⭐ Official Review [Album]: "PASSAGE" (SP-4703)

How Would You Rate This Album?

  • ***** (BEST)

    Votes: 10 9.3%
  • ****

    Votes: 55 50.9%
  • ***

    Votes: 35 32.4%
  • **

    Votes: 7 6.5%
  • *

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • Total voters
    108
Some time ago, I promised to dig-up a review that shows the negative criticism in some corners during the 1970s:
Record Mirror, October 1st, 1977:
"KAREN CARPENTER, the dummy In the shop window devoid of emotion, each song a rerun of the last.
Flat monotones, whether she's singing about pain or love, depression or joy. A supermarket voice. Stick it In the wire trolley and run the gauntlet of washing - powder shelves. On Passage she tries, tries very hard In fact, to bend those white line vocals and there's Richard In the back trying very hard to lift those barbed wired fences so she don't get caught. And how does he do it ? By choosing things like Don't Cry For Me Argentina and Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft written by Beetle-bombers Klaatu. Does it work ? Well, put it this way: I suppose it ain't bad as far as Carpenters' albums go,
which ain't very far. No matter how flash the production, no matter how melodic they strive to be, their records leave me as flat as a pie without self raising flour. Karen's the girl you pull In a dance hall who don't say a word when you jive and after buying her drinks all night you find she's got her own car outside. The two experimental tracks, which amount to little more than typical Carpenters jelly moulds only twice as long, have mixed success.
Argentina just doesn't belong The operatic intro sounds like something straight out the local Gilbert And Sullivan Society and Karen's voice adds
nothing to the song. Occupants Is the new single and I guess you could call it catchy, despite the clumsy phrasing. Calling occupants of Interplanetary most extraordinary craft. For what It sets out to achieve, it succeeds. Just tease please, Karen. Slip out of those surgical stockings and put on some with seams and maybe the tiniest garter. And forget Steve Harley, He'll only make things worse. BARRY CAIN."

Source:

This reads as if he already decided to hate the album before he even listened to it. And then, once he did, he secretly liked it but was already committed to his negative review.
 
It’s typical of the day. Robert Hilburn did the same kind of trash journalism for the Los Angeles Times. Not sure if he reviewed that album, but most likely he did. No kind words until Paul Grein came along from Billboard.
 
Actually, I remember reading the Hilburn review of Passage. He actually gave them some kudos for it.
 
Horrendous review! Glad I didn't read that many back then. I needed my money for the records and not magazines that contained reviews like this. I guess reviews are more about the reviewers likes and dislikes and less about the merits of music.
 
Some time ago, I promised to dig-up a review that shows the negative criticism in some corners during the 1970s:
Record Mirror, October 1st, 1977:
"KAREN CARPENTER, the dummy In the shop window devoid of emotion, each song a rerun of the last.
Flat monotones, whether she's singing about pain or love, depression or joy. A supermarket voice. Stick it In the wire trolley and run the gauntlet of washing - powder shelves. On Passage she tries, tries very hard In fact, to bend those white line vocals and there's Richard In the back trying very hard to lift those barbed wired fences so she don't get caught. And how does he do it ? By choosing things like Don't Cry For Me Argentina and Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft written by Beetle-bombers Klaatu. Does it work ? Well, put it this way: I suppose it ain't bad as far as Carpenters' albums go,
which ain't very far. No matter how flash the production, no matter how melodic they strive to be, their records leave me as flat as a pie without self raising flour. Karen's the girl you pull In a dance hall who don't say a word when you jive and after buying her drinks all night you find she's got her own car outside. The two experimental tracks, which amount to little more than typical Carpenters jelly moulds only twice as long, have mixed success.
Argentina just doesn't belong The operatic intro sounds like something straight out the local Gilbert And Sullivan Society and Karen's voice adds
nothing to the song. Occupants Is the new single and I guess you could call it catchy, despite the clumsy phrasing. Calling occupants of Interplanetary most extraordinary craft. For what It sets out to achieve, it succeeds. Just tease please, Karen. Slip out of those surgical stockings and put on some with seams and maybe the tiniest garter. And forget Steve Harley, He'll only make things worse. BARRY CAIN."

Source:

This reads as if he already decided to hate the album before he even listened to it. And then, once he did, he secretly liked it but was already committed to his negative review.
This was the review I was referring to above. I didn't manage to get it quoted in the post above.
 
