It was almost 45 years ago that Karen and Richard Carpenter returned to the music charts after a very extended break. Made in America was finally released. With such a long hiatus since Christmas Portrait in 1978, the duo's creative architect Richard Carpenter had plenty of time to find or write new material as well as to think through how best to showcase his world class singer sister. What should this comeback album sound like? What fresh style would best give he and Karen the greatest shot at renewed success? His hopes were high it was a new beginning for he and Karen.
Not every story gets the happy ending we want. When their new album was finally released, the reaction was mixed at best, and sales were much lower than anyone expected or wanted. Even worse, it would be the last album released in Karen's lifetime.
Three very different pressings of the album.
On the positive side, Karen and Richard Carpenter were back in the public eye and on the music charts. It was a brand new beginning. At the other end of reactions to the album, this was a step backwards that signaled the end of their pop dominance and influence. In contrast to the latest chapter in their tale, my life story was about to take a very redemptive turn and in a manner that I never expected. More on that later, but God is always faithful to those who seek Him first.
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It was many years ago...
Be it our personal lives, a political event, or something else, years and deep reflection bring a more objective perspective. Wisdom is gained as we learn through times both good and hard. We change as we age. Our priorities become more clear, and our views may become stronger. Conversely, what was once important may not seem so anymore. Our regrets come into play, but we can't change the past. We can only move ahead.
While our memory of some events can get fuzzy and even affect our perspective on what actually happened, a piece of art is locked in time. There's no changing what was originally created.
The Carpenters 1981 album Made in America marks the beginning of the end of their career as an active duo. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, in less than two years after the project's release, Karen Carpenter would be gone.
Billboard ad in the October 28, 1978 issue for "I Believe You".
In any part of the entertainment industry, you're only as good and as valuable as the success of your last movie, book, or album. The artist behind it is merely a product to be consumed. Nothing more, nothing less. Reinventing yourself, your brand, your image, is a necessary part of remaining noticed and relevant. You're beloved in the company structure as long as the money keeps rolling in. A&M Records may have been artist friendly, even artist sensitive, but it was still a business that needed to turn a profit.
by I Believe You.
Talent, aesthetic and work ethic. The Carpenters had the talent and the work ethic. The music for the new album had to shine and contain at least one or two major hits to help those cash registers ring. Taking back their crown as Adult Contemporary music royalty would not be easy, so every recording had to show them at the top of their game, on par with or even better than every competitor.
Additionally, for their planned relaunch, the aesthetic had to be just right. Optics matter. They had to be perfect, actually, if they were to be successfully re-introduced to Pop radio and the music buying public for years to come. The music industry was buzzing with an upcoming project that would change the industry and affect every single artist. Visual marketing was more than key. Image is the power currency in the music business. Off to work they went.
Richard himself summarizes the season succinctly when discussing Made in America. From their long ignored official website:
"Another favorite. On January 10, 1979, I entered a rehab clinic for six weeks to get off the damned sleeping pills. I got off to a promising start and wanted to keep it that way, so I took the rest of the year off to relax, recuperate and reassess things. I did allow plenty of time to listen to the numerous songs still being submitted. Karen, wanting to stay active, decided to become bi-coastal and record a solo album with producer Phil Ramone. (For a number of reasons, Karen later decided not to release it.) By early 1980 we were underway on “Made In America”, and ended up recording far more tunes than would fit on one album. In April of that year, Karen was introduced to Tom Burris. A whirlwind romance ensued, and Karen and Tom were married on August 31, 1980. As a result, the album was not finished until spring of 1981. The marriage was finished by November."
The late 1978 single did not reverse the fortunes of the duo.
Four years out of the limelight is an incredibly long time to recover from, particularly if you're looking to be viable and important to the public. Eventually, each artist, writer, actor, or musician will be replaced with the next flavor of the day. Why?
New contract addendums dated November 1, 1980.
Again, the music industry is a first and foremost a business.
This was the environment that Richard and Karen Carpenter found themselves in. After their seasonally focused Christmas Portrait album, and the absolute failure of their final single of 1978, I Believe You, no one in radio was interested in what the duo was producing. Their "no doubt about it" hit making days were over. With way too many years between mainstream pop albums, Karen and Richard had been forgotten. Even hard core fans like myself had mostly moved on to fresh sounds from different artists.
Mostly.
After years out of the public's fickle eye, it was Richard Carpenter's job to bring the duo back with an album that would impress fans and critics alike... as well as turning a major profit for the label. Ever faithful and loyal, the duo signed a new contract with A&M Records on March 12 of 1979.
Work for a new album would begin eventually, but Karen was still attempting to complete her solo disc. There were several directions Richard might consider for his long term plan for the duo, but recent chart history showed anything he decided upon came with some risk.
In the early months of 1979, Karen and Richard did something rather incredible and quite unexpected. They produced a multi-page book chronicling their first ten years as musical artists on the charts. This wonderful book was then distributed to each member of their fan club.
Thanks to our friends from the A&M Corner forums, here are scans of the entire book:
The making of Karen's solo album dominated most of 1979, and my hopes were high for something new and innovative from my favorite singer. Both from an artistic and business standpoint, I thought it was a very savvy move for her to do something different. Not once did I ever think this meant the end of the duo. As just a fan, even I knew better.
Sometimes going solo is a smart move!
The years between Passage and Made in America were the years I generally stopped buying albums. Money was tight, and truth be known, there wasn't much out I was crazy about. Fleetwood Mac's Rumors? I could hear most all of what I wanted on the radio. Eagles The Long Run? Ditto. Doobie Brothers' excellent Minute By Minute? Same story. Even Olivia Newton-John's epic Grease soundtrack was not one I purchased. I love her, but even today I still do not own the disc. That said, I found her better on late night radio with the song I Can't Help It with Andy Gibb.
My radio consumption dropped off a bit. I no longer had the hit radio on all day long like in the previous years. I liked The Bee Gees, they sounded fresh for awhile, but I didn't buy album after album. I think I bought Saturday Night Fever, maybe one other album, and that was that. Donna Summer was a gifted singer but a whole album of disco was not something I really wanted or would listen to. (Her version of MacArthur Park knocks me out to this day.) I went to a disco once or twice. It was ok, but it wasn't for me. If I wanted to meet girls, I'd go to Knott's Berry Farm and find the dance floor.
but I never purposely listened to her until 1985 or so.
What music did I purchase during the years in between Carpenters albums? Some Contemporary Christian music. Not much, though. Generally, it was very disappointing with shockingly low production values, cheesy lyrics, folksy vocals and sounds, and even worse artwork. (Thankfully, things improved drastically in the 90s!) It was a very different story listening in person, however. I was struck by the beautiful simplicity of mostly the piano, guitar, and drums with vocalists that seemed to truly connect with the heart of God Himself. I was pulled into discovering more and more about Him because of the intimately peaceful thing going on in my heart. Even as I write this, those times of quiet reflection as I listen to reflective, worshipful music cannot be duplicated by anything else coming into my earphones.
I purchased my favorite Michael Jackson album Off the Wall, and quite unexpectedly, Guilty by Barbra Streisand. I'd heard it stuck on repeat during a lengthy bus ride in Austria. I was hooked by Barry Gibb's great production. The singles Woman in Love and Guilty are two tracks I still listen to on occasion, but the rest of the album is a bit of a snooze, and their second duet single was never a favorite. George Benson and Earth, Wind & Fire were two newer artists I liked quite a bit. EW&F became a hot singles band for me, but I'd purchase many Benson albums in the years to come and more in the smooth jazz genre. Bobby Caldwell's classic What You Won't Do For Love hit the spot as did just about anything by Kool & the Gang. The Too Hot single showed just how good they could be! On the rockier side of things, Gerry Rafferty's incredible Baker Street single, Reminiscing by Little River Band, and Ambrosia's Biggest Part of Me are records that I loved then and still play now.
As much as I was a fan of Carpenters and particularly Karen's voice, I had mostly moved on as well. I had to. They did not put out any music for much too long. I did listen to Horizon and Hush and Live at the Palladium, but that was really it. Those were years of the past, and I was moving on with my life.
I had no choice.
When my young bride of a couple of years earlier decided to leave me and our marriage for a woman, my life was shattered. I could choose to be angry- and I was- but I had to choose bitterness or forgiveness; to be chained to the old life or to trust again for a new one. I decided to put my faith in Jesus in to action and not look back. It certainly was a long process, but I kept at it.
Taken on my first Mexican cruise.
My career in the travel industry was really taking off, and I lived for the benefits as I made so little income. Europe, Japan, New York City, Mexico. Those early years were all about exploring new places and being treated to top rated accommodations. I learned so much! And to this day, I find the tips and tricks useful as a private tour guide.
Would Disneyland become a thing of the past?
