Anyone read this?

Enjoyed your post, Mark. It seems that whenever I read of a fan having an interaction with Karen, it is always mentioned how down-to-earth, genuinely friendly, and gracious she was. I thought it interesting as to you being in the audience that night; there was no doubt who the star was. That realization must of weighed heavy on Karen as well.
 
That is a GREAT observation! One I had not thought of but one that certainly makes me think about the long term consequences.
 
Enjoyed your post, Mark. It seems that whenever I read of a fan having an interaction with Karen, it is always mentioned how down-to-earth, genuinely friendly, and gracious she was. I thought it interesting as to you being in the audience that night; there was no doubt who the star was. That realization must of weighed heavy on Karen as well.
What a great story! It’s those memories that carry through life. Through the years, I remember reading several on here. It would be nice if they could all be in one collection!
 
August 2,2017
Nice article, nice photos, Thanks UK:
The Carpenters – 10 of the best
Excerpt:
"The Carpenters – 10 of the best.....
With Karen’s silky-smooth, heartfelt vocals and Richard’s genius as a songwriter and arranger,
the brother-and-sister duo pioneered melodic, melancholic pop"
".....9.
B’wana She No Home......

Stung by criticism of the band’s undercooked A Kind of Hush, which Richard later admitted was below par due to his dependence on prescription drugs, the band brought out their most experimental album Passage in 1977. It was an expansive collection of unexpected versions of other people’s songs, while production duties were again taken care of by Richard, who claimed he couldn’t get anyone else to sign on. Opener B’wana She No Home, written by jazz singer Michael Franks, was, according to one critic, “Karen trying to answer criticism that she is so white she is invisible”. While derided at the time, fresh ears suggest B’wana She No Home is a worthy addition to the Carpenters’ canon, bold and unusually danceable, with a smattering of conga and percussion to give it some pep. It’s the sound of session musicians being set free and often errs into dark places, but it always manages to remain in the vicinity of good taste."
 
August 2,2017
Nice article, nice photos, Thanks UK:
The Carpenters – 10 of the best
Excerpt:
"The Carpenters – 10 of the best.....
With Karen’s silky-smooth, heartfelt vocals and Richard’s genius as a songwriter and arranger,
the brother-and-sister duo pioneered melodic, melancholic pop"
".....9.
B’wana She No Home......

Stung by criticism of the band’s undercooked A Kind of Hush, which Richard later admitted was below par due to his dependence on prescription drugs, the band brought out their most experimental album Passage in 1977. It was an expansive collection of unexpected versions of other people’s songs, while production duties were again taken care of by Richard, who claimed he couldn’t get anyone else to sign on. Opener B’wana She No Home, written by jazz singer Michael Franks, was, according to one critic, “Karen trying to answer criticism that she is so white she is invisible”. While derided at the time, fresh ears suggest B’wana She No Home is a worthy addition to the Carpenters’ canon, bold and unusually danceable, with a smattering of conga and percussion to give it some pep. It’s the sound of session musicians being set free and often errs into dark places, but it always manages to remain in the vicinity of good taste."

I notice the list stopped after 1977, suggesting they thought there was nothing on Made In America to write home about.
 
August 2,2017
Nice article, nice photos, Thanks UK:
The Carpenters – 10 of the best
Excerpt:
"The Carpenters – 10 of the best.....
With Karen’s silky-smooth, heartfelt vocals and Richard’s genius as a songwriter and arranger,
the brother-and-sister duo pioneered melodic, melancholic pop"
".....9.
B’wana She No Home......

Stung by criticism of the band’s undercooked A Kind of Hush, which Richard later admitted was below par due to his dependence on prescription drugs, the band brought out their most experimental album Passage in 1977. It was an expansive collection of unexpected versions of other people’s songs, while production duties were again taken care of by Richard, who claimed he couldn’t get anyone else to sign on. Opener B’wana She No Home, written by jazz singer Michael Franks, was, according to one critic, “Karen trying to answer criticism that she is so white she is invisible”. While derided at the time, fresh ears suggest B’wana She No Home is a worthy addition to the Carpenters’ canon, bold and unusually danceable, with a smattering of conga and percussion to give it some pep. It’s the sound of session musicians being set free and often errs into dark places, but it always manages to remain in the vicinity of good taste."
Nice.
I could hear B’wana She No Home on Karen's solo album, the song is so edgy and sexy really unlike any Carpenters song which is why I could easily see a version like this on her solo album.
 
