celebrating the carpenters

[Guest]

the carpenters had decades of success. all of those great songs are now on their 35th anniversary cd-it's definitely at the top of my fav albums' list. just think-u don't have to change discs when u want to hear songs from different cds!!! so it's a great addition to your collection. if u want something a little more special, ive got a great suggestion courtesy of my friend who works at universal-theyre offering some exclusive editions-and believe me when i say they are limited-for the carpenters' best fans. if anyones interested lemme know or just go directly to the site: www.universalmusicstore.com. (actually, the latter would be better since im really only the messenger!) good luck!!

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

Is this soliciating? Your first post & we know nothing about the poster?

 

[Harry]

Thanks for the info, rockfiend83, and welcome to the A&M Corner Forums, though I think we're pretty much on top of the latest from Carpenters. Several members here have already gotten some of those "special edition" versions of GOLD from the auctions on eBay.

Most of the membership here was pretty impressed with GOLD. It's a wel-thought-out compilation offering all of the best hits and album tracks along with the newer "rarities" from the AS TIME GOES BY disc.

(By the way, that link above seems to lead to a blank page.)

Harry
...welcoming rockfiend83, online...

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

And many of us (not including me) have purchased the 35th signed editions on ebay. so most of us already know about all this. This has been released for a while now. Yeah I got a blank page too. That is why I was confused about Good Luck and "limited-for the carpenters' best fans" how is this limted to only the fans?? On ebay, I'm seeing prices out of the ceiling.

....confused online...

 

[kennyv]

The link did work when I tried earlier. They're "Exclusive Official Universal Music Auction" personally signed by RC on the artwork of only 100 copies. Each CD is dated May 2004 and has a unique numerical marking "No. 001/100", "002/100", etc.

The highest bid with 1 day left runs at USD125. Lowest bid runs at USD20 with about 7 days left to bid. Good luck.

Kenny

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

The problem with the link is this.

If I hit the link I get a blank page. If I then backspace the url & take out the / and the . then it works & re-directs you to ebay.

I thought this post was something exclusive to fans only, not the entire world. Guess I misunderstood the post.

 

[Harry]

Yes, the original poster added a period to the end of the sentence which included the link. That period appended itself to the link through the forum software's interpretation of it as part of the link, sending you to essentially a blank page. Whenever you're including a link or email address that you wish to be "clickable", never add any punctuation such as periods, commas, quotation marks etc. If you do, leave a blank space before and after the "clickable" information.

On the main subject, the limited edition, signed copies of GOLD, I've been keeping an eye on those auctions, and saw one yesterday that looked like it could be a bargain compared to most of the rest of them. It was #12, a pretty low number, and I snagged it for $46.

I'm still not sure just why I really wanted one, since I don't really collect signatures, and I already own a standard copy of the 2-disc set. I suppose I just got caught up in the hype. But at least I didn't spend a fortune on it.

Harry
...who supposes he's happy to be a member of the "elite 100", online...

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

Congrats Harry, that is a good price, whenever I see them there are over 100 bucks. I don't own any signatures either that is why I have not plurged yet. I also have the original. But having Richard sign this is exciting since this may be the only way to actually get his signature, seems he will never tour way over here on the east coast so.....I'm still thinking...

 

[Harry]

That's what I thought too. I've seen them go for over a hundred many times - I think the earliest purchasers were a bit over-eager - a natural tendency, I suppose.

I saw the auction for number 12 expiring yesterday at 5:00 PM Eastern time. My logic was that a lot of people might not have Internet access during a workday, that they might be involved in finishing up the work-week, and the usual late-Friday hoo-hah. I guess my instincts paid off. When I first saw the disc it had a bid of $45. I increased that to $46 which is where it stayed all day, with no further bids. Lucky me.

Wasn't Andrew going to post a picture of his? Has he received it/them?

Harry
...thinking about going to the movies, online...

 

[Harry]

I've noticed that the last few wins of these autographed discs have been hovering around that $46 mark.

Mine arrived today. It's got Richard's signature and date made with a gold pen on the front of the booklet. It has the seal with 012/100 on the back, and the CD's in shrinkwrap. I'm a little hesitant to open it - I'll mull it over for awhile before I do, but I suspect I will at some point.

It came with a certificate issued by Universal Music Store stating:

CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY
The autographed Collectible recorded below is guaranteed by
this Certificate to bear the official signature of the artist stated below

*** Richard Carpenter ***
CD - Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition
UPC 602498614686

Certified No. 12 of 100



Authorized:______ Date Of Issuance Certificate #
unreadable signature 6/16/2004 1319-1856-5223​

with a gold UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP seal on the bottom right (dated 1998)

Harry
NP: Corrs, BORROWED HEAVEN

 

[Harry]

I decided to open the CD this morning, figuring that it had been opened once before when Richard signed it.

There are some differences between this GOLD set and the store-bought one. I'll list some of them here.

• Obviously this Collectors Edition has Richard's signature written in gold on the front of the booklet. It was written with a shiny gold ink pen.
  
• The discs themselves have a different coloration to them. They're still black/gold and gold/black but the color of the gold has more of a greenish tint to it, not unlike the old greenish-ochre color on some of the early A&M LPs.
  
• The discs also have the box printed on them with the Collectors Series info, indicating in this case that it's # 012/100.
  