My free time and social life changed as well as my music listening habits. I owned my own townhome, but things were tight. To make ends meet, I rented out a room. He was a great guy from church who also loved music of all types and was as easy going as could be.
The Disney suits knew the park needed an updating as well.
The Mine Train Thru Nature's Wonderland gave way to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad-
and I found my way back to the park I loved.
Much less money meant fewer trips to Walt's kingdom, but that was ok by me. Disneyland gave way to more times with friends at the beach, skating on Balboa Island, the church's young adult activities, and hanging out at the beach. Free was good.
Eventually, I began dating again. It was hit and miss with nothing lasting more than a few weeks to a few months. Too many blind dates and offers for more. I was mostly happily busy working at the travel agency, exploring the world, and taking a few classes at the local Bible school.
With his drug addiction behind him, Richard was ready to get back in the studio and create art. If 1979 was a relatively quiet year for him, the one following one would be just the very opposite.
To move the duo forward, he had to access the past in order to chart a course for the future. Passage, their 1977 attempt at challenging everyone to see them anew was their first album to not achieve Gold status since before Close to You. The last single, 1978's I Believe You, was a move in their more traditional ballad style, but it died on arrival.
On the other hand, due to the success of Sweet Sweet Smile on the Country charts earlier that same year, Richard had lightly teased the idea of a full album in that genre. Whether he was serious or not, A&M executive Jerry Moss was not about to let that happen. Karen's solo album was shelved because the suits deemed it too weak and trendy a release, plus they wanted to re-invest back in their cash-cow duo. That was the message A&M executives wanted to communicate: The duo was back and better than ever.
Word was out that Karen's solo had been recorded and then cancelled, so whatever Richard did, it had to at least be commercially better than what she did with Phil Ramone.
Test pressing for the second new single from the album.
Written by Karen.
It is a well established truth that Karen Carpenter possessed one of the world's most distinctive voices, one filled with the undeniable ability to connect with her listeners at a heart level. The purity, the warmth, and the transparency in which she seemed to bare her soul was made manifest in her singing voice, and it deeply resonated with fans from Japan to the U.K., the United States to Europe, and far beyond. When you place her lovely instrument next to the brilliant arrangements and production of songwriting brother Richard, you have music that endures generation after generation.
"Follow Your Heart". It's one of the worst pieces of advice repeated just about everywhere you look. In my opinion, people make some of their most regretted decisions based solely on emotion. Be it anger, fear, lust, greed, pride, the need to fit in, to kill the pain inside, or the desire for power or control, there's a high price to be paid. (Reassess your own life for a moment, and tell me I'm wrong.) There's always equally important pieces to factor in when making major decisions. Always. In the creative world, you must balance playing to your strengths and being innovative. What a hard place Richard was in! And so was Karen for that matter. She was a tough, career minded woman, and she was not about to let the setback of her album being cancelled to take her off course. She knew the duo was known for her voice above all else, so she had better come with some outstanding performances.
Back at the beginning of the new year, 1980, Karen's solo album was still set for release. The December 29, 1979 issue of Cashbox showed a Record Buyer's Guide for what was coming for the first quarter. There it was in print: Karen Carpenter would be released to the public in March of 1980. With a catalogue number (SP 4804), the first pressings of the cardboard jackets were ready and waiting.
In the Cashbox December 29, 2979 issue.
All set for release March of 1980.
As fans of the Carpenters know, the album was shelved but that didn't mean other commitments were going to be cancelled.
With Tina Tuner and Toni Tennille. Elton John, Cliff Richard, and Andy Gibb show up in the finale.
May 16, 1980- The Carpenters Music Music Music special.
Featured Ella Fitzgerald, John Davidson, and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra.
In the Spring of 1980, two television specials revealed the direction each sibling thought how their damaged musical career could best be resurrected. One television appearance was the fulfill the duo's legal obligation, the other didn't involve the duo at all.
First, Karen appeared sans Richard in Olivia Newton-John's wildly popular Hollywood Nights.
Made up mostly of Olivia's friends in the business, the show's cast was a Who's Who of American popular music at the time of its airing: Elton John, Tina Turner, Cliff Richard, Andy Gibb, Toni Tennille, and Peaches of Peaches and Herb. The great Gene Kelly, co star of the film Xanadu was the exception. The music and presentation on Olivia's newest special were current, fresh, and definitely appealed to a young and hip generation. Karen was in high spirits and quite vivacious. She also looked terrific and fit right in.
Very big ratings for the show!
As originally planned, Karen was going to debut her new single from her solo album, a month before her appearance on Hollywood Nights. When that project was shelved, thankfully friend Olivia kept her on the show, allowing her to connect with a brand new audience who might have wondered where she's been since 1978.
Souless.
Early in 1980, I remember sitting in the Carlisle Travel agency office where I worked. We were in La Mirada, California and the radio was always tuned to a local Los Angeles station that specialized in soft music, vocalists like Johnny Mathis and Jane Oliver and even softer instrumentals. (The agency was right on the border of L.A. and Orange Counties, minutes from Japanese Garden and Deer Park as well as Tower Records.) The daytime jockey announced they were filming Hollywood Nights later in the evening and some people off the street might be used in the filming. Sadly, it did not work out for me to go. I tried to rearrange commitments I had but it was all in vain. As the lead special to the Academy Awards and due to its stellar line up of guests, viewer numbers for Olivia Newton-John: Hollywood Nights were off the charts.
Not so much a hit on the ratings side,
but perhaps the best television special they ever did.
Just barely one month after Olivia's star-studded show, the Carpenters own special was broadcast. Everything about it was at the other end of the scale in style and presentation. The guests were Ella Fitzgerald, John Davidson, and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra. The music was straight out of the Great American Songbook.
The elegant atmosphere was like the classic movie musicals of a Golden Age, and the timeless appeal leaned heavily toward those people of an earlier time. Ella had already appeared with the Captain & Tennille on their television special of 1979, just about a year earlier, but a different lineup of songs with an entirely different vocalist to sing with made it a very special occasion. The centerpiece duet between Karen and Ella was breathtaking. The closing medley was gorgeous. Richard's show stopping performance of Slaughter on Tenth Avenue was just perfect. Everything was presented with much dignity and respect and without the silly comedy skits and dialogue that plagued their earlier television shows. It was one classy show, and I loved it!
In contrast to Olivia's special and its high profile time slot, Karen and Richard's Music, Music, Music was buried on a Friday night. The show was excellent but viewership was miserable at best.
Both television shows represented Karen's strengths, but only one had Richard's interest.
A "signed" poster.
Look closely and you'll see just how tired they both looked.
As the main architect of the duo's career, Richard had to answer the question of what to do next. Considering all the options, he was convinced the best course of action was reminding long time fans why the duo was beloved. Therefore he would craft an album that he would love, and then of course, the fans and critics would follow. So would sales and chart success. Made in America became an album that played to the strengths of the past, all the while creating a bright new future. This was Richard's hope and his fantasy, but it would not become the reality.
Much had also changed on the music charts since the Carpenters' string of smash hits of the early 1970s. Adult Contemporary sounds still were very popular, but Karen's voice had been off the radio for far too long, Christmas holidays aside. Fans had crowned a new queen of the genre in her absence.
Just as the Captain & Tennille has taken the Adult Contemporary crown from Karen and Richard with Love Will Keep Us Together in 1975, Canadian singer Anne Murray accomplished the same feat by the time the Carpenters were planning their return. Starting with You Needed Me in 1977, Anne not only came back strong with the playful Shadows in the Moonlight and the ballad Broken Hearted Me among others, she took the Carpenters own cast-off, I Just Fall in Love Again, turning it into a major pop and country smash with its unpretentious design. It was the record the duo didn't make. Anne's deeper toned vocals and the simple, almost plain arrangement and production gave her ballads an intimacy that was distinctive, very hard to resist, and even harder to compete with.
In Toni Tennille- A Memoir, the singer remembers Karen as rather shy and having a beautiful instrument: ""I loved her voice... she sounded like a cello. She had the kind of voice that the moment that you heard it on the radio, you knew who it was." She continues on to describe Richard as a "recording savant" who would spend hours upon hours in the A&M studios perfecting the slightest nuance of their recordings while his impossibly shiny black car graced his designated parking spot on the lot.
For Made in America, A&M should have built him a garage.
The recording sessions for the album began in May of 1980 and ran through November of the same year. That's more than six months of actual in studio work. It had to be expensive just to reserve the studio! This time does not account for finding the songs or crafting the arrangements, using the musicians or engineers.