Agree, but real estate in California is not grounded in reality...$20m to Mathew Perry is "chump change". The residuals he is getting from "Friends" reruns and all the DVD sales are unGodly. Not bad for a Canadian "blow" addict (reformed, I hear, God bless him!). Actually, I like his new show on CBS, The Odd Couple, I think he's hilarious on it. I haven't seen it for awhile, I hope it's not cancelled :sad:!
 
"Top 10 David Spade moments in comedic genius history"
...#1. .....

Sing along scene from "Tommy Boy": This list could have probably been all "Tommy Boy" scenes, that's how beloved the cult classic film is. Nothing quite captures the duo's chemistry like them rolling down the highway in a wreck of a car singing The Carpenters' "Superstar." ......

More:
Top 10 David Spade moments in comedic genius history | VailDaily.com
 
"Top 10 David Spade moments in comedic genius history"
...#1. .....

Sing along scene from "Tommy Boy": This list could have probably been all "Tommy Boy" scenes, that's how beloved the cult classic film is. Nothing quite captures the duo's chemistry like them rolling down the highway in a wreck of a car singing The Carpenters' "Superstar." ......

More:
Top 10 David Spade moments in comedic genius history | VailDaily.com

Thanks for bringing this up, GaryAlan. I am a big fan of the movie and that was a great scene. The scene was hilarious yet in a way touching. It showed "The Carpenters" in a good light. Whenever you download The Carpenters' Superstar (on YouTube, for instance), in the "comments" section there are always references to: "Tommy Boy sent me here!" That's great because their music is being introduced to a new generation of fans.
 
"In 1971, Johnny Young whisked Colleen Hewett into the studios to do a cover of this Carpenters song, ('Superstar'). While the rest of the world may know 'Superstar' as a Carpenters hit, Colleen Hewett will always hold the chart honours here. This gutsy local version is making an all too rare appearance on CD". (From 'Australian Pop of the 70s'). From state to state, Colleen Hewett's version peaked at 24, (New South Wales), 13, (Victoria), 29, (Queensland), 30, (South Australia) and didn't chart in the other states or territories. Hers was more successful than Carpenters' version. Her take is nothing like Karen's and Richard's in arrangement or vocal interpretation. It entered the charts five months before Carpenters' single in Australia. However, this was two months after Carpenters' chart debut of 'Superstar' in the US. Interestingly, Hewett and Young used the 'be with you' line instead of the original 'sleep with you', so it appears that Carpenters' version was referenced and the success of that in the US would have inspired the recording, (also suggested by the phrase, "Young whisked Colleen Hewitt into the studios to do a cover").
 
Re-reading "Little Girl Blue" by Randy Schmidt. I find it odd that no mention of The Carpenters legendary performance on the 1971 BBC television special was made in his work. Considering the high technical quality in which it was recorded and produced, it remains a fascinating showcase of the duo very early in their careers. And of course, Karen singing "live" on most of the material just solidified her true greatness as a vocalist. It was the reason I became a fan, as I was just blown-away and mesmerized watching this particular broadcast. I believe it was a watershed mark in their careers and introduced them (especially Karen) to a world wide audience. Even though his book is a biography of Karen, it seems strange there was no reference.
 
I should doublecheck before I write this but I thought the book began around 1974 at the pinnacle of their career and the beginning of Karen’s obsession of weight control and only made pre ‘74 references that gave weight to the story as not to duplicate the Coleman book. If I am not correct then it is just the feeling the book left.
 
