lover whispering in your ear." She was known as "One-Take Karen"... and she actually performed this song reading the lyrics off of an envelope. Voice of an angel...gone too soon.
Superstar was recorded by Marvin Gaye, which many be why you hear a Jazz/R&B influence.
I don't think Marvin Gaye ever recorded Superstar. He had an album called Suuperstar. Luther Vandross had a hit with Superstar.
@@jontoyman You are correct sir. Also recorded by Delaney and Bonnie (Co-authored by Leon Russel) The song was originally called "Groupie".
Karen had the voice of the angels. Unforgettable and perfection.
Luther Vandross is correct but I can understand the mistake
@steve9199. Not to be picky but Karen Carpenter actually recorded the song, "Superstar" while reading the lyrics off of a cocktail napkin not an envelope.
One take Karen ... also a drummer. She was much more comfortable behind her drums. She was known for walking into the studio nailing it on one take ... no auto tune in the seventies.
Her phrasing and pitch is beyond extraordinary.
The best quote i have heard about Karen's voice was by Ted Nolan in Rolling Stone magazine in 1974. He wrote "out comes that unique voice, exactly as on record, chilling perfection with much warmth, youth with wisdom, a sorrow resolved in the telling". That sums up her voice perfectly.
Karen Carpenter is still revered for having the most pitch perfect voice ever recorded. Carpenters were awarded the #1 most successful group of the decade, 1970s.
This was a first take. She was reading the lyrics from a naptkig when she first recorded this.. sooo missed. RIP
Karen is in Rolling Stone’s top 100 drummers. Drums were her first musical love.
She even beat out John Bonham in a "best drummer" poll in the 70s, and he wasn't too pleased, lol.
Rolling Stone is always changing their polls. Its a popularity contest....not entirely based on actual talent.
@@michaelpeuplie6464 Proving that those polls are just popularity contests and politics. The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame is the best example of that.
@@michaelpeuplie6464 lol
I have always been a carpenter's fan. From thousand oaks California
My very first record that I owned was the Carpenters and Karen Carpenter's voice is still my overall favorite all these years later along with Richard's amazing arrangements.
Karen and Richard Carpenter were brother and sister with Richard being the song writer and musical arraigner. Karen was the drummer in the Carpenters and the harmonies they did with Kren's solos were beyond unique!
Richard was a classical pianist and masterful arranger. He would find the songs he knew he could arrange to fit Karen’s contralto voice. His choices of instrumentation were impeccable. Karen had a 3-octave range but once they accidentally discovered her lower register, they knew it was her unique strength and summed it up, “the money is in the basement.” She had such rich tone, seamless transitions between registers, and incredible breath control (check out “Goodbye to Love.”) Her vibrato was beautiful. And, perhaps her greatest talent was that she made you FEEL every word. She was an incredible drummer too, in a classically jazz style (check out one of her drumming videos and be amazed.)
*also, all their background vocals were Karen & Richard overdubbing various harmonies multiple times
Burt Bacharach loved this lady very much. He said she had the voice of an angel. Her death hit him very hard
I was a teenager when the carpenters first came on the scene. The one thing that I loved about Karen is that she play the drums, but also had a deeper voice for all of us, deeper voice gals. It made me extremely happy that I could sing along with her without changing The keys
Sounded like the percussionist part of the hanging symbols that you could take your finger and brush them. That’s what they sound like to me.
To the person who said she had no training. That is incorrect. She was in a choir with her brother. and studied quite a bit
Karen and Miss Ella Fitzgerald sang a jazz medley on a 1980 Carpenters' special called Music, Music, Music. You really need to check it out. It's fantastic
Karen didn't learn to play drums, she just decided she could, and mastered them in less than 6 months, according to legend.
On the day that you were born the angels got together and deceided to create a dream come true. Miss Karen.
"I fell in love with you, before the second show" fluidly flowing effortlessly strung together on a single breath.
Karen was one in a million as far as her tone and accuracy on her notes. I also personally think she was actually a True alto which was and is very rare. Wings of Pegasus on utube did an analysis of her voice, recorded and then live and her live version was better than the recorded version as far as pitch accuracy. She is always on the note! Thanks for this cause she truly had a one in a million voice.! Low bass Kenneth
I watched that on his channel. ❤
Why is this lady reading out loud the Wikipedia biographical article on the Carpenters instead of just getting to reviewing the song, "Superstar"????? Why waste time doing that when we can read that article anytime? And the word is anyway not "anyways" !