Perhaps due to enthusiasm, nerves, indecisiveness, something entirely different or just being that "recording savant", with Richard at the helm, he and Karen ended up with almost new 30 tracks for the album. Looking at the list of what they recorded, you can tell Richard wasn't entirely sure of a direction or feel for the album. There's the requisite oldie or two, songs that sound like previous Carpenters hits, more than one country flavored tune, a couple of old school ballads, and even one reimagined number from Karen's solo album.
This last one always shocked me. Why would Richard choose Make Believe It's Your First Time for Karen to record once more? Was it a concession to her solo album being cancelled? Did he just love the song? Was he trying to one up her producer Phil Ramone? Did Karen suggest it?
Of everything they did in the studio over those six months, only a few of the songs had the names Richard Carpenter and John Bettis on them. Clearly, the burst of fresh creativity Richard felt did not extend to his own songwriting. In all they put together, Karen and Richard recorded three albums worth of new material in addition to songs from their aborted album of 1979.
In the middle of designing their comeback, Richard followed his heart and trusted his instincts. Karen also trusted her gut building her own fantasy, and it was an unmitigated disaster from every angle. Marrying the man of her dreams turned her life into a nightmare.
The con is on.
In the Spring of 1980, Tom Burris was a married man with a teenaged son when Karen agreed to a date. Although his divorce not finalized, Tom dove headlong into winning Karen's heart. She finally accepted his marriage proposal just days after Tom's divorce was final. Karen had missed the opportunity to build a happy marriage with true love Terry Ellis, and perhaps this new relationship was what she was waiting for.
July 1981 Fan Club Newsletter wedding announcement.
Karen was now in the middle of planning a wedding in the midst of recording their comeback album. Was she "fully in" as in years past? Did her divided interests affect the end result?
August 3, 1980
According to the book Little Girl Blue, Karen had a couple of chances to back out before the nuptials took place. For a variety of reasons which I'm sure no one really knows, Karen chose to marry the guy.
I wonder what was Richard thinking.
Karen had chased a different fantasy. She followed her lonely heart into a disaster. It all turned out that Karen was nothing but the prey for a very crafty predator.
White lace and promises was all Karen's new husband gave her. Tom Burris was a fraud who pledged lifelong love in exchange for what he was really after: her money.
The Fall brought some nice surprises for me including a great trip to Germany and Austria and a cruise. I was loving my work and making the most out of my life. Christmas came and went, and I had my hopes set high that 1980 would be the year things got even better.
It was approaching on two years since that fateful Valentine's Day in 1979 when I awoke to a note telling me my marriage was over. My wife had left me, and I'd later discover she left me for my aunt. Yes, you read that correctly. But on Valentine's Day 1981, I was in for a big surprise- exactly two years later- even though I had forgotten all about the timing of it all.
Married friends from my old church had moved to the other side of town and had began attending a new place for worship. After several weeks, they called and reminded me of their three year old daughter's birthday party that Saturday. Come I come? Of course. Did it matter it was Valentine's Day? Definitely not, as I had no plans.
I arrived at their new home that day to discover a lovely young blonde who was my age. We talked easily as we shared a common faith and lived in the same general area. Toward the end of the afternoon, I asked if she's join me for dinner the following week. I was surprised and pretty excited when she thought that was a good idea.
We set up the date. Without thinking much about it in advance, I had arranged to pick up my new to me car, a black Porsche 914 that exact same day. As the day went on and problems kept me from getting the car earlier in the day as I had planned, I had virtually no time to get ready for our date. My sister called just before I left, and as intrigued as I was, I confidently told her, "This is the last blind date I am going on!"
The car in the photo is not mine, but it looks just like it.
Showing up unshaven (which was not a good look during this time), I was at least clean and presentable. The plan was dinner and then a drive down PCH (Pacific Coast Highway).
Stopping to remove the car's top and drive with the open sky above us, I was struck by how beautiful she was under the moonlight with her golden strands lit by it all. Those blue eyes! That wam smile! The longer we spent together, the more fascinated I became by the young woman I found myself with.
Date number one went well- although she reminds me that we never did end up eating dinner! What would come next?
Weeks went by, and one enjoyable date turned into one more, then several others. Four dates in, I knew it was time to tell her about my past. How could I not? She deserved the truth. I decided to deliver it all, answer her questions, and then try to explain as gently as possible I had chosen forgiveness over resentment or retaliation. I choose to believe that big problems give God an opportunity to show He still works on behalf of those who have turned over their lives to Him. This way, when solutions come, He gets the glory and shows again how much He does care for his kids. This was my test. I went for it. In response was a quiet "Thank you", and not much more than that.
I was wondering if getting married was ever in my future. But I knew I had to give that up- and many other things about my years ahead- to God. But my life had definitely been on the upswing. At just the right time, I picked up a book that helped. Author Hannah Hurnard's classic book, Hind's Feet on High Places made me reevaluate everything in a good way as I took an allegorical journey with "Much Afraid" to the high places. (I can't recommend this book often enough! Don't let the description throw you off or you'll miss a potentially life changing read.)
A Magic Mountain day date.
These days, it's Disney and Universal for us.
My first name might mean "Mighty Warrior" on some lists, but in a practical sense given my history, my battle has always been against low self-esteem and depression. My girlfriend's brief response didn't help matters, even though I understood the hesitation. I went home rather depressed, and in tears I prayed and gave it up to God. And I waited. And waited. About two weeks went by, and then she called me. We talked some more and decided to get together again to talk. This led to even more conversation and an agreement to keep dating, but to take it slowly. Her parents would not take my history well. To say I was relieved is an understatement. This was my chance, and there was something about this woman I couldn't stop thinking about. I just couldn't imagine my life without her.
Looking forward to years ahead, how would Richard frame Karen's voice for a new generation? The answer would come on June 19, 1981- the release of Touch Me When We're Dancing.
Finally!
The new single was a welcome return to form! Soft cymbals and a relaxed, sensual guitar introduce Karen's warm, velvety voice. It's not her famous deep contralto, but you know who it is. The lyrics skip the heartbreak of earlier hits and go right for a romantic mood. Richard's arrangement wisely allows Karen's voice to be the star before giving listeners those multi-layered vocals on the chorus. The second stanza leads into the record's crescendo, bringing a swaying saxophone solo against some great drum work and even more vocals. It all concludes rather quickly, leaving listeners wanting more. Perfect for pop radio.
Concurrent with the new record's release, the album Made in America made it into the stores. (Technically a few days earlier on June 16.) The full page Billboard ad reveals an international audience awaiting its arrival. Each country seemed to take a different angle on the first single, but hope was high for each to be well received. According to the Carpenters Fan Club newsletters, different affiliates beyond the U.S. picked different cuts as the first single. Japan chose Beechwood, Europe went with Those Good Old Dreams, and Brazil went with the Doobie-esque (Want You) Back in My Life Again.
I don't remember hearing the new single to know it was out. I had been following the music trades, so I was aware of the in store release date. I did my usual thing and stopped into Tower Records to pick up the new album. I could not wait to get it home and on the turntable.
Just what was found on the new album?
When the album finally came out, I took the night off from hanging out with my new love just to listen to the disc. (I had already divulged my love of the duo to my girlfriend when I bought her the Hush album but little did she know!) Who could blame me for moving the listen to the top of my list for the day? I had waited four years for a brand new pop album from my very favorite artists. My turntable burned with anticipation.
With headphones on and needle dropped, I loved it... back in 1981.
German cassette sleeve.
That assessment has not survived the decades. On Made in America, neither Karen or Richard are presented in the best light here. If you love the collection, the following comments will not earn me any fans, but I can't get around them.
Let's start with the foundation of a great album: The material. With every non-Christmas album since Horizon beginning with A Kind of Hush, Richard's ear at selecting great material to record and release had mostly became a thing of the past. With this being job #1, you have to wonder if he had any help at all in this area. There was a good amount of solid stuff coming out around the same time, but it seemed to have bypassed Karen and Richard.
Herb Alpert had gently voiced his concerns about the final result of the Kind of Hush album. When it came to Made in America, as label chief and primary mentor for the duo, and perhaps even as a fan, he should have demanded a different selection of songs for Karen and Richard's much needed comeback album. The ones left behind in the vault are generally much stronger and certainly more radio accessible.
Perhaps as a friend, Herb was just thrilled that Richard was finally creating music again, and he didn't want to crush his enthusiasm for a fresh beginning. However, there's not a single song recorded for Made in America that comes close to comparing with the utter magnificence of Baby It's You, Superstar, We've Only Just Begun, A Song For You, This Masquerade, Rainy Days and Mondays, Solitaire or Desperado. Richard did not need to go to the songwriting pool of Burt Bacharach, Paul Williams, Leon Russell or any of the old collective in order to get great songs. But he should have been mining recording gold from their equally gifted contemporaries. The years were led by Barry Gibb and Rod Temperton, but songwriters like Dan Fogelberg, Diane Warren, Lionel Richie, and a young upstart David Foster would have been great resources to mine. My bet is even musical hero Paul McCartney would have jumped at the chance to write for the female vocalist and duo he so readily admired.
