THE OFFICIAL REVIEW: "HORIZON" (SP-4530)

[Chris May]

“HORIZON”​

Catalogue Number: A&M SP-4530
Date of Release: 06/06/75
Chart Position- U.S.: #13; U.K.: #1; JAPAN: #1
Album Singles: "Please Mr. Postman”/"This Masquerade”
"Only Yesterday"/”Happy”
"Solitaire"/"Love Me For What I Am"
Medium: Vinyl/Reel/8-track/Cassette/CD​

Track Listing:

1.) Aurora 1:33 (Carpenter/Bettis)
2.) Only Yesterday 4:12 (Carpenter/Bettis)
3.) Desperado 3:37 (Henley/Frey)
4.) Please Mr. Postman 2:50 (Garrett/Holland/Gorman/Dobbins/Bateman)
5.) I Can Dream Can't I 4:58 (Kahal/Fain)
6.) Solitaire 4:39 (Sedaka/Cody)
7.) Happy 3:48 (Peluso/Rubin/Bettis)
8.) (I'm Caught Between) Goodbye And I Love You 4:04 (Carpenter/Bettis)
9.) Love Me For What I Am 3:30 (Bettis/Pascale)
10.) Eventide 1:32 (Carpenter/Bettis)

Album Credits:

Produced by Richard Carpenter
Associate Producer: Karen Carpenter
Arranged & Orchestrated by: Richard Carpenter
All vocals: Richard & Karen Carpenter
Keyboards: Richard Carpenter
Drums: Karen Carpenter & Jim Gordon
Bass: Joe Osborn
Guitar: Tony Peluso
Tenor Sax: Bob Messenger
Baritone Sax: Doug Strawn
Steel Guitar: Thad Maxwell & Red Rhodes
Harmonica: Tom Morgan
Oboe & English Horn: Earl Dumler
Harp Gayle Levant
Engineered by: Roger Young & Ray Gerhardt, Assistant: Dave Iveland
Mastering Engineer: Bernie Grundman
Special thanks to Ron Gorow

"I Can Dream Can't I" Arranged by Billy May & Richard Carpenter,
Orchestrated by Billy May
Bass: Joe Mondragon
Drums: Alvin Stoller
Keyboards: Pete Jolly
Vibes: Frank Flynn
Guitar: Bob Bain
Background Singers: Sue Allen, Jerry Whitman, Allan Davies, Gene Merlino

Art Direction: Roland Young
Photography: Ed Caraeff

 

[Mark-T]

This album represents Karen and Richard at the top of their game.

No filler, great arrangements and instrumentation, crystal clear sound, and best of all- the VOICE is "right there".

By singing "Desperado", a gutsy song choice, Karen shows for once and for all that she is the decade's finest singer.

"I Can Dream Can't I" sets the standard for all the interpretations of this type of music that follows. "What's New?" asks Linda Ronstadt eight years later- Nothing Karen hasn't already done!

Karen's vocals throughout the entire album are confident and without apology.
Another high point or two- "Solitaire" and "Love Me For What I Am" shows the power of her voice without Karen resorting to screaming as many would be tempted to.

Richard's arrangement on "Only Yesterday" still continues to amaze me to this day.
The rest of his work is as classy as it has ever been. Understated elegance at every turn.

Lastly, for once, (FINALLY!), an EXCELLENT cover photo that matches the artistry inside the sleeve.

 

[aaflyer98]

An awesome album from start to finish. "Only Yesterday" is my favorite track from this outstanding album. Other songs I love are "Desperado" and "(Im Caught Between) Goodbye and I Love You".

 

[Murray]

If there is such a thing as a "perfect" album, then Horizon is it. There isn't a single throwaway track on the album, and it's evident how much work went into the arrangements and orchestrations. The cover photo is excellent, as is the packaging of the LP. Most importantly of all, Karen never sounded better. Definitely a five star album!


Now, which one of you guys gave the album only three stars? Please explain why you rated it so low.

 

[Dave]

...Now, which one of you guys gave the album only three stars? Please explain why you rated it so low...