While Tommy Boy was previously mentioned, a couple of other references to our beloved duo on the silver screen:

Nick Cage, a true fan;


John Cusack, not so much;
 
The Carpenters legendary performance on the 1971 BBC television special remains a fascinating showcase of the duo very early in their careers. And of course, Karen singing "live" on most of the material just solidified her true greatness as a vocalist. It was the reason I became a fan, as I was just blown-away and mesmerized watching this particular broadcast. I believe it was a watershed mark in their careers and introduced them (especially Karen) to a world wide audience. Even though his book is a biography of Karen, it seems strange there was no reference.
Karen's vocals on this special are amazingly pure. Her performance on 'Superstar' is especially incredible, rivalling the studio recording. From the way she sings the song live, you can see that the legend about her capturing the studio recording in just one take is, no doubt, true. There are a couple of glitches in 'Rainy Days and Mondays', disappointingly, (both Richard's piano - timing- and Karen's vocal -a jarring off-note), but the rest of the concert is almost perfect. Beautiful, flawless performances from Karen on 'For All we Know' and 'Sometimes'. I would think that Carpenters were performing to this standard all over the world at this time. A shame that they mimed to 'Bacharach/ David Medley' when they were performing it 'live' on other shows around that time. It's interesting, (and disappointing), that Richard (allegedly) pulled this BBC concert from production on DVD at the last minute in 2006. I'm not sure if he had been involved in the DVD project or not. Maybe its production was unauthorised, in which case its axing would make sense. The DVD was to include all BBC concerts - 1971, 1974 and 1976 - and was being produced in Japan.
 
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Karen's vocals on this special are amazingly pure. Her performance on 'Superstar' is especially incredible, rivalling the studio recording. From the way she sings the song live, you can see that the legend about her capturing the studio recording in just one take is, no doubt, true. There are a couple of glitches in 'Rainy Days and Mondays', disappointingly, (both Richard's piano - timing- and Karen's vocal -a jarring off-note), but the rest of the concert is almost perfect. Beautiful, flawless performances from Karen on 'For All we Know' and 'Sometimes'. I would think that Carpenters were performing to this standard all over the world at this time. A shame that they mimed to 'Bacharach/ David Medley' when they were performing it 'live' on other shows around that time. It's interesting, (and disappointing), that Richard (allegedly) pulled this BBC concert from production on DVD at the last minute in 2006. I'm not sure if he had been involved in the DVD project or not. Maybe its production was unauthorised, in which case its axing would make sense. The DVD was to include all BBC concerts - 1971, 1974 and 1976 - and was being produced in Japan.
That would be awesome. It would certainly stop the unauthorized DVD releases at lesser quality from having any success in sales and provide us with quality product.
 
The hubbub over this eclipse is funny, Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse Of The Heart video is now over 305 million views on YouTube.
 
AUGUST 18, 2017
ABBA’s Benny Andersson Reimagines
‘Thank You for the Music’ on New Solo Album


"This new collection of solo piano recordings will reinforce Benny’s legacy as one of the finest contemporary composers of our time,”
said Sir Lucian Grange, Chairman and CEO, Universal Music Group.

"Piano” was recorded with engineer and studio manager Linn Fijal at his RMV Studios on the island of Skeppsholmen,
overlooking the waters of Stockholm. The first track, a new version of ABBA’s “Thank You for the Music,”
is now available for download and via streaming services. Watch a teaser of Andersson performing the 1977 favorite below."

Here:
ABBA’s Benny Andersson Reimagines ‘Thank You for the Music’ on New Solo Album
 
AUGUST 18, 2017
ABBA’s Benny Andersson Reimagines
‘Thank You for the Music’ on New Solo Album


"This new collection of solo piano recordings will reinforce Benny’s legacy as one of the finest contemporary composers of our time,”
said Sir Lucian Grange, Chairman and CEO, Universal Music Group.
"Piano” was recorded with engineer and studio manager Linn Fijal at his RMV Studios on the island of Skeppsholmen,
overlooking the waters of Stockholm. The first track, a new version of ABBA’s “Thank You for the Music,”
is now available for download and via streaming services. Watch a teaser of Andersson performing the 1977 favorite below."

Here:
ABBA’s Benny Andersson Reimagines ‘Thank You for the Music’ on New Solo Album

I've heard the album and it's pretty bland. Just Benny and his piano - no strings, no orchestration, no vocals, nothing. He's gone for some interesting choices in ABBA songs though: I Let The Music Speak, The Day Before You Came and I Wonder.
 
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