Sadly, even though he was feeling refreshed, Richard himself did not write anything as strong as he did in years past.
Worn while performing in the Netherlands at the end of 1981.
On the new album for a new era, Richard as producer, arranger, and overall musical director, comes across as out of touch. That was the charge levied against him for the previous decade, but being different back then worked in their favor. No one was really doing what the Carpenters did in the first half of the 70s, and the public loved it. In the ensuing time since Made in America's initial release, I had wondered if Richard was only looking to his strengths- forgetting it was his sister's voice the public loved- when the collection was designed. Now, I see it all a bit differently.
Good to have him back in the studio.
After being mostly absent on the Christmas Portrait album, Richard was probably filled with joy to be working again with his sister and maybe just as joyful to discover he still loved creating... and that he was good at it!
Sometimes in our lives, what we know to be our strengths can actually become some our greatest weakness if left unchallenged.
For Made in America, Richard's incredible gifting just overtakes the album. Bluntly, it's too much of a good thing. The songs play it safe. Over produced and too heavily orchestrated. The guts, the heart, the soul, the grit, the passion, have been taken out of them. The production and overall feel is light, airbrushed like the cover art, and just plain muted. Even worse, Karen is not as prominent as she should have been. It is a lovely, breezy listen for the most part, but nothing on the collection specific grabs your attention. Not one single selection demands an immediate repeat play. The discerning listener is left with a studio concoction that feels fully manufactured instead of artistically authentic.
If I were in Richard's shoes, I'm not sure I'd have the humility to look at it all differently or to get outside counsel along the way. My guess is by this point in time, shrewd but trusted friends in the business like Terry Ellis were out of the picture. Who did Richard look to for honest opinions? Who were his friends? From the label side, surely he'd get real honest feedback. Was Herb Alpert just too nice? Was Jerry Moss deemed not a trustworthy source because he was not a supporter of the duo early on? Sometimes, those who aren't in lock step with us can offer the best objective view of situations we're dealing with. It could have even been other factors of which we fans have no knowledge.
A visit from guitar legend Les Paul while recording the album.
I really can't tell if the color version is the real deal.
All said on this topic, there is definitely one area in the design of the album where I wish Richard would have been even more present: Vocally. I would have loved at least one song with a lead by him as well as stronger, more obvious background work on some of the other selections. Honestly. It would have given the album more weight, energy, and especially variety, much like their breakout album Close to You. This part of what Richard brought to the table was a true strength that seemed to be forgotten. Other female artists at the time had to rely on outside duet partners for some contrast and excitement, but Richard wasn't about to go for that. However, he was part of the duo and could have mixed things up a bit by being more present vocally. Be it a line or two on the songs or even full on lead vocals for a song, the album needed the variety he brings. (For the record, I would have relegated I Believe You to the next hits collection and made Because We Are in Love the B-side exclusive to Touch Me, thereby making room for two selections by Richard.)
June 7 Billboard article.
If Richard owns Made in America by his avalanche of production, and that album suffers because of it and lesser quality material, this album is an even worse presentation of Karen. She could sing the phone book, and I'd find something to love. The proof is the Passage album (my review here). On this new one, the mostly sub-par material is only one piece of the problem.
More visitors while recording.
What's the hardest part for me in writing this about my favorite female vocalist? For someone who has always felt like she was being fully authentic in whatever she sang, I'm not sure I believe Karen when it comes to singing the album's lyrics with its overall cheery tone. I'm not convinced nor do I think she fully believes herself either. Why?
A portion of the May 1980 Carpenters Fan Club newsletter.
By this point in time, I was an avid reader of Billboard magazine and all the articles and interviews just didn't make a solid argument that Karen really wanted to cancel her solo album. Neither did the official fan club newsletter (shown above), which I was still receiving at the time.
After all the months of work, the time and energy invested, and the hundreds of thousand of dollars it cost her, the sunny words from Karen's mouth clashed with the reality of the situation. I sensed she was very disappointed, making a song like Those Good Old Dreams very hard to believe.
At A&M discussing the album.
But what I discovered decades later made me think it all goes deeper than what I initially sensed.
I've long said I wish each of their subsequent albums were mixed similarly to Horizon. The hard reality is this just could not happen with Made in America. When you hear only the vocals, (and I listened to the stems of these recordings for a few songs), you realize Karen does not sound at all like she did in 1975 or even 1978. Was this by Karen's choice or insistence or some other reason? The ease in which she could sing differently cut to cut was a strength. She knew her instrument. Karen did rerecord vocals of earlier songs so that the stronger, deeper, less refined versions were replaced by the vocal perfection of her later years. This includes Ticket to Ride and Merry Christmas, Darling. Maybe she just loved the sound of her voice on the solo project and thought it was more commercial. Perhaps Karen insisted on this softer singing style, making it her creative input on the sound of the project. Maybe her new love interest drew her passion away from recording.
I think it may have been all this plus one more factor: Her illness did in fact take its toll on her voice.
As she herself alluded to, if the money is in Karen's basement voice, just where is it on this album?
Why is Whitney here?
She and Karen shared something in common.
Upon closer inspection, her upper range seems more limited than in the past. Even worse, her low register "the money's in the basement" notes don't seem to be held as long as they used to be. There are places she shines as you'd expect, but there are also more than a few times Karen's voice sounds noticeably weaker, frail, even strained. What once was a producer's dream now became a potential nightmare and a career killer.
Years before Whitney Houston's producers had to do the same due to her drug ravaged voice, it seems Richard had little choice but to bury Karen under a production tidal wave. It's not to say Karen couldn't still pull off the deeper tones she's famous for. She sounds magnificent on the 1980 Medley from Music, Music, Music, but in her final years, these moments would become exception rather than the norm.
Touch Me When Were Dancing - Live in Paris, Palmares des Chansons, October 14, 1981
If you don't think her voice was affected by her illness,
Watch the YouTube video of this performance below.
If Horizon was meant to showcase the incredible singer, it seems Made in America was meant to showcase the equally gifted arranger and producer. Perhaps this was also by sheer necessity. Maybe Karen just couldn't pull off her older style of singing any longer or for extended periods. Regardless of the reason, the new album is the polar opposite of fan and critic favorite Horizon. This earlier masterpiece in 1975 is dark, rich, nuanced and full of variety, easily recognized as the best recorded version of her singing. The latter collection six years later is light, fluffy, and sounds much to much the same with little exception. If you didn't know better, you might think it's two entirely unique duos each with very different lead vocalists.
However it all went down, it was time to move on from the recording of the album and decide how best to sell the comeback package.
The next steps were photo sessions and album design. Each would be challenging in their own way.
Ronald Reagan- the 40th President of the United States.
Just as I was, Good Old America was starting to come out of a slump by the time Richard and Karen Carpenter readied their comeback album. With a fresh optimism due to the attitude of newly elected president Ronald Reagan, we were proud to be Americans again. His predecessor Jimmy Carter was a humble man, and one to be constantly serving the needy around him, but his resolute honesty regarding the nation's shortcomings created a feel of disgrace for being a citizen. Reagan was seen as a breath of fresh air. Are we perfect as a nation? Absolutely not, we are sinful and broken and driven by pride and greed from the top down. Yet, even after I've traveled to so many other countries across the globe, I can confidently tell you that we still live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Suddenly, back in 1981, it was in to be optimistic again.
The inner sleeve of the vinyl album.
You've got to give credit to A&M at this point in time. Although it was their job, they went all out to make the Carpenters comeback album as visually appealing as possible. In spite of the duo's sales slump, Karen and Richard were still the label's biggest selling artists. The executives in charge wanted to reinforce this optimistic new season, playing off the state of the country. Sure, they'd blown it in the past- some would say even intentionally- but not this time. There was too much at stake. They picked top name talent to put the label's best selling artists in the best presentation possible.
There were multiple photography sessions in both February and March by two very different photographers who brought two very different results.
Norman Seeff captured the duo on February 22 just weeks before the next one took his shot at capturing the duo. Seeff was more of a rocker, he was known for much grittier work, including the infamous Playing Possum album cover for Carly Simon and the cover of Art Garfunkel's terrific album Breakaway among many, many others you've seen in rock music magazines like Rolling Stone.
A Norman Seeff shot of Karen. Much darker and more serious.
Seeff's work shows the duo in much more of a serious adult light, something certainly not a match with the final song list or and upbeat mood of Made in America. His photos tell a very different story, and rightfully so, they were reserved for a later project, most notably the 1989 album Lovelines.
John Engstead.