Sorry, that was me... I wanted to give the album FOUR, but along with the "underdog" quality, Horizon is a bit hard to grasp... Aside from Hits like "Please Mr. Postman", "Only Yesterday" and "Solitaire", and having fairly great material as filler, to me, it just isn't very memorable... The "Big-Band" arrangement of "I Can Dream, Can't I", as well as the "Eventide" and "Aurora" pieces that book-end the album, are good and usually by artists other than The Carpenters, would probably be Over-Indulgence...

So, a good album--especially covering an Eagles' song--though "Desperado" is something Linda Ronstadt and Judy Collins would also do... (I have a cover of "The Best Of My Love" by The 5th Dimension on their last album as the original group, and they also did a cover of "You Never Cry Like A Lover", which is on an obscure collection of "out-takes"...)

Just one of those albums that are hard to really "get into" consistantly, in my opinion... :|


Dave

 

[Harry]

Four stars for me and here's why.

I began listening to the Carpenters' recordings basically from the beginning, so sometime in late 1969. "Ticket To Ride" had gotten airplay on a local radio station, and then "Close To You" hit and I'd followed them faithfully, eagerly awaiting each new release.

I'd been constantly impressed and delighted with each album in succession, with all of them becoming favorites up through the prior release of SINGLES 1969-1973. That album was kind of a watershed mark for me - a high that would be nearly impossible to top - and in my view HORIZON just missed that mark.

"Only Yesterday" had been a single in advance of the album, so it was already a known quanitity for me. That left the judging of the album to rest on the remaining tracks, and for me it was a bit of a slow-down. Prior to HORIZON, the last thing that Carpenters left us with was the incredible energy of the oldies medley on side two of NOW & THEN. Since SINGLES was a retrospective, it reinforced all of the greatness that had come before.

"Only Yesterday" continued that fabulous energy as the next single - and then came the balance of HORIZON. "Please Mr. Postman" was a good uptempo follow-up to "Only Yesterday", but it wasn't an original song, nor was it at least unknown - so it felt like a bit of an extention to the oldies medley to me. That was neither good nor bad at this point - just explaining how I felt about it at the time.

So that left "Aurora", "Desperado", "I Can Dream, Can't I", "Solitaire", "Happy", "I'm Caught Between Goodbye And I Love You", "Love Me For What I Am" and "Eventide" as the *rest* of the album.

"Happy" had a bit of energy, but something about the song itself didn't quite grab me back then. The rest of the songs were slow ballads - and some were the slowest of slow: "Solitaire", "I Can Dream, Can't I" and "Desperado".

With the album bookended by the soft "Aurora"/"Eventide", the whole effort came off as a bit understated, particularly after the rowdiness of the Oldies Medley on the prior album.

Maybe that was a good thing - and I think it was. It's just that at that time, my initial impression was that HORIZON was a bit of a downer album - a feeling that's stuck with me all these years.

The other disappointment for me on HORIZON was hearing, for the first time, backing vocals that weren't done by Karen and Richard (on "I Can Dream Can't I)." Those overdubbed backing vocals were an initial hook that brought me into the Carpenters' fold, and here was that hook being abandoned for the first time. Sublimely so, perhaps - I happen to think that "I Can Dream Can't I" is an amazing track, perfectly executed - I just felt a bit abandoned by the use of someone other than Karen or Richard in that role.

Today, I look on the album from a historical perspective, and for me it's just off the pinnacle of that SINGLES album - a curve, if you will that rises from TICKET, continuing through to the peak at SINGLES, and then starting the downward slope at HORIZON. I know how many fans out there think of HORIZON as one of the best, if not THE best album from our favorite duo, and I certainly can understand where that comes from. It just didn't quite make it for me, in my humble opinion.

So what changes would I make to then envision HORIZON as the perfect album? I might have saved "Deseperado" for a future album, and include something else in its place - perhaps a more midtempo song. I'd also have gotten Karen and Richrad in the studio to record and overdub the backing vocals for "I Can Dream Can't I". Then a re-arrangement of the track order, and for me, it might have been that perfect album.

Harry
NP: HORIZON, Carpenters

 

[cam89]

For me, I chose 3 stars...it's a good album...in my opinion. But there are better...CLOSE TO YOU, CARPENTERS, CHRISTMAS PORTRAIT, A KIND OF HUSH and VOICE OF THE HEART are my tops.