Some time ago, I promised to dig-up a review that shows the negative criticism in some corners during the 1970s:
Record Mirror, October 1st, 1977:
"KAREN CARPENTER, the dummy In the shop window devoid of emotion, each song a rerun of the last.
Flat monotones, whether she's singing about pain or love, depression or joy. A supermarket voice. Stick it In the wire trolley and run the gauntlet of washing - powder shelves. On Passage she tries, tries very hard In fact, to bend those white line vocals and there's Richard In the back trying very hard to lift those barbed wired fences so she don't get caught. And how does he do it ? By choosing things like Don't Cry For Me Argentina and Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft written by Beetle-bombers Klaatu. Does it work ? Well, put it this way: I suppose it ain't bad as far as Carpenters' albums go,
which ain't very far. No matter how flash the production, no matter how melodic they strive to be, their records leave me as flat as a pie without self raising flour. Karen's the girl you pull In a dance hall who don't say a word when you jive and after buying her drinks all night you find she's got her own car outside. The two experimental tracks, which amount to little more than typical Carpenters jelly moulds only twice as long, have mixed success.
Argentina just doesn't belong The operatic intro sounds like something straight out the local Gilbert And Sullivan Society and Karen's voice adds
nothing to the song. Occupants Is the new single and I guess you could call it catchy, despite the clumsy phrasing. Calling occupants of Interplanetary most extraordinary craft. For what It sets out to achieve, it succeeds. Just tease please, Karen. Slip out of those surgical stockings and put on some with seams and maybe the tiniest garter. And forget Steve Harley, He'll only make things worse. BARRY CAIN."

Source:

I used to buy Record Mirror and I can remember this review well; it made the teenage me so angry! In 1977, UK music journalists were looking for the kind of outsider cool that would maintain their punk credibility, and this is a particularly bilious example of that mentality. In retrospect, it says more about the writer than it does about the Carpenters. It's so poorly-written and so plainly desperate for coolness that I cringe at how awkward it is.
 
from another thread:

There were thousands on promo lps sent out too. It looked the same as the regular album, no gold stamp, but a sticker instead saying it. The label the same, but PROMOTIONAL COPY NOT FOR SALE in the musical note part of it, and sticker.
This confuses me. I was working in radio and the moment this came into the station, I grabbed a copy. Of the two LPs I have now, one is a Pittman pressing and the other a Monarch. Both have no indication of "promo" anywhere, yet I know that one I received was in fact a promo sent to the radio station. I guess they sent standard stock copies to us.

I also have the first CD issue, CD 3199/DX 787 with smooth jewel case, and the 1998 Remastered Classic, along with the copies in box sets.
 
Maybe east coast-west coast distribution made it different? 🤷🏻‍♂️ My budget copies are actually British imports. I have 2 copies of those. 1 U.S. promo with album cover, 1 promo with white jacket bought at record swap. Same with my test pressing, and acetate copies, just different dates on them with corrections. 1 store copy, 1 Japanese copy. All vinyl. Plus Carpenters collection box set vinyl, 3 sets, which all are bad. 4 on cd, 1 British Box, 3 Japanese boxes. All have poor quality versions of B’wana. Only decent but still poorly mixed stereo on U. S. and Japanese 45’s.
 
Last edited:
Cashbox (10/08/1977):
PASSAGE - Carpenters - A&M SP -4703 - Producer: Richard Carpenter - List: 7.98
"Surely, this is a milestone Carpenters album. Where the sibling duo was once content with lushly arranged pop ballads with mass appeal,
they have embarked this time on a well -charted course that takes them through a calypso boogie, an operatic and symphonic opus,
a Latin tinged number exploring the master/servant dilemma and an other worldly tune exploring the theme of intergalactic harmony.
A breathless ride on the gossamer wings of Karen's magic -carpet vocals with Richard's steady navigation through new and familiar territory."

Cashbox (10/29/1977):
"King To Push The Carpenters TOKYO - King Record Co. is expected to promote the Carpenters heavily this autumn.
The company has released the Carpenters' LP, "Passage" on Oct. 5 and their 45, "Sweet Smile" on Oct. 10, respectively.
To sell these records throughout the country, the company has launched a strong sales campaign beginning the middle of Oct.
The plan incudes 300 TV -spots, and 100 radio -spots. "

Cashbox (1/28/1978):
CARPENTERS (A&M 2008-S) Sweet, Sweet Smile (2:54) (J. Newton/O. Young). This second single off the "Passage" LP has an intriguing country feel
mixed with an obviously pop approach. Present are the snappy bass, country twang violin and boogie piano. Karen's singing has an effective edge.
Pop and country chart potential."

Cashbox News (9/16/1978):
"Carpenters have missed dates. Illness was cited as the reason behind the cancellation of 18 of a scheduled 28 performances by the Carpenters
at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Fortunately, Dean Martin, who was slated to follow the Carpenter's engagement, consented to come in a week early and keep things going in the MGM's Celebrity Room."
 