Next up was someone just as gifted but with a very different artistic viewpoint: John Engstead. John was Paramount Pictures studio portrait photographer in the 1930's and later did freelance work until he finally closed his studio in 1970. From that time forward, he only took work if it strongly appealed to him. It was quite the prize for Karen and Richard to nab him once again as they did in 1974. (Some news sources indicate it was probably March 13, 1981 when John photographed Karen and Richard, but this is not 100% verifiable.)
From Engstead's sessions with them in August of 1974.
Seven years later.
Best known for capturing icons American film stars as well as being the photographer for President Ronald Reagan's inauguration in January of the same year, John's client list reads like a room full of top actors from the Hollywood elite. From Cary Grant, to Lucille Ball to James Dean, to Marilyn Monroe, Clint Eastwood, Paul Newman, Bing Crosby and many more, he brought glamour, dignity, and substance to his work.
The abuse took its toll. This woman does not look 31 years old.
As with the number of recordings, the photos Engstead took of Karen and Richard were abundant, and they captured the more appropriate feel of the new album. Much cheerier and bright. Not many were used for promotion of Made in America at all, at least not until years after Karen's passing when they appeared on the various A&M compilations.
There's something I just love about this photo.
With John Engstead behind the lens, the end result produced some of my favorite shots of Karen and Richard. For Made in America, they look like real adults, very clean and contemporary. Yet, there's nothing sugary sweet, nothing romantic, nothing that represented them in anything but a fresh and appealing way.
Karen and Richard were no longer kids and neither was their core audience. They didn't need to look hip. They just needed to look good. Even if the photographs needed some touch up to hide the dark circles and bags under their eyes, Engstead pulled it off to good effect. Sadly, he passed away in 1984, just a few years after the shoot. Some in the industry say his session with Karen and Richard was actually his last photo shoot.
With so many great photographs to choose from for a cover (and the rest of the project including promotional materials), it is surprising that an illustrator was hired by the label to produce an album cover. Those in charge at A&M's art department picked artist David Willardson to represent Made in America. Even though I do not agree with their choice to use an illustration, for what they hoped to achieve, he was a great pick.
He's later go on to do album covers for The Spinners and Motley Crue.
Willardson was commissioned by art directors Chuck Beeson and Jeff Ayeroff, with design by Lynn Robb, to create a look for the cover that blended airbrushed art in a highly stylized, instantly recognizable, eye catching, patriotic theme. Perfect to stand out against the competition in the limited record store footage battles. The art directors thought this was a very good pairing for an album with "America" in its title.
"Carl and the Passions "So Tough".
Although he is now known mostly for artwork related to all things Disney, David did have at least one very impressive music project credential under his belt: The Beach Boys' "Carl and the Passions "So Tough" from 1972. What's more American than the country's answer to the Beatles?
Willardson's work is excellent, but there's one big problem: After being out of the public eye for so long, the real Karen and Richard needed to be seen. Christmas Portrait and Passage before it featured an illustrated version of the duo or abstract artwork (albeit excellent in both cases.) But seen the duo would be. A&M would even display the album cover in billboard form as it hovered over the company's lot.
A&M's promotion department went into overdrive to support the duo's new album. The incentive was obvious. There was money to be made and a career to save. Everyone had a personal interest in what could be made with Karen's golden voice and Richard's return. This could be the beginning of Phase Two of their already impressive career.
A party to launch a new chapter in their career.
The industry elite were treated to a party at the Bel-Air Hotel to launch the new album and to reintroduce the Carpenters to the public.
Celebrating the launch of Made in America with Herb.
In the midst of a lavish party celebrating the return of the duo, studio boss Herb Alpert presented them with awards representing their millions of sales all over the world. It had been ten months earlier that a more radiant looking Karen was married off, but behind the smile and the tan, she was now noticeably thinner and much less healthy.
MIA promotional postcard - from Rick-An Ordinary Fool
In the press kit for the album, it's noticeable that most all of the comments about the album and its creation are attributed to Richard.
Click on this image above. It's the full text from the promotional kit from A&M Records. Thanks to my friends at the A&M Corner forums for providing things like this!
Still plugging the album in Billboard's July 11 issue.
While the album was toward the bottom of the American sales charts,
it was already in the Top 20 in the U.K.
Here's a slice of the interview for the Made In America Press Kit:
"We've been classified as a classic California sound, I would have to agree with that... I select songs that hit me at the gut level and fit our style...best thing we've ever done. It's the combination of production, performance, engineering and material."
Billboard writer Paul Grein did a great interview (above) with Karen and Richard that was published for the magazine's July 4 issue. He wouldn't be the only fan in the industry putting his experience to good use during this time. I wonder how Phil Ramone felt about Karen's comments. My bet he was savvy enough to see Karen really had no choice to say anything than what she did.
Cut and paste job of three segments to the article in Cashbox.
Within weeks of the Made in America's release, A&M hired RSO Records' National Promotions Director Jon Konjoyan to take the same position. He had quite the experince behind him working during the years of the BeeGees greatest success as well as promoting Saturday Night Fever and Grease.
This was a personal success for Konjoyan as he was a huge fan of Karen and Richard. When I cover Lovelines later in this series, I'll speak about my incredible honor to meet Jon, Billboard writer and Carpenters fan Paul Grein, and my visit to A&M studios where I saw with my own eyes the cardboard pressing of Karen's solo album. What a blessing that was- one I'll always cherish.
In the middle of all the work on their comeback, you have to wonder why Karen and Richard were no where to be seen on television when the album was released. What was manager Jerry Weintraub doing? While he was the executive producer for Music, Music, Music the year before, when they needed him most in 1981, Jerry was busy producing the film All Night Long and working on the John Denver: Music and the Mountains television special. Did he no longer have any interest in resurrecting the duo's career or did he not make time for it? Wasn't that his job? Regardless, his lack of involvement was a huge management fail.
With good friend Casey Kasem of American Top 40.
In the Summer, I was about to receive another gift. It was one I never thought possible.
For my birthday in the middle of July, my girlfriend used her Kodak connections through her father to get us a prime table at Disneyland's very exclusive Club 33 above the park's New Orleans Square. It was a thrill for me, and it proved once again, that she really knew her man. To this day, we have a set of matches that was given us on our table.
With the first planned single stalled out at #16 and the album going down on the charts after a couple of months, things were about to get worse. (Want You) Back in My Life Again didn't light up the charts, so Those Good Old Dreams was released in December. Even with its Christmas themed lyrics, it performed only slightly better. The album and any future promotion was effectively finished. You'd think.
With MTV Music Television being kicked off on August 1, 1981, everything in the music world changed overnight. It was as big of an impact on the industry as it could have been at the time. Only Napster, i-tunes, and streaming would be more damaging, but that was later, if not decades away. Branding yourself became more important than ever before. Instantly, looks became just as important as talent. Maybe even more so. Strategy was needed for optimum presentation. All this made the Carpenters comeback even more difficult than it would have been a decade earlier. Karen was not very healthy, and it showed. Richard looked great as he was refreshed from three plus years of time off including rehab.
Touch Me When We're Dancing
Those Good Old Dreams
Beechwood 4-5789
To cut these, Karen and Richard used the A&M soundstage in June. The three videos above represent three attempts to put their best foot forward. Obviously, Touch Me succeeds best. The dark mood suits the song and allows some musical sensuality to come to the small screen. Although Richard looks relaxed and attractive, Karen just doesn't look like the woman the public saw a few years ago. Here, she looks much older than she was and even frail at times. If fans had a bit of a cancer scare with her in the 70s, this could have been even more alarming.
The second video, Those Good Old Dreams, is corny and even folksy with Mom and Dad showing up in the proceedings. Those appearances needed to stop! Nothing says "pop has-been" like bringing the parents in for promotion. A very different approach to the song was needed instead of what basically amounted to a personal memoire caught on film.
Lastly, the video for Beechwood is as poorly conceived as recording the song. The resource material demands this type of Grease era look and storyline. It's a disaster from every angle. Karen was too old to play a teenager, and the uninspired oldies concept was out of vogue by this point.
I've got more to share as the album's story isn't done yet, but this may be the best time to move to my review of the album. That said, here's my track-by-track assessment for Made in America as released:
One of the strongest cuts on the album is the opener. Those Good Old Dreams shimmers with the gentle optimism of a cool breeze on a hot day- and I like it oh so much- but it is still a weaker variant of 1973's Top of the World. The song's one of the few places Karen dips into that lower register. There's so much going on that she feels like just another ingredient in the mix versus the reason many people buy Carpenters albums.
Cashbox magazine had long been very positive about the Carpenters music, but with Those Good Old Dreams, the enthusiasm wavers more than a bit in this November 21 review of the single:
"Skipping high hat and light, bright acoustic guitar picking in front of a pop symphonic string ensemble gives this latest offering from the Made In America LP that unmistakably sugary Carpenters sound."