The vocal training Karen had was from Frank Pooler who said he only worked with Karen on the upper range in her voice - he understandably did not want to touch her lower range because she had such a beautiful, natural quality to her lower register. As I recall from reading about the Carpenters, Pooler was the choirmaster at Long Beach State when Karen and Richard attended Long Beach State.
This lady music reviewer, who has a really nice singing voice in her own right, spotted something in the Carpenters' rendition of "Superstar" that I had not noticed before - she is right that the sound just before Karen sings the lyric, "Don't you remember you told me you loved me baby" does have a slight James Bondish/John Barry sound to it! Of course the late, great movie music composer John Barry's musical origins/influences were in jazz music - the John Barry Trio!
Had you been in high school in the 70s as I was you'd have "We've Only Just Begun" drilled into your head. Every.single one of my sister's friends had it played at their weddings.... Every. Single. One. 😄
Early in her career she did sing some jazzy stuff. Her voice was very versatile.
Absolutely. She was a great drummer and played difficult jazz standards.
@@michelleb3698 In the Burt Bacharach Hal David Medley I recommend she does just that, and LIVE!
@@Mr.56Goldtop Wow! Thank you.
High School Music Instructor helped her identify 3 octaves but no formal voice training. Richard Carpenter no doubt encouraged her to bring out the low notes
Her jazzy vibe is because she started out as a jazz drummer! You nailed it!
Good voice analysis Maggie. Herb Alpert heard Karen's voice on a demo in 1969 and signed her brother, Richard, and her to A&M records. Karen received 3 or 4 Grammys in the 70s and sold over 80 million records by 1982. She was 1975 rock drummer of the year according to Playboy. Perhaps THE most beautiful voice-ever. She was truly born with an incredible singing talent. She compels you to listen to her sing to you, not at you. KC's enunciated emotion almost always had a haunting timber. No auto-tune or gimmicks. No professional voice or drum instruction. She was known by the studios as 'one take'. She rarely, if ever, recorded more than one take of any song. She was also the ONLY female harmony/background voice in all her songs. Documentaries point out the accolades to her voice, such as, Paul McCartney said she had the most angelic voice after hearing her sing 'Ticket To Ride'. John Lennon ran into her at an LA restaurant and told her "you have a fabulous voice, luv". Supposedly Frank Sinatra stated that Karen was the only singer he'd pay to hear. KC has a list of 'perfect' songs such as, Yesterday Once More, Rainy Days And Mondays, This Masquerade, Need To Be In Love, Hurting Each Other, Only Yesterday, I Can Dream Cant I ('Big Band' sound), Crescent Noon, We've Only Just Begun, Ordinary Fool, Close To You, A Song For You, Solitaire, etc. KC never knew true love. One of her few friends included Dionne Warwick. 5'3" KC really lost weight, due to anorexia, in earnest, beginning in 1975. Amazingly, still sounded fantastic. She died in Feb 1983 at age 32 due to heart complications from anorexia. [some info here from documentary "Only Yesterday"]
Just hearing Karen's opening gave me goosebumps
Richard commented in an interview a few years back that they were just getting started. it is heartbreaking to think of the music that they might have made but for her untimely passing.
Karen sang in her college choir. Plus she had two formal singing lessons, when her teacher told her she was a natural and that she didn't need any lessons.
Richard was a genius at editing and producing their unique sound.
Karen and her brother were in jazz bands, and she just wanted to be a drummer. Not a singer. But, listen to her voice! She was pressured into being a lead vocalist.
Check out THIS MASQUERADE
their jazziest tune & my fav of theirs.
Recorded in one take reading the lyrics off a napkin and Karen Carpenter only 21 years old at the time! INCREDIBLE OTHERWORLDLY!
That's her brother Richard on the keyboard. He wrote and directed almost all of their music. ❤❤
I think the soft trill might have been a xylophone with an extra soft covering on the baton (not sure what they're called). It sounds similar to hanging chimes but softer.
Harp
She was the best singer, male or female, our world ever heard. A true contralto who could rise and drop with unbelievable control.
Karen could have sang every Disney princess song and it would have been flawless and perfectly fit.
Wow, what a fantastic voice you have. Such a gorgeous tone.
I saw Karen sing and drum in 1972. She was one of the greatest singer/drummers of all time. Check out her cover of the Beatles Help and Dancing in the Streets, where she sings and drums effortlessly. As for her very best songs ? Solitaire and Trying to get the Feeling Again, Yesterday Once More and Only Yesterday are masterpieces. Trying to get the Feeling Again was recorded in 1975,then lost. It was found again eventually and released in 1994 -19 years after it was recorded and 11 years after Karen died, Karen sang duets that are on TH-cam with John Denver, Ella Fitzgerald, Perry Como, Andy Williams and Carol Burnett.
