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Maybe after the very experimental Passage, Richard felt their traditional sound would reintroduce them to their audience.
I am not sure this album really was the tried and tested formula... They needed to branch out and they were trying... I just think there could have been a slightly better way to branch - without falling into the trap of a 1980 time-branded sound.
It may be just me, but nothing in 1980 seemed to stick... From synthesizers to parachute pants, much of the 80's shtick was kind of forgettable for me.
The statement of manager Weintraub seems to have warped Richard's outlook:
"You are the Perry Como's of today"
Nothing against Mr. Como, as I love some of his music; be that as it may,
Carpenters' went from 1970 pop music "trendsetters" to irrelevant within the decade.
Appearing on the syndicated Merv Griffin Show in 1981, but no longer on Johnny Carson.
Thus, I wonder, even if the songs had been better (and, especially better arrangement-wise)
on Made In America would that television promotion for the album have improved ?
From "live" in 1973 Carson, to lip-syncing in 1981 on Griffin;
by 1981 a caricature of themselves.
Here's what goes through my mind:
suppose Karen Carpenter had done a live rendition of
When It's Gone on that ABC Interview in late 1981,
in the same 'unplugged' rendition as I Need To Be In Love, from December 1978.
If audiences had seen and heard that, then, it would hopefully have made USA audiences
more receptive to Carpenters !
Great point, and I really think that had a lot to with his obsession over being 'perfect'. Obsessionals/perfectionists tend to focus on the things that they feel they can come close to mastering (and ultimately "live with") when performing a task. However, the reluctancy to venture outside of that for fear of failure makes attempting something brand new and different, almost impossible. I think for Richard it was easier to roll the dice on something he was comfortable with, knowing that if he was criticized for rehashing a sound that was all too familiar, at least he couldn't say he didn't do it with some form of mastery or perfection.
You know, perhaps I am over analyzing the nuances of the arrangements from when this album was recorded. I think it may be because this was the last recorded effort of new material - - released while both Karen & Richard were both here.I'd say this is a subjective take - you could make a similar case against much if the music/fashion of the 1970s being dated and forgettable if you were so minded.
I really don't see much evidence on Made in America of them trying to branch out in terms of their sound. The only two exceptions are 'Touch Me When We're Dancing' (which was along the right lines, although almost derailed by its overblown chorus) and 'Back in My Life Again' (which suffers from bad production and too timid use of synths - if you're going to go there, you might as well commit properly to making that jump). The rest of the tracks all sound to me as if they could have been recorded anytime from 1976 onwards.
In fairness, it's not always easy for all acts to adapt to new musical evolutions - synths didn't suit everyone, although I'd say this was a bigger challenge for R&B acts than pop acts to tackle in the 1980s. Ironically, I think if the Carpenters had gone right back to the more 'direct' style of their early 1970s hits (thus dropping some of the bad MOR habits they'd picked up along the way, like the overuse of the oboe) and back to using their own backing vocals, with a bit of tweaking and aiming more at the pop market than the AC market, they could have made more commercial headway than they did with Made in America.
This is probably the best explanation I've ever seen for why MIA sounds the way it does. Honestly, the first time I heard "Say Yeah" on "Time", I thought Richard did an unexpectedly good job of bringing 1980s textures into a Carpenters production. It doesn't solve the everlasting image problem, but I do think he had it in him to produce contemporary sounds. And he must have had some confidence in it, to lead off his first solo LP with that track.
And, too, as far as the Richard Carpenter brilliance,
How Could I Ask For More and Something In Your Eyes
are both excellent pop songs: composition, lyric, arrangement and production.
As with Mark, this LP has been spinning a lot, lately, on my turntable.
And, as with Chris May, I, too, ..."sort of get it..."
However, be that as it may:
(1) I Believe You was completed in 1978, therefore, only nine songs needed selecting for inclusion on this LP.
And, too, this song was arranged by Paul Riser.
Thus, we get another nine songs where "Richard is recharged and ready to go with his music..."
(2) Karen requested Because We Are In Love be written for her wedding (1980),
it being arranged by Peter Knight. Had the wedding not transpired, would the song ever have been written ?
Would Richard ...."being recharged"...have written anything else at this point in time ? Who knows.
(3) Those Good Old Dreams, even here, as has been noted elsewhere, reminiscent of Top Of The World.
(4) 'Got What It Takes, a Roger Nichols tune, noted by Richard to be reminiscent of I Kept On Loving You.
(5) Touch Me When We're Dancing had been in release by the group 'Bama a year prior.
Here, too, the arrangement is not so far from that released by Bama.
(6) Strength of A Woman, had been in release a year , or so, earlier, here again a similar arrangement.
(7) When It's Gone, not being in a previous release by any artist that I am aware of,
might be the One song with an entirely new arrangement by Richard Carpenter.
(8) Beechwood 4-5789, here, again, an arrangement not totally distant from the original,
and reminiscent of Postman.
(9) Want You Back In My Life Again, a song which had gotten single release by another artist,
a year or so, earlier.
(10) Somebody's Been Lyin'....Sager and Bacharach, again hoping for 'lightning in a bottle',
a nice song, but, hardly on par with previous Bacharach melodies, let alone Close To You.
And, the arrangement, production, far too overblown.
Thus, even in retrospect, I am dubious as to what it means to say Richard Carpenter was recharged
and ready to go......that is, what Richard means when he makes the statement...
No offense to anyone, as I love some of these songs (and, I like the others)
but, even in its own time (when I first heard the LP in 1981) I knew something was amiss.
Exactly what is amiss, that has been the question since that time.....
Thanks, Chris May for clarifying Richard's import when it comes to album production.
And, I do understand that much goes on behind the scenes and that a Carpenters' song
is considerably more complex than is usually understood.
However, I merely consider that according to 1973's Billboard article, an album normally
took three months to "complete," and by 1975's Horizon that time had taken up to six months.
Passage was back down to "three months" to complete (the Liner Notes), and Christmas Portrait
was "in the can" by end of July 1978 (Fan Club Notes).
Thus, effectively from late-1978 to early-1981 Richard Carpenter was--or, had the time to--
re-charge his musical batteries. Of course, as he states, it only took a few weeks and he was
"cured" of his ailment, so, I still must wonder how his production values were refreshed as
evidenced on Made In America.
In the A&M press kit Richard mentions his "growth," and that is what is lacking.(IMHO)
His string arrangements are noteworthy on Made In America, but, to my ears,
the signature background vocals are not as well-produced, nor are the drum arrangements.
On the positive side, the left-overs (those from the MIA sessions) which surfaced on Lovelines,
are brilliant ! (Arrangements, which I presume which were done long after 1981).
There are such sparks of brilliance on Made In America, simply too few and too far between.