Here, they are somewhat nicer about the album but still- ""America's favorite brother and sister team of a few years back is in fine fettle after a long hiatus from the studio. Don't expect a massive directional change from the Close To You days, though. Richard Carpenter's production is clean and modern, but the duo's strength remains its sprite, floating harmonies and A/C pop stylings. Karen and Richard's material here should fare well with adult contemporary and pop programmers considering the current American fervor for middle of the road acts."
Those Good Old Dreams was the third new single from the album, but it feels like the emotional core of the album with its pure, optimistic tone and very frothy arrangement. Those devoted fans who have often thought Richard should score a Disney film can point to Those Good Old Dreams as a solid example. If you strip away Karen's vocals, there is an absolutely gorgeous musical track. I really like the song, and I want to believe the lyrics. (“I believe; help my unbelief!”) As I said, this is truly one of the collection's best cuts, but it is not Top 40 single material. Not in the least.
first recorded Strength of A Woman in 1980.
Mining music from R&B artists has yielded a good number of hits for the duo, and I always found this much to my liking. Moving beyond the Marvelettes and Postman, Ruby & The Romantics gave them some great success with Hurting Each Other and Our Day Will Come (and the later to be heard Your Baby Doesn't Love You Anymore). More recently in their career, I Believe You came from singer Dorothy Moore before Richard retooled it for their late '78 single. Richard found another hidden gem from the genre for the new album.
Strength of A Woman was first recorded by singer Eloise Laws on her 1980 debut album. Her version is a mid-tempo R&B jam complete with swirling strings, but Richard wisely slows it down to bring out all of its emotional and musical impact.
This controversial song has an interesting origin story, showing that Richard was listening to the radio even if he was winding down to his long deserved break and then coming back out of it. The duo who composed the song seems like a one shot success story. Not much at all is found about Strength's other co-writer Phyllis Brown, but Curiel had one big appearance on the American music scene before this. She was part of a Los Angeles based girl group Hot. Their one big hit was in 1977 with Angel in Your Arms. It was a million seller that peaked at Number 6 on the Billboard Top 40. It also reached the Top Ten on the Easy Listening aka Adult Contemporary charts. Strength of a Woman was written by Curiel and Brown a couple of years and recorded by Eloise Laws after Hot was commercially cold.
In a promotional audio clip for Record Town, Richard had this to say about Strength of A Woman: "....the first time I heard, I knew it was made for Karen and me to record...."
In his hand, it's just a much better record than the original R&B number. If Those Good Old Dreams brings memories of Top of the World, my very first listen to Strength reminded me of Superstar with its intro and arrangement. It still does, even though they're both two totally different records. The drama is definitely there. Karen is so soft in the stanzas, and that's part of the allure. I love that part of her voice. Not as much as those deep notes Karen's famous for, but I do really like the way she uses that whisper style as well.
I know many other hard core fans do not share my enthusiasm for it, but I have to say I agree with Richard here. If I had to select one number on this album as my personal favorite, this would be it. Still, the weaknesses in this record are very apparent.
Richard gets top billing.
It is clear in this story that there is trouble in paradise. The provocative lyrics are like nothing Karen had ever sung. No artist would sing lyrics like these 40 years later, that's for sure. Because of these words, the recording is stuck in a time capsule of sorts. Secondly, the background vocals by the "Carpettes" are forceful and anthemic- perhaps too much so as Karen is drowned out by the other singers- but the arrangement and orchestration are the costars which bring a bit of balance.
Again, I'm in the minority, but I just love this song. I see and hear the problems, but Karen's voice wins me over once more.
The record features Daryl Dragon of Captain & Tennille
and Ian Underwood of the Mothers of Invention on keyboards.
After two songs that reminded me of their earlier and stronger hits, the next cut did not remind me of the Carpenters at all. That's not a bad thing. The record needed at least one selection that didn't rehash past success. Interestingly, the songwriters of (Want You) Back in My Life Again have a couple of interesting connections to the duo.
Besides being an artist himself,
Chris has also written for Elvis Presley, Marilyn McCoo and Amy Grant among others.
Written by artist Chris Christian and Terry Chater, the song had been recorded a couple of times before Richard selected it for Made in America. Contemporary Christian Music artist Chris, and his once better known songwriting partner Kerry (formerly of Gary Puckett & The Union Gap- perhaps best known for their 1968 hit Young Girl), crafted quite the catchy little number with one relentless rhythmic hook. Regardless of its charms, the song remained relatively unknown, making it ripe for a stronger arrangement and production- with said hook later left intact.
In an interview with his hometown paper, The Abilene Reporter News, (read it here) Chris reveals he had met Karen and Richard after they played a concert there a few years before they began recording their comeback album. His career began when he was part of a trio put together by record executive Mike Curb. In another connection to Karen and Richard, Chris had previously written Love You Hold The Key with Olivia Newton-John recording it in 1974.
Kerry Chater also wrote many other songs, all to varying degrees of success. Perhaps my personal favorite composition is You Look So Good In Love, a Number One Country Hit in 1983 by the incredible George Strait. Just a few years prior, and we find that his Love on a Shoestring was recorded by Captain & Tennille in 1980. There's just one more Carpenters connection here that I could find: Kerry passed away in 2022 on February 4th.
But back to the record.
Daryl Dragon of Captain & Tennille plays on Want You Back in My Life Again- and so does Ian Underwood of Frank Zappa's original make up of his Mothers of Invention! I think it would have been fun to have a credited or uncredited Toni Tennille sing background vocals. Might have given the song a whole different flavor or made more DJs give it a spin out of curiosity.
On first listen, Back in My Life Again was fun, but I thought this one sounded like someone had lifted Karen's voice and placed it on a reject track from a Doobie Brothers project. Many other artists had already incorporated the their sound for a quick hit. When Karen and Richard jumped on this bandwagon as well, it signaled to pop radio that the Carpenters had lost their way and were unable to create a hit record with their own unique sound. I think the public heard it too, and they might even have had enough of the copycat sound by then. The song stalled out, and Those Good Old Dreams was rush released as the next single.
Just one more sidetone of interest: Want You Back in My Life Again uses the same ending as found on Only Yesterday on Live at Budokan in 1976, much like Those Good Old Dreams copied the ending of You’re Just in Love.
The sheet music.
Co-wriiten by Chris Christian, an artist with a strong connection to Mike Curb.
(Want You) Back in My Life Again is airy, light and full of flourishes. Karen is lost in the mess of it all. The record's an enjoyable listen and the most engaging upbeat number on the disc, but somewhere beneath the layers of its fluffy production, there is a hit record there with plenty of hooks... at least I think there is.
A single in Brazil too.
On its own and if recorded by someone else, (Want You) Back in My Life Again isn't a bad record. But this is the exact moment Richard and Karen went from creating trends to merely following them. It was the year Carpenters became just another band with a pleasant sounding lead singer.
Next up is When You Got What It Takes. A very pretty Roger Nichols song which has its origins as a Kodak commercial. You can hear it here. Remember Kacey Cisyk? That's her voice on the commercial and it's also her voice found on the title tune of the soundtrack version of You Light Up My Life back in 1977. Stacks of soft vocals are the star here. Again, it's pleasant enough, but that is the problem with most of this album. Much like fluffy pink cotton candy, it's quite pretty but not substantial. If there were very strong songs on this album, I'd easily accept this number as secondary support.
I wish Karen had insisted on a prenuptial agreement to ferret out his real intentions.
Made in America is largely a one-note album. It sounds a lot alike, one cut from the next. The closer to Side One on the vinyl is Somebody's Been Lyin', a Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager composition. The tune may carry the same string heavy Easy Listening arrangement as many of the other songs, but the stinging lyrics make it unique.
Somebody's been lying
Somebody's been calling me
Telling me he still loves me
But not the way I thought it would be
He's making fun of me
And laughing at my dreams
And I know that he keeps
Saying not to worry
He's telling me to just hold on, but he's not here to lean on
And words won't warm my bed, now he's gone
It isn't easy letting go of what we had
And I guess I'm just scared
And I still believe him
I'd be wiser to go on my own way
Somebody's been lyin'
And I know you're telling me
Only the things you want to
I guess I lie as much as you do
It seems so funny letting go of yesterday
Guess we're much too afraid
And we're much too alone
Were we just too much in love?
A full minute worth of instrumental music concludes the song. One whole minute. While certainly beautiful, it does not contribute to a contemporary feel for the album nor does it place the emphasis on the singer. The focal point is the symphonic arrangement. Karen's just part of the package.
Thinner and thinner.
I don't fully agree with Mr. B about Karen's part in it all, but I won't deny Richard's incredible arranging. It is quite beautiful- but the song does not belong on a comeback Pop album when there's only so much time to communicate your group is still relevant.