I never was a fan of the album cover. Too dark. She looks way too thin in that pic. Although I love the song SOLITAIRE, and the bookends AURORA and EVENTIDE...the other songs are okay, but I can get along without them.

I always felt A KIND OF HUSH was an album akin to the VOICE OF THE HEART collection...I adore both those albums and the song selection.

My thoughts,
Cam

 

[no1kandrfan]

Definitely the best of the best - their masterpiece.

Wasn't this the first of their albums to be shipped gold?

What makes it for me is Karen's voice - she was in her prime, and Richard's wonderful arrangements made great use of her haunting lower register.

Outstanding tracks: Only Yesterday - one of my all time favorites; Desperado - Karen's vocal is perfect - this should have been a single; I Can Dream Can't I - a beautiful song, and Karen's 'longing' is so evident; Solitaire - this song contains the best 'finish' of any other Carpenters song. Karen brings this song to a climatic end, and holds the last note for a while as the piano, oboe (?), and strings repeat the same notes - breathtaking.

Another reason why I enjoy this album so much is Jim Gordon's powerful drumming - especially on Only Yesterday, Desperado and Solitaire. The drums were prominently featured in the mix - and for good reason. It's a shame his career came to a sad end; for those not aware he was quite ill (mentally) and killed his mother - I believe he is still serving a prison term in Atascadero. At the time I recall reading, or hearing, that he even went so far as to blame his mom for Karen's death. So sad.

Last, the album cover is perfect - just them, being themselves, excellent photography - no strange posing, no logo, no album name - at that point everyone knew who they were, and where they were - at the top of their craft.

Mike

 

[goodjeans]

I remember when" Please Mr. Postman" was a smash. It was all over the radio, and since it was the Holiday season, even the news channels used it. I remember hearing "Only Yesterday" the first time coming out of a cheap radio by my bed from an AM station in Phila. Bump bumpbump tic bump bump bump u tic (forgive me Jim Gordon, you tortured genius). I remember also hitchhiking to the mall from school (I skipped it) to buy "Horizon". It was finally a stunning album cover and it did not say "Carpenters" on the cardboard cover itself, but a decal of sorts that looked like it was stamped onto the cover. "Only Yesterday" remains my favorite song of all time. If anyone hasn't read Ron Garcia's book, he said it perfectly and I will paraphrase. The longer version on the album should have assured a #1 chart position. Many a year later, the ending is spine chilling. I enjoy every song on the album. I would have liked to have heard something raucuos also on the album, but seeing them in concert twice that summer and the aura surrounding the album (which is maybe an unfair critique) forces me to give this album the highest rating. I have stopped counting how many copies of this CD that I have purchased over the years. Money damn well spent. Hope noone fell asleep during this rant. The aura that i refer to is my meeting Karen, getting her autograph and seeing her Bambi eyes right in front of my face.

 

[DVB]

This is my favorite Carpenters album next to "Close To You". Karen's voice is in top form, probably the best I think she has ever sounded.The arrangements are lush. I can listen to this album straight through over and over. There's not much more I can say that has already been expressed. 5 stars

 

[Jeff]

With all due respect Please Mr. Postman PRECEEDED Only Yesterday by several months. Clearly in the Winter of '74 Mr. P. was the chart fave and went #1 in Feb of '75. Soon to follow was O.Y. which ultimately followed it's #1 predecessor to #4.

HORIZON is the first and last testament to K&R's abilities both as producers and artistic geniuses,

Kidz, I know whud I talkin' bout.

Jeff

 

[aaflyer98]

As Richard has said, it would have been great had "Horizon" been released right when "Postman" hit # 1. Instead, we had a huge delay in the album which lost album sales.

 

[Mark-T]

I always thought "Solitaire" should have been released in the fall vs the summer. I thought it would have been a bigger hit then. But maybe after "Only Yesterday" didn't carry the charts through the summer, they had to release something.