I remember reading in an entertainment magazine, from the time when ‘Passage’ was actually being recorded, a short piece that went pretty much like this:-

‘The Carpenters are recording a new album with the help of a 100-piece orchestra and a 50-voice choir. And, boy, do they need it!!’

Anybody who was fair and knew anything about Carpenters’ music would have known that Karen and Richard could record the highest calibre record just by themselves, just with Karen on drums and vocals and Richard on piano, vocals, arrangements and production. They didn’t NEED the help of anyone to make a world-class record.

In fact, if you listen to the Magic Lamp recordings and the Joe Osborne Garage recordings, you can hear that, even with Karen at just 16 or 17 years of age and Richard at 20 or 21, they didn’t NEED anyone to help them make music of phenomenal quality. Their talents were more than enough.

The piece from the magazine is another example of the ignorance and nastiness of the press, in this case, even trying to prejudice readers against Karen and Richard’s music and influence them away from Carpenters’ product.

The snippet would have been from a press release intended to garner interest in Carpenters’ new album, yet the magazine turned the message into something very negative.
 
I remember reading in an entertainment magazine, from the time when ‘Passage’ was actually being recorded, a short piece that went pretty much like this:-

‘The Carpenters are recording a new album with the help of a 100-piece orchestra and a 50-voice choir. And, boy, do they need it!!’

Anybody who was fair and knew anything about Carpenters’ music would have known that Karen and Richard could record the highest calibre record just by themselves, just with Karen on drums and vocals and Richard on piano, vocals, arrangements and production. They didn’t NEED the help of anyone to make a world-class record.

In fact, if you listen to the Magic Lamp recordings and the Joe Osborne Garage recordings, you can hear that, even with Karen at just 16 or 17 years of age and Richard at 20 or 21, they didn’t NEED anyone to help them make music of phenomenal quality. Their talents were more than enough.

The piece from the magazine is another example of the ignorance and nastiness of the press, in this case, even trying to prejudice readers against Karen and Richard’s music and influence them away from Carpenters’ product.

The snippet would have been from a press release intended to garner interest in Carpenters’ new album, yet the magazine turned the message into something very negative.
Unfortunately, I don't think the world has learned much since then. The snarky responses to people around us seem to be the acceptable norm. It's really too bad. We are meant to be a blessing to each other- and there's ways to disagree while still being respectful. Another forgotten approach.
 
Record World (10/08/1977):
CARPENTERS, PASSAGE. "This long awaited set from the duo touches on traditional Carpenters tunes (I Just Fall In Love Again),
but is noteworthy for the way it branches out in both material and production. Klaatu's Calling Occupants is a departure as is
Man Smart, Woman Smarter (recently covered by Robert Palmer). A&M SP -4703 ($ 7.98)."

Here:
 
Sisters, Julia Tillman Waters and Maxine Willard Waters were two of the background vocalists on "All You Get From Love is a Love Song", on 'Passage'.

Maxine Willard Waters also performed background vocals on 'Made in America', alongside Karen and Richard and other backing vocalists, (Caroline Dennis and Stephanie Spruill).

Here is a very interesting interview from 2013 with Julia Tillman Waters and Maxine Willard Waters, along with their brother, Oren Waters, where they talk about their recordings as backing vocalists, (although they don't mention Carpenters).

 
from another thread:


This confuses me. I was working in radio and the moment this came into the station, I grabbed a copy. Of the two LPs I have now, one is a Pittman pressing and the other a Monarch. Both have no indication of "promo" anywhere, yet I know that one I received was in fact a promo sent to the radio station. I guess they sent standard stock copies to us.

I also have the first CD issue, CD 3199/DX 787 with smooth jewel case, and the 1998 Remastered Classic, along with the copies in box sets.
I have 2 promo albums that are just like GDBY2LV's with the stickers on the album covers and the black printing of "PROMOTIONAL COPY NOT FOR RESALE" on the white part of the album label.
 
In this area, Calling Occupants got the airplay before All You Get From Love. I was not too impressed with the former but did like the latter and the followup Sweet Sweet Smile. All You Get should have made it very high on the charts. I have the album but picked it up at a thrift store. I am not too enamored of a few of the songs but I still listen to the lp every once in a while.
 
I was recently wondering whether Karen and Richard or Tony Peluso wrote the DJ and alien's dialogue at the beginning of 'Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft', or whether they got somebody else to do it.

I remember, as an early teen, how delighted I was by the humour.... "..and by the way, you sound GREAT over the phone!", etc.