Side One ends here. The five new songs are very nice, very pretty, but nothing jumps out as material that would be played on an all hit radio station. As individual cuts, each would make strong filler for different albums. Perhaps Side Two is stronger?
After a whole side of highly processed, overly refined music, I Believe You sounds positively dark, moody, and even compelling in contrast to everything else on the disc. This 1978 track even sounds like a hit in comparison. And hear this clearly: I am not even close to a big fan of this song. The weight and intensity of Karen's voice is stark next to every selection that comes before, and unfortunately, after it as well. But that's also why it doesn't fit the album. It's a very nice change of pace, but it is one selection that instead reminds you just how great the duo used to be in their heyday.
Interestingly, there's a rumor that Richard recorded a track with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to add I Believe You in the album with the same name. The rumor continues with the thought that the new version was entirely different than the version we hear on Made in America, much softer, quieter, and without the strong drums. All this in addition to cutting the length of the song down by a full minute or so.
Following the hit worthy Touch Me is one of the most beautiful of all the Carpenters country flavored songs. When It's Gone (It's Just Gone) is classic pop county when you want a silkier, Summer time sound. In that same Record Town audio promo, Karen notes regarding When It's Gone, it was "...one of the first recorded for the album, we couldn't wait to get to it...." She never pushes her voice here, and on this tune, that approach is a perfect fit for the lilting melody line. Karen even plays secondary drums on this number, and this would be the last time she'd pick up the sticks for a recording. A sad note to end a look at this great find and a very strong album cut.
After three respectably strong songs in a row, this comeback album ends with two major misfires: Beechwood 4-5789 and Because We Are In Love (The Wedding Song). I normally skip these when I do play the album.
Another Marvelettes remake that loses out in the instant comparison to Please Mr. Postman. There's no punch, no grit, no passion. From the opening lines to its end, the record's a mistake. Trusted friend, Karen's old boyfriend, and record label head Mike Curb told her so as quoted in Randy Schmidt's book Little Girl Blue:
“I’ve gotta play a song for you,” Karen told him. “You’ll get a kick of out it. It is really fun! It’ll bring back memories.” After playing the recording of “Beechwood 4-5789” down the phone line she asked, “So, what do you think of this as a single?”
Curb was encouraging and unable to bring himself to tell her it lacked Top 40 potential. “That was the last song she played for me,” he says. Whereas “Postman” was a case of the right song at the right time, “There’s a Kind of Hush” was overkill, and remaking the Marvelettes’ “Beechwood 4-5789” was a waste.
The photo used for the inside sleeve of the album.
But without the famous Carpenters logo.
Motown is a very American sound, so there's no other album post 1981 where the Beechwood remake would fit - other than a rarities or a thematic collection like Japan's Sweet Memories, so I guess it belongs here. But it hasn't worn well. Karen's "Oh baby!" and "La, La, La"s grate on the nerves, making a poor choice even worse. With its teeny bopper lyrics, the song does not match the more grown up themes of relationships found on the collection, making it even more out of place on this album if that were possible.
Richard and Karen may look up to the times on the album insert and the other photos taken for the project, but this song is a throwback that should never have happened. The very sad accompanying video is an embarrassment as well. Karen looks horrible even if Richard doesn't. All this makes their comeback even less appealing.
Drummer Ron (Ronnie) Tutt played with Elvis from 1969-1977 but also with Neil Diamond.
He's found on Passage as well but seen here on Beechwood 45789 video.
My wife and I went to church with him in the 80s, but I never met the guy.
What can I say about Because We Are In Love (The Wedding Song)? Rock critics long complained the duo's music was lacking authenticity. On this number, the last one of nine new songs, Karen and Richard add fuel to the argument of their detractors. This song sung by Karen at her wedding may have been added to increase potential sales, but what a mistake to include it. Overblown, flamboyant, showy. The restraint I so appreciate in her vocals is tossed aside for something befitting a very bad Off Broadway show. Those lyrics are oh too sugary sweet. Lyricist John Bettis had written much better words than these. Because We Are In Love (The Wedding Song) is everything a Carpenters record never was and just shouldn't be.
The song is another fantasy with Karen singing both parts as a bride to be and her wise mother. Much like the marriage itself, the song is fatally flawed. And given the way the union played out, years later the song leaves a sour aftertaste to the collection every time it is played.
From Billboard
Made in America was intended to signal a new era for Karen and Richard. In some ways, it's a spiritual successor of sorts to A Kind of Hush, but it's much less honest and certainly not as successful. The disc is pretty, but it's got a very manufactured sound with little variety.
In a break with the more recent past, there's no power ballad here, nothing with a Tony Peluso guitar melodically breaking the drama with even more drama. In another break with their past, Karen is mostly singing in a much higher key. That's something Richard didn't seem to mind here even if he abhorred it on Karen's solo album. The album shimmers and shines, but it is as insubstantial as Karen's diminishing frame. As a whole, the project just lacks energy.
The collection didn't destroy their legacy, but it definitely hurt it. By this time in late 1981 without a follow up hit to Touch Me, Made in America turned out to be a stop gap until the next and far better album came along. Unfortunately, the public and industry goodwill earned by the comeback would be wasted, and the album would be the last one released while Karen was alive.
Two month's after the album's release, Karen and Richard kicked off an ambitious and grueling 3 month tour. In some ways it had to be a relief for her to be away from Burris, as the marriage lasted as long as the song she sang at the wedding. Years later, Richard later revealed it was already over even if divorce papers had not been filed.
Thanks to newvillefan at the A&M Corner forums, I had the complete touring schedule to promote the album, and I used this for additional research. As you'll see, it was brutal in its intensity.
The duo kicked things off in home town Los Angeles.
Toward the end of August, the 22nd to be exact, was the infamous live Japanese Telethon to reintroduce the band and bring support for a Japanese charity that ministered to special needs children. It was on the A&M lot.
Special guests were the label's Ray Parker Jr. (who appeared on the 1977 album Passage) and The Brothers Johnson. Bass player brother Louis played on Karen's solo album. I wonder if they ever had some private conversation about how things played out.
Tans and smiles. Richard looks great.
Karen's deconstructing even if that smile is still around.
Thanks to Billy Rees, here is the telethon.
The event was significant enough to be covered in Billboard in their September 26 issue (below).
The fan club reported on the event as well in the newsletter dated September 1981:
"The A&M soundstage and parking lot was the setting for a variety musical concert as various musical artists participated in a live telethon being transmitted by satellite to Japan August 22nd. Some artists performed inside the sound stage, but Herb Alpert played his 'Music Man' in the parking lot, which had been cleverly transformed into a concert arena...after waiting to see the closing act...Richard and Karen emerged looking just terrific....accompanied by Tony Peluso, Gary Sims and Bob Messenger. Alas, about halfway through their performance, a technical fault developed--the technicians lost the audio and so ended the performance. It was a disappointing finale, but great to see the group in good form...."
On the Merv Griffin show.
Appreciative fan and major television mogul Merv Griffin hosted a special event on his talk show for Olivia Newton-John. Naturally, she invited Karen and Richard as well as good friend John Travolta. The show aired on October 2.
The duo performed Want You Back in My Life Again. The highlight might have been the conversation where Karen details her overnight experience on Catalina Island at the "Hotel Dumpwater". Her humor and charm are in full force, bringing a very cute response from Olivia. You could tell their friendship was the real thing and not for show. Richard seemed to struggle to stay in the middle of the conversation. Honestly, I felt sorry for him. At one point, Karen rolls her eyes after he speaks, making me think he was crashing the party. Poor guy.
Good Morning America's David Hartman interviewed the duo on October 9 in New York. He was gracious and business like but kind. A more serious minded interview coming up would not be their friend.
By the middle of October, when the Karen and Richard took off for the European part of the promotional tour, it was already very obvious that she was not healthy. The smile is there, but there really is nothing to her body.
Whereas the Fall of 1971 brought the Carpenters entourage to Paris and the duo's star was shining brightly in the States, a decade later, it was an entirely different story. They seemed desperate and lost.
Karen's live vocal of Touch Me When We're Dancing on the popular Palmarès show (the 14th of the month) was shocking in just how bad she sounded. Yes, you read those words correctly. Her voice was as thin and weak as she looked. Struggling for each breath, it's a good thing they had selected a song that did not need her long lower notes. (It was several years ago I first saw the video of this performance. I do not want to remember Karen in this way at all, but I do hope this clip is preserved as a reminder to those who struggle with this eating disorder - and those who love them- that this is very serious stuff.)
Bottom photo is per Billboard.
