41 years ago today, Karen Carpenter passed away.

[adamj95]

It’s crazy how fast time really goes by. It’s been 41 years since the world lost the best voice ever. This is a heavy day for us Carpenters fans and I am even more appreciative of the music Karen gave us today. Thank you for the music Karen.

 

[Faithful Fan]

I remember how this news took.my breath away.

 

[LongAgo]

You continue to touch my soul and fill my heart with your music. So grateful for the time you gave me.

 

[Harry]

The text of the UPI wire report:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

U A BC-CARPENTER-OBIT-WRITETHRU 2-4 0939

^ (COMBINING TAKES)<

URGENT@<

DOWNEY, CALIF. (UPI) _ POP SINGER KAREN CARPENTER, WHO RECORDED A
STRING OF ROMANTIC LOVE SONGS INCLUDING ``CLOSE TO YOU’’ AND ``WE’VE
ONLY JUST BEGUN’’ WITH HER BROTHER RICHARD AS THE CARPENTERS, DIED
FRIDAY, SHE WAS 32.<

OFFICIALS AT DOWNEY COMMUNITY HOSPITAL, ABOUT 15 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
LOS ANGELES, REFUSED TO DISCLOSE DETAILS OF THE DEATH AND REFERRED ALL
CALLS TO HER AGENT.<

``WE RESPONDED TO A CALL FOR AID AT 8:51.’’ DOWNEY FIRE CHIEF DON
DAVIS SAID. ``I BELIEVE THAT’S HER PARENTS’ HOME. APPARENTLY THE YOUNG
LADY HAD COLLAPSED UPSTAIRS AND OUR PERSONNEL FOUND HER MOTHER AT HER
SIDE AND OUR PARAMEDICS AND FIRE PERSONNEL STARTED CPR (CARDIOPULMONARY
RESPIRATION) AND ASSISTED IN TRANSPORTING HER TO DOWNEY COMMUNITY
HOSPITAL.’’<

THE FIRE DEPARTMENT SAID THE SINGER WAS IN A FULL CARDIAC ARREST.<

PRESS AGENT PAUL BLOCH SAID MISS CARPENTER'S PARENTS AND HER
BROTHER RICHARD, 37, ACCOMPANIED THE SINGER TO THE HOSPITAL, WHERE SHE
DIED AT 9:51 A.M. PST. HE SAID THE BODY HAD BEEN TURNED OVER TO THE
CORONER.<

BLOCK SAID MISS CARPENTER, WHO MARRIED LOS ANGELES INDUSTRIALIST
THOMAS BURRIS IN 1980 AND WAS DIVORCED LAST YEAR, LIVED ALONE IN A
CENTURY CITY HIGH RISE APARTMENT. HE SAID SHE SPENT THE NIGHT AT HER
PARENTS' HOUSE THURSDAY.<

THE CARPENTERS FINISHED THEIR LAST ALBUM, ``MADE IN AMERICA'' IN
1981 AND WERE GOING INTO THE STUDIO FOR A NEW ALBUM LATER THIS MONTH.<

THE BROTHER-SISTER COMBINATION, WITH MISS CARPENTER PLAYING THE
DRUMS AND SINGING LEAD VOCALS AND RICHARD PLAYING THE PIANO, BECAME ONE
OF THE MOST POPULAR ACTS OF THE 1970S WITH THEIR WHOLESOME AMERICAN
IMAGE AND VELVETY HARMONIZATION.<

THE DUO WON THREE GRAMMYS, EIGHT GOLD ALBUMS AND 10 GOLD SINGLES.
THEIR HITS ALSO INCLUDED ``RAINY DAYS AND MONDAYS,’’ ``YESTERDAY ONCE
MORE,’’ AND A REMAKE OF ``PLEASE MR. POSTMAN.’’<

A GREATEST HITS ALBUM RELEASED IN 1973 RANKED AT THE TIME AMONG THE
BIGGEST SELLING ALBUMS OF ALL TIME.<

BOTH BORN IN NEW HAVEN, CONN., THE CARPENTERS MOVED WITH THEIR
FAMILY TO DOWNEY, A LOS ANGELES SUBURB, IN 1963, AS CHILDREN. THEY WERE
INFLUENCED BY THEIR FATHER’S INTEREST IN POPULAR MUSIC AND HIS EXTENSIVE
RECORD COLLECTION.<

RICHARD CARPENTER BEGAN STUDYING THE PIANO AT AGE 12, TOOK CLASSES
IN THE INSTRUMENT AT YALE AT AGE 16 AND BEGAN PLAYING JAZZ IN LOCAL
CLUBS. HE CONTINUED HIS MUSIC EDUCATION AT CAL STATE LONG BEACH WHEN THE
FAMILY MOVED TO CALIFORNIA.<

KAREN DEVELOPED AN INTEREST IN THE DRUMS AFTER BEING ENCOURAGED BY
A FELLOW MEMBER OF HER HIGH SCHOOL MARCHING BAND.<

AS TEENS, THE CARPENTERS AND A FRIEND WHO PLAYED THE BASS, WES
JACOBS, FORMED THE FIRST OF THE CARPENTERS’ THREE GROUPS.<

THE JAZZ INSTRUMENTAL TRIO WON FIRST PLACE IN A HOLLYWOOD BOWL
BATTLE OF THE BANDS CONTEST. RCA EXECUTIVES WHO WERE AT THE SHOW SIGNED
THE GROUP AND THE TRIO RECORDED TWO RECORDS THAT WERE NEVER RELEASED.<

THE STUDIO DECIDED THE TRIO’S SOUND WAS ``TOO SOFT.’’<

SOON AFTER, RICHARD DISBANDED THE TRIO IN FAVOR OF A GROUP THAT
PERMITTED HIM AND KAREN TO PURSUE THEIR GROWING INTEREST IN VOCAL
HARMONIES.<

THIS BAND, SPECTRUM, BROUGHT IN FOUR OTHER CAL STATE STUDENTS WHO
JOINED THE CARPENTERS.<

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[adamj95]

 

[newvillefan]

I’m actually shocked their instagram page only has 8k followers. I thought it would easily be in the hundreds of thousands if not much more.