 

[Dave]

Horizon seems, to be, at least for me, a "Mood Music Carpenters Album..." The cover suggests another "We've Only Just Begun"-type song could have been added... "Only Yesterday" does come close... I would suspect the additional background singers used (besides as an afterthought) could've been just an approximation of experimentation of "who else could evoke THE CARPENETERS SOUND" or Karen & Richard's "pipes" weren't up to it and faced a "limit of studio-time..."

I just, again, just need to be in the "mood" for this, and after a "good, honest listen" give this THREE-AND-A-HALF STARS!


Dave

 

[Chris_Sydney]

I think my avatar says it all!

The Carpenters never got it more right. 'Horizon' is a flawless album from beginning to end and would feature prominently amongst my favourite LPs of all time. Karen's voice is sensational, probably the best vocals she ever committed to record. That low alto is still present in all its glory and Richard's production was still clean enough to let Karen shine without negating the record's commercial appeal.

The album cover is my favourite Karen and Richard photo, and probably one of my favourite album covers full-stop. The slight grainy quality, the natural lighting, and both Karen and Richard looking very candid and unposed. I love it. It's also nicely indicative of the darker feel the album went for in terms of song selection and Karen's performances. No cheesy smiles or twee oldies like 'Jambalaya' in sight (I think 'Please Mr. Postmas' was well chosen and has dated much better than a lot of their covers).

'Aurora' and 'Eventide' are gorgeous bookends for the album. I wish someone would edit them into one track because they're both over far too soon. That opening lyric of Karen confessing 'morning opens quietly...' gets me every time. It's like someone opening the bedroom blinds just a crack to see the light filter in and flood a sliver of the room. Those blinds get thrown open at a couple of places throughout the album's duration ('Only Yesterday', 'Please Mr. Postman', 'Happy') but otherwise Karen as the protagonist in the drama seems happy to remain curcled up in the darkness. The two standout songs for me are 'Desperado' and 'Love Me For What I Am'. 'Desperado' is a standout because of Karen's vocal performance. It blows me away how she managed to sound so intense and passionate but still remain restrained on the lyric 'don't you feet get cold in the winter tiiiiiime'. I want someone to make a montage video set to the Carpenter's version of this song out of scenes from 'Brokeback Mountain'. I hadn't thought of the association before the other night when Dad heard me playing the song and commented on how well the lilt of the song, the harmonica, and the lyrics suit that film. That final line 'you'd better let somebody love you before it's too late' is about as heartbreaking as Ennis' 'Jack, I swear...'

'Love Me For What I Am' also sports a fantastic vocal from Karen, but it's Richard's production that takes it to another level. The soft, fragile voice calmly and objectively reflecting on a relationship in the verses, before morphing into a strong assertion of the inevitable in the chorus. 'If you're only using me to feed your fantasy, you're really not in love, so let me go'. Richard's treatment of Karen's voice there is sensational. Easily one of my favourite Carpenters songs for those very reasons.

'Solitaire' always reminds me of 'Nature Boy' at the beginning. 'There waaaaaas a boy... a very strange, enchanted boy'. hahaha. I used to be a big supporter of this song but I think it's slowly becoming one of my least favourites on the album. The album version seems to lack a little something. 'Happy' is infectious without ever heading into cheesy territory, a triumph in itself for such an earnest love song. That song reminds me of summer and I rarely tire of it.

I definitely think this was the Carpenters at their peak. I don't really consider them an albums group, as a good greatest hits plays much better than any of their studio releases, but no studio record is anywhere near as consistent or satisfying as 'Horizon'.


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[Harry]

Welcome to the Forum Chris, and thanks for the great reviews you're posting. I love your city too.

Harry

 

[Chris_Sydney]

Thanks so much Harry. I have been reading the forum for a long time now and was so reticent to start posting. I still feel a little out of my depths being such a young fan up against such longstanding followers, but perhaps that gives me an interesting perspective on everything. It's a really nice vibe here and I'm excited to be a part of it.


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[Harry]

I still feel a little out of my depths being such a young fan up against such longstanding followers, but perhaps that gives me an interesting perspective on everything.

Exactly my thoughts. Hearing from younger fans gives us a different perspective - particularly for the more "seasoned" fans who were around when Carpenters were active and recording.

Harry

 

[Chris_Sydney]

And it's a lovely testament to the quality of the Carpenters music, too!


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