Less than a week later, they appeared with Julio Iglesias on October 19th on Numero Un. Karen and Richard performed decade old favorite Top Of The World, and then they did a duet with Julio on Sing. Interestingly, neither performance has ever been found on any internet video services. Were these live or prerecorded? Regardless, I'd love to hear them and how Karen sounded with Julio.
One day later, on October 20th, Touch Me was lip synched on Dutch television show Top Pop in Amsterdam. My bet is Karen and Richard both were relieved to not have her sing live to the studio track. Close up shots of Karen reveal how much she had aged due to the abuse of her body.
The Mies performance (above) was also to the full prerecorded version of Touch Me. The lighting is particularly bad on this show. Most of the time Richard is left behind in the background and not even lit properly. I mean, let's give the guy some respect, right?
KC and Itchy in London.
In many ways, the U.K. and London in particular were great places for Karen and Richard to perform. In the second half of their career, the duo's records sold better there than they did in the U.S., and tickets to concert performances sold out incredibly fast. They were generally quite beloved. Even HRH Queen Elizabeth II was a fan. When Karen became quite ill in the Fall of 1975, a tour to the U.K. was cancelled including a Royal Command Performance at her request. It was, unfortunately, never rescheduled.
This visit, the loving sweetness of the U.K.'s fans was powerfully counter balanced by the rude, shocking, and quite insensitive interview at the hands of Nationwide's Sue Lawley. The journalist decided to go the sensationalist route and doggedly chased after Karen with questions regarding her health and anorexia. It was self serving on her part, and I will not post any kind of link to this heartless and cold episode. We all have things in our lives which make us squirm. Perhaps it's our shortcomings, our character flaws obvious to those around us, or even hidden sin, but Ms. Lawley lacked true human decency in the way she treated Karen all in the name of journalism. We do not have to say everything we are thinking. Much like Paul Simon's words to Karen about her solo album (see what he said and that review here), many things are better left unsaid.
The rather strange Swap Shop interview.
Thanks to Billy Rees for an incredible channel!
Thankfully, that fiasco of an interview on October 22 was followed by a lovely time at Harrods signing albums, and an interview on Swap Shop with the much classier Noel Edmonds. The icing on the cake had to be dinner with friends Peter & Barbara Knight. Other interviews during their time in London included a BBC radio interview with John Dunn and later with Tony Blackburn (Radio interview here), and even later with Capital Radio's Michael Aspel.
Germany was next and last before they went on to Brazil. As you can see during Show Express (Billy Rees has the crystal clear video again here), Karen looks absolutely skeletal. The close ups early in the clip betray any sense of health she tried to portray.
Touring Brazil's Sugar Loaf Mountain. With Itchy.
The last leg of the tour, the duo chose to go to Brazil. Itchy was there alongside Karen, shown in the first photo of this group. The schedule was no less forgiving at this point. As given to me from newvillefan, it broke out this way:
"November 1st - Arrive Brazil
November 2nd - Press interviews
November 3rd - Radio interviews, Generation 80s Show (Close To You, Begun, Back In My Life Again medley), Golden Globe (Touch Me When We're Dancing)
November 4th - Radio interviews, Sao Paulo
November 5th - filming Fantastico Show @ Sugarloaf Mountain, Brazil (Touch Me When We're Dancing), Sendas Shopping Mall Concert (Close To You, Back In My Life Again)
November 6th - Press interviews
November 7th - Radio interview/appearance, depart Brazil"
This schedule in Brazil was also demanding, proving once again, that for all the negative things critics could say about Karen and Richard, "lazy" was certainly not one of them. I was tired just reading their schedule.
Composite of January 16, 1982 Cashbox article
about the duo in Brazil.
I don't think I've ever before seen
the three of them photographed together.
By the time the duo were wrapping up the promotional tour, I was a newly engaged man. My wife to be accepted my (unintentionally lame but totally serious) proposal. My heart was at once excited, calm, and extremely thankful to God for bringing me a wonderful woman. As of this publishing date, we will have been married 44 years. It wouldn't be until a month before our wedding when I'd realize the connection between the two Valentine's Days- one of love lost and one of love found- but that would only add to the sense of awe that God can and often does redeem all things.
Smiling until the end...
Interviews showed that Karen and Richard would soon return to the studio and begin recording for a new album. They wanted everyone to know there was not going to be another long break. Instead, Karen went to New York for treatment, finally acknowledging her anorexia even if she was not fully disclosing every method she used to remain thin.
... but still a skeletal Karen.
Little did she know the end of her life
was just around the corner.
Perhaps at Karen's insistence and with nothing new to release at the beginning of a new year, the schmaltzy Beechwood 4-5789 was put out as a single on March 1, 1982- Karen's birthday. It effectively bombed, landing in the deeper bottom quarter of the Billboard Hot 100. Finding this fact that she was the one who insisted on its release astounded me. After her insight and wisdom and bravery that her solo album would help toward keeping the duo effectively current, the fact she'd choose such an old school, "been there done that" recording as a single was odd at best. Maybe she'd lost confidence in herself when her solo project was denied release. Maybe she just loved the way it turned out. Who knows why? Regardless, releasing this oldie was a very poor decision.
Karen's solo project idea was as worthy a try as anything she did with Richard from 1976 onward. Richard played it very safe with Made in America while Karen took big risks creating her solo project. Each did what they thought was right in their own eyes. I don't blame either of them for attempting to salvage their career, but in my opinion, Made in America is a much weaker album than Karen Carpenter. By far.
Made in America did not crack the top half of the Billboard album charts peaking at a mere 52, but it had far greater success in the U.K. where it just missed the Top Ten. However, it disappeared from those charts rather quickly. The lead single Touch Me missed the American Top Twenty- stuck at #16 for four weeks- but the album's three follow up singles did much worse, peaking in the lower 60s and 70s.
John Bettis fared better than the duo in 1981.
The Billboard December 26, 1981 end of year tallies were not the most encouraging. The numbers read as if this was a new group breaking onto the charts for the first time and not a superstar duo that was at the top of the charts only a few years ago.
On the flip side of it all, Richard's songwriting partner John Bettis had a pretty great year, and the best was yet to come. Take a glance at this ad (above) and look at his accomplishments. Pretty incredible.
Creatively, from a sales perspective, and from a personal ranking of them, Made in America is entrenched in the bottom third of the duo's albums. About half the new cuts had great bones, but they were buried under layers of production. Striving to be both contemporary and classic, it achieved neither. It's not a bad album, but as one meant to launch their comeback, it's just not the right one! It's a collection that is for existing fans, but it's not one that would earn Karen and Richard new ones.
For all its many flaws, yes, Made in America is a very pretty album! That's good for fans. However, I think there’s a big difference between an album that’s a fun listen and one that would make a big dent on the Pop charts. Instead of leading, Made in America follows trends and copies best selling artists around them- including the Carpenters copying themselves but far less successfully. It's an ethereal sounding album, something very different from anything they'd done before, but it does have an eye squarely focused on the past.
Perhaps it would have been a better album for later in their career if Karen hadn't passed. But for 1981, they needed an album with a few hits, and Made in America isn't it. Maybe the album as released would have made a beautiful disc with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. But years later, not in the 80s. Then at the quieter stage of their career, Richard could have fully leaned into the lush strings and complex arrangements found on the Made in America album as it was released.
Fans aren't the only one to continually reassess this album during its forty years. Richard himself has done the same- several times. Early on, it was a favorite, but later on his impression is the album hasn't aged well at all. As I said at the very beginning of this piece, deep reflection bring a more objective perspective.
Like Made in America itself, the first and last cuts on the album are dreams that never came true. It wasn't a new day for those good old dreams nor would the happy marriage materialize. Both fresh success and true love were out of reach for the beloved singer, with a very sad ending just around the corner. The marriage was already troubled by the time of the album's release, and Karen continued to fade away.
Because the "Revisited" series covers music from decades past, this has been the saddest chapter to write so far. The contrast between what was presented to the public and what was going on behind the scenes was truly enormous. Their story was not quite over. My story was much happier than it had been in years. Only God's faithfulness...
SPECIAL NOTE: Come back to the Insights and Sounds blog on June 16 for a "Part Two" of Carpenters Revisited: A Fresh Look at Made in America.
Thanks to everyone on the A&M Corner forums who contributed quotes and images regarding this disc.
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This is part of a continuing series on the albums of Karen and Richard Carpenter. There are so many stand alone posts highlighting different aspects of their career, recordings, rare photographs, and life that I've lost count.
Below is the list of my "Revisited /Fresh Look" reviews and then my initial ones a decade earlier. Each have different photos and clippings.
My Revisited / Fresh Look at the albums:
My Initial Reviews of the albums:
2 comments:
Incredible Mark, epic read, honest, interspersed with heartwarming personal experiences! Looking forward to June 18th. JA
Thank you, JA! It almost wore me out. I was "this close" to not finishing it!
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