Karen was a top rock drummer of her time also. One of the best.
You've never known who The Carpenters are? The best-selling group of the 70's...
Me, Chuck in DURHAM, NC. This woman's voice soothes my spirit and soul and comforts me. As far as singers go in my lifetime, she is the GOAT.
The money is in that lower register. Stunning, contralto. I love lower female voices.
6:10 is the start (wiki background info)
11:18 for song reaction start
Also...."I can dream can't I " will show her rendition of 40s hit by the Lennon sisters with Richard's arranging. WOW.
Karen carpenter has a movie in 1989 for TV. Karen carpenter story.
Also she has a movie out and it's called Starving for Perfection.
Just amazing singer. She was a drummer first. Outstanding drummer. Buddy Rich called her Outstanding.
She called herself a drummer that sang. Paul McCartney called her the best. John Lennon came up to her in LA restaurant to tell her she had an outstanding voice love"
Karen was known as one take Karen. She would go into record belt it out in one take and be done. Her voice has no equal. We miss you Karen. RIP.
Karen didn't have classical voice training. She did sing in the choir in college. She went to take lessons and was told by the teacher that there is no need for lessons!
She's also a very accomplished drummer. Don't forget that! Miss her.
notice that she also has bang's like Diana has.... and she also pulls it off well to.
Let her sing the song as you wreck it, no idea
You will love the caliber of their vocals!
Backing provided in the studio by the Wrecking Crew, all top tier musicians, and i mean top tier.
I'm 65 and was one of the first Carpenters fan club members back in the 70s. There is one term i use to describe Karen's voice and that is Angelic. I was lucky enough to see the Carpenters live in Savannah Georgia met them both after the concert, Karen was short like 5-4 and Richard was going through the addiction thing at the time so he only thanked us for coming to the show then left but Karen sat and talk to all the fans for about half an hour. The true story of what happened to Karen is even sadder than what the movie implied. She was one of a kind. The only training she had was in High School Choir. She also played the drums on some of the studio recordings and even a few videos like Close to You. I won't bore you anymore, most of what I could tell you can be found on the net, but there is a truth that was never shared outside the fan club members like what caused her heart failure and what really caused her eating disorder. Richard Carpenter did release a statement to the fans only but it was and still is a secret to the public as far as I know. Oh Did you every react to LILIAC? Holy Diver is a great cover of theirs and they do have some original songs now.. the singers voice is crazy.
The song was originally titled "Groupie". The young lady has managed to have a brief affair with her favorite guitarist from the band she loves. He told her he loves her. He doesn't. He tells her he will see her when he comes around to her area again. He isn't. He is out on the road now. She loves him. She is lying to herself. She writes him letters that he doesn't answer. He's not coming back. Her heart is slowly breaking. That's the reason for the somber and melancholy tone. She has experienced joy, and now its turning into sadness.
She Left This World Because God Wanted His Angle Back
Karen did her part in this HIT song in ONE TAKE! From then on,she was known as "One take Karen"
Maggie! Did you notice Karen doesn't breathe where other singers do. She'll go through two lines of lyrics without a breath, while other singers take a gulp halfway through. Her phrasing is uncommon.
Piano creates that sound !!
Richard Carpenter does an amazing job of arranging music to compliment his sister's voice.
That sound was a Wurlitzer piano
A very early Carpenters performance is The Dick Carpenter Trio performing Dancing in the Street on a local TV talent competition. There is a video on TH-cam, Karen was 19 or 20 at the time and drummed and sang.
Her tone and timbre just melt me every time I hear her sing. There will never be another singer like Karen.
Hi Maggie, excellent reaction. A few things you should know is, Karen was barely 21 when she recorded this in One Take, reading the lyrics off a napkin. She never thought about her pitch, phrasing, vibrato or timing; All that came from her natural talent. She was P H E N O M E N A L! Most of their songs were done on first take for her.
That time you went 5 whole seconds without interrupting a great song....If you do learn this song, I hope someone talks over you the whole time.
Thank you!
If you like Cry Me A River ,check out Angelina Jordan's version, so much Jazz and Soul if her voice. She's amazing 🤩
I was a kid and played with Mom's record player, Johnny Mathis, Nat King Cole, then came Karen, and I was forever in love. At age 65 I have a huge music collection, but nobody yet has come close to my first love, Karen.