I was also recently remembering that, around early 1978, there was often time for just one music video before the evening national news on ABC TV, (Australian Broadcasting Commission), and, a few times, 'Calling Occupants' was chosen. I wondered why that might have been. One thing would have been that the video might have been the right length; probably longer than a number of other videos, taking into account the DJ segment and the long song, (for a single). The ABC is a non-commercial station, so they couldn't fill the gap in programming with ads.
 
I was recently wondering whether Karen and Richard or Tony Peluso wrote the DJ and alien's dialogue at the beginning of 'Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft', or whether they got somebody else to do it.

I remember, as an early teen, how delighted I was by the humour.... "..and by the way, you sound GREAT over the phone!", etc.

I was also recently remembering that, around early 1978, there was often time for just one music video before the evening national news on ABC TV, (Australian Broadcasting Commission), and, a few times, 'Calling Occupants' was chosen. I wondered why that might have been. One thing would have been that the video might have been the right length; probably longer than a number of other videos, taking into account the DJ segment and the long song, (for a single). The ABC is a non-commercial station, so they couldn't fill the gap in programming with ads.
i once asked richard who mike ledgerwood was; he replied that ledgerwood was an a&m staffer that attended them while in england and europe. richard said tony just included the name in the patter.
 
One perspective on...

Much-hyped albums that were commercial disasters:​

Carpenters — "Passage" (1977)

Excerpts:
"Looking for a change in direction, 1977's "Passage" was designed as an attempt to breach a new audience,
but it instead became one of the most quixotic major-label albums ever released."
"...the buoyant pop of lead single All You Get from Love Is a Love Song is one of the duo's most underappreciated classics,
but the rest of the album is as strange as all-get-out."
"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft... is, without question, one of pop music's greatest curiosities."

More:
 
Thought I'd add this here:

For those of you newer to the Boards, I am one of the fortunate ones who lived through the original peak of the Carpenters popularity, got to see them live in concert, and even met Karen and Richard backstage.

I had written an album review for each one about ten years ago. One day I realized that much like my views on life, my thoughts on the albums had changed as well. So I began a new series . I call it Carpenters Revisited: A Fresh Look at ________________________.

The older reviews are still there. For each review, old and new, I've tried to use a different set of images to tell the story. (There's also tons of stand-alone blog posts on Carpenters.)

Starting with Offering/Ticket to Ride, I've recently completed Carpenters Revisited: A Fresh Look at Passage.

In each of these articles, I weave in my story of living in Southern California during that time and also take a look at the music industry and sales charts for the era. I attempt to dig deeper into their career and the impact of each disc.
 
...In each of these articles, I weave in my story of living in Southern California during that time and also take a look at the music industry and sales charts for the era. I attempt to dig deeper into their career and the impact of each disc.

Mark, I want to congratulate you and thank you for your extraordinarily well-researched and well-written "Insights and Sounds" blog in general and your comprehensive take (fresh look) on Passage in particular. It's not my first visit to your site. In your review of Passage, you included many photos and promotional ads and articles, some of which I have never seen. Some of your historical tidbits of information were new to me as well. I am a contemporary of yours, so my fandom of the Carpenters goes back to those early days of Carpenters' radio hits (a time when hearing the newest single release was nirvana). My initial impressions of Passage mirror yours --- I thought it was too different and I wasn't thrilled with just eight songs. Yet I instantly loved "All You Get From Love Is a Love Song" as well as "Two Sides" --- but over time, I appreciated even more of the "offering" Richard and Karen were providing in expanding their "horizons."

Your wealth of research and attention to detail (in all your blogs) are astounding and impressive. I gather that it's all a labor of love. I should add that I found your insights into your personal struggles and coming-of-age snippets deeply moving, and I applaud you for incorporating them. Bravo to you, Mark, all the way around!

---

To others, I highly recommend Mark's blog, as it is comprehensive, beautifully composed (text and photos), insightfully and expressively well written, and simply a joy to read.
 
It is as good as everyone agrees. I never thought about the orchestration as you detailed. I can see your reasoning, but still enjoy it, nonetheless. I think I am one of the few who like Man Smart, Women Smarter, but can see how better choices could have been made. I have always felt the omission of a Carpenter/Bettis arrangement is what was missing from Passage, and you made that point very well. I enjoyed Karen’s singing on this too, but you had to buy the album to get the gems. Thank you for helping me reflect on Passage.
 
I'm glad you enjoyed it, @CraigGA!
I do like reflecting on the albums one by one- but I gotta be honest, by the time I'm finished writing, I'm pretty tired of listening to that particular album. :wink:
 
Back
Top Bottom