• The back insert has the same box printed in gold between the track listing and the UPC Bar code. To make room, they blacked out about half of the bar code box.
  
• The inside of the back insert has the same album pictures, but it has a different background color - that greenish tinted gold color like on the label.
  
• The bad part - this particular set came in a jewel case with a black tray and a black left pane, imprinted in white with the "2 CD" notation. This doesn't allow the gold color of the backing to show through that pane like on the store-bought copy. For some reason, this particular 2-disc tray doesn't flip over properly. I can't imagine how it was supposed to work, but I've since moved it to a better 2-disc jewel case.
  

All in all, a classy project. These items were not just thrown together with a couple of printed stickers. These things are actually manufactured with the extra doodads printed on them.

I find no differences in the booklet other than Richard's signature, and the codes around the hubs of the discs are identical, so I'm reasonably sure there are no hidden secret messages from Richard!

A nice addition to the collection.

Harry
...about to head home from work, online...

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

I knew it wouldn't take you long to open that Harry. Ha Ha

But glad you did so I could read more about it.

Still don't think I will get this since I already have the original release.

 

[Harry]

I knew it wouldn't take you long to open that Harry. Ha Ha

But glad you did so I could read more about it.

Hey - I held out for a good twelve hours!

Harry
...ever curious, online...

 

[andywithaz]

I opened # 58 and saved #10. One thing I noticed that Richard's signature is dated June 11.

And Harry, my #58 has the same black cheesy Jewel case but #10 has a better one without it.

I will try to take pics and post them on my site soon.

 

[amit1234]

Harry

Wuhh.....where's the customary "A" and "M" in your avatar?

C'mon don't break tradition. :|

 

[Harry]

Harry

Wuhh.....where's the customary "A" and "M" in your avatar?

C'mon don't break tradition. :|

They're right there:

"A" for Alpert, "M" for Ms. Hall!

Harry
...being creative, online...

 

[amit1234]

Got it.....thanks.

Just so you know....I'm always checking that avatar to see what creative way you present the "A" and the "M".

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

This is a nice way to display this limited edition, of course you couldn't play it. I can barely see Richards signature. Is that the way it looks on your's?

Man I would love to have this in my music room.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=307&item=3823820575&rd=1

Are these the same 100 Cd's that are being sold separetly? Or are these a different allotment of numberings?

...who got too much sun laying in the pool today, online...

 

[Harry]

Yep, same group of 100, but they're selling a few already framed. Nice touch.

Harry
NP: Corrs: BORROWED HEAVEN

 

[andywithaz]

I just hate my life. $400 for 2 CDs and I didnt get 1 framed. I hate UNIVER$AL
AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

 

[Murray]

I just hate my life. $400 for 2 CDs and I didnt get 1 framed. I hate UNIVER$AL

Well, if you can afford $400 for 2 CDs, your life couldn't be too bad!

Seriously though, I do feel sorry for you, and all the others who already bought a copy of this limited edition, unaware that it would later be offered in an impressive looking frame. I'm almost persuaded to bid on one now... but wait, Universal is offering FREE shipping for US customers, but the rest of us have to pay the FULL shipping cost! Why not just charge the difference? That frame, with the necessary packing to prevent breakage, would cost a lot to ship. Forget it Universal... besides, I already have two RC autographs ...

Murray
NP. Melissa Manchester - When I Look Down That Road

 

[andywithaz]

You know, Richards site should have mentioned this. Are the webmasters just sitting around on their rumps listening to Carpenters music? I mean it hasn't been updated in over a month. Come on.

 

[Harry]

You know, Richards site should have mentioned this. Are the webmasters just sitting around on their rumps listening to Carpenters music? I mean it hasn't been updated in over a month. Come on.

Typical of "official" sites. A flurry of activity and then nothing for long stretches. That's why fan sites proliferate - we're more dedicated than they are.

Harry
NP: radio playing "Another White Dash" by Butterfly Boucher - an A&M artist.

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

Olivia Newton-John opened her own official website (which is relatively new within the last 8 months to 1 yr) and her's is hardly ever updated. There was suppose to be a gallery & has said coming soon for almost a year now. Her mother died not too long ago in Australia & she flew back home during her recent tour, then later she updated her website with a special message about her mum.

But her website looks alot like Carpenters does, not much there. So I wouldn't be suprised if it doesn't move very fast. I agree with Harry, we are fans that want to be updated daily but for these artists I mentioned I doubt well get this.

 

[Rudy]

Is this soliciating? Your first post & we know nothing about the poster?

Right on the money, Chris. UMG's lackeys have been going around the 'net posting crap like this. We've had two here (anyone remember the Tom Jones post in our Small Circle forum?). There have been three at another forum I moderate (two today, in fact, same user ID as this thread, which prompted my response here), and come to find out, they are rabid across the internet, dropping these similar, poorly-worded messages on any music website they can find.

I'm thinking of writing up an article exposing this behavior, and perhaps submitting it to slashdot (which could mean a huge boost in traffic here for a few days). I thought about just letting it pass, as it IS one of UMG's grunts posting here...but on second hand, spamming in any form is deplorable behavior. What they're doing is wrong on a few fundamental levels (spamming, bypassing retailers and distributors to sell to end users, etc.) it just gets under my skin.

Maybe they could afford some grammar and spelling lessons along with it, huh?