Great reaction, wish I could have joined the live premier (especially since Y--Tube dropped ads in every 45 seconds). Hope to see more of your Carpenters reactions!
Electric piano 😊if you want a jazzy song from them, listen to This Masquerade. It's perfect
Shout out to the author, the Master of Space and Time...... Mr Leon Russel.
Karen and Ella is how you get to hear Cry Me a River. :)
u interupt eery line. im out
Agree. For a first listening probably best to just let it flow so we can see the reaction. Analysis can come later.
Agree 100%
Agree. Geez
More talking than listening
Agree.
Search TH-cam for Kiss Me The Way You Did Last Night. It was recorded in 1981 for their Made In America but mysteriously cut, then added to their cut song album Lovelines in 1989.
Richard always said about Karen "The money is in the basement" referring to how magical her low notes were. They almost exclusively wrote in the same key to take advantage of this.
This song was written by Leon Russell from Tulsa, OK. He wrote two other songs covered by The Carpenters; Masquerade and Song For You.
As mentioned in the bio you read they were a jazz trio (on the A jazz circuit ) before they turned to pop.....Karen was Buddy Rich's fav young jazz drummer at that time
She would go into the studio and lay down her vocal track in one take every time
Not true - a myth spread by misinformed fans...
Sorry I missed the live stream on this one. Another great Carpenter's song. Thanks for the reaction.
You can imitate Karen but nobody can sound exactly like Karen. There is always a completely unique sound. What is that ?
Nenhuma cantora me emociona mais que Karen. A voz dela deve ser mto parecida com a de um anjo
Obligatory comment of how amazing Karen was as a person, musician and of course singer.
Sadly missed!
She is a great singer, and a beautiful drummer if you don’t know that she plays the drums
the sound you were asking about is an electric piano {like a Fender Rhodes} with the sustain pedal depressed
Before there was Angelina Jordan being the voice that emotionally connected me to music, Karen Carpenter was that voice that made made my much younger self feel the power that music had. May the lessons learned by Karen 's life and death never be forgotten or ignored by the younger generations
I didn't see this info given ... This song is about a "one-night-stand" between a woman(not necessarily Karen), and a musician she saw and later met after the show he was doing, who told her everything she needed to hear to get into her bed. He promised to come back and see her again, but he never came back.
I've always loved the Carpenters, I grew up with them, they are a big part of my childhood and teenage years.
Karen Carpenter was originally the drummer of a trio with her brother Richard. The record company wanted vocals and Richard put her behind the mic and said Karen has dies some singing. That's where the Carpenters were born.
Yes, jazz was a big influence for her. She was also a drummer, and very heavily influenced by jazz drumming. Richard and Karen’s first recordings were as a jazz trio, with Karen on drums.
Your reviews are so spot on, humorous and enjoyable to watch. ❤
I know I've been in love with her since 1968 and me he's either a goddess or an angel it's too bad she's gone now
The correct name of the brother and sister duo is "Carpenters" not "The Carpenters". This is also a cover version. The original recorded version is by husband-and-wife duo Delaney & Bonnie (Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett). It was first recorded under the name "Groupie (Superstar)", and was released in December 1969 as the B-side of the Delaney & Bonnie single "Comin' Home". The full credit on the single was "Delaney & Bonnie and Friends featuring Eric Clapton." This song is written and composed by Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell; Eric Clapton added some embellishments to the music. Rita Coolidge came up with the song idea, based on observing the relationships of female groupies with rock stars in the late 1960s.
I had the pleasure of seeing them live twice in 1971 unforgettable concert.
Karen was such a magnificent drummer. Also, she sang so well that when she went on tour, they had a touring drummer so that she can sing front of stage. Cubby O'Brian (Mickey Mouse Club, Lawrence Welk) played drums while The Carpenters were on tour. One of my favorite bands while I was growing up. My parents had a few of their albums.
Maggie, that's so cute that you didn't know about quaaludes. :) They were a big thing in the 70s. If you ever hear someone in an old movie say something like "vitamin Q", that's what they mean.
You'd probably like her recording of "Masquerade" - there's also a recording of her at (I think) 17 singing "California Dreaming"...
Both Leon Russell tunes!
My favorite Carpenter's Rainy days and Mondays. Written by Paul Williams ✌️♥️🙏🙏
Karen’s death most likely saved my sisters life. My mom was hyper sensitive after Karen’s death, suspecting my sister would throw up after eating. One evening mom caught her just as she came out of the bathroom.