 

[adamj95]

I’m actually shocked their instagram page only has 8k followers. I thought it would easily be in the hundreds of thousands if not much more.

I believe the account was only created a little over a year ago so I'm not surprised the number is so low.

 

[1969]

I just read this. With each passing year, Richard writes with more poignancy on what her loss means to him and his family. Coincidentally, the 2024 Grammy’s is broadcasting live right now….. I wonder some will forget today’s date in history?

 

[Carl]

I’m actually shocked their instagram page only has 8k followers. I thought it would easily be in the hundreds of thousands if not much more.

Same here

 

[Vinylalbumcovers]

I'm late but yeah...LOL!!

We were having a blizzard and I was at home (off from school for two weeks!). My mom came in from work with that People magazine. She told me Karen had died and I was stunned like many of us were - even at my young age (I was 9). Her illness was unknown to most of us back then so that she should die at 32 made zero sense to me and it led to a long discussion about premature death in general. Heavy for a 9 year-old but I was there for it and it was quite enlightening....and extremely sad.

Ed

 

[Jack A.]

I know that we will all continue to love Karen and remember her for many years to come - I hope to still be alive for the 110th anniversary of her death, and I will still continue to do so then (that's weird to think about ).

I'm sure that wherever she is, she's watching with a smile and cheering us all on.

 

[Florian]

I hope, that Karen knows how many fans she has and that she is happy in heaven. Can you imagine what she would say if she would know of the RPO Album? I think she would be proud of Richard's work for their legacy.

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

“Every year, I miss her more than the preceding one, and hope that where ever she resides, she is aware of this. - Richard”

Why would he write, where ever she resides? Doesn’t he know where she is? That’s concerning.

 

[adamj95]

“Every year, I miss her more than the preceding one, and hope that where ever she resides, she is aware of this. - Richard”

Why would he write, where ever she resides? Doesn’t he know where she is? That’s concerning.

I take it as, spiritually, wherever Karen is, he hopes she is aware of how much he misses her. Not sure what religion Richard is, but I do find this particular quote by him to be especially touching.

 

[newvillefan]

Why would he write, where ever she resides? Doesn’t he know where she is?

I think his way of writing and speaking is just very stilted, I understand the sentiment behind it.

 

[byline]

It's just a figure of speech. Often after people have passed on, their loved ones express thinking of them in terms of, "Wherever you may be." I agree that "resides" sounds stilted, but Richard chose the more formal word. Its synonym is "lives" ... and I think we can all understand why he wouldn't use that.

 

[CarpentersToYou]

I’m actually shocked their instagram page only has 8k followers. I thought it would easily be in the hundreds of thousands if not much more.

If their music was put out there more, like ABBA's, I am sure they would be. If Instagram existed back in 1997 I guarantee they would have a huge following. There needs to be another Carpenters-aissance to keep their legacy alive.

 

[Mike Smith]

Here is a piece I wrote last year for the 40th anniversary of her passing. It tells the story of meeting her after a concert in Tulsa.

My Ten Minutes With Karen

1971 photo of Karen Carpenter in concert Ten Minutes. It was February 23, 1971. I got to spend ten minutes with Karen Carpenter. I wa...

www.mikesmithenterprisesblog.com

 

[Mark-T]

I agree with you, @Mike Smith. Karen was MUCH prettier in person than she ever was in photographs.

 

[theninjarabbit]

I've been thinking about this a lot. I do every February 4th. As it happens, I needed a new set of speakers for my office computer. Now, they are not super-high-fidelity by any means, but I knew the first thing I had to play was the Horizon album. It has been discussed as the bar for sound tests here. God, Karen's voice is so good. May you all be at peace. Thanks for everything, Karen (and to Richard too!).

 

[newvillefan]

There needs to be another Carpenters-aissance to keep their legacy alive.

For a couple of decades it happened every 5 years or so, regular as clockwork. All of these releases were supported by major TV advertising campaigns. I particularly remember the UK campaign for Interpretations, it featured some of the album tracks like ‘Solitaire’ and ‘Desperado’.

1985 - US #10 with Yesterday Once More
1990 - UK #1 with Their Greatest Hits
1994/5 - another mini resurgence in UK with Interpretations, with UK TV interview
2000 - UK #4 in the UK with Gold

then

2016 - UK #2 with Nation’s Favourite Song, supported by UK TV documentary.

 

[Harry]

Don't forget the big 40/40 compilation in 2009.

 

[STEVE@ENGLAND]

It’s been 41 years since the world lost the best voice ever. This is a heavy day for us Carpenters fans and I am even more appreciative of the music Karen gave us today. Thank you for the music Karen.

I remember the day all-too-well ...

I was 14 and watching TV, when the news came on.
I immediately thought it had been 'ages' since I'd heard any news of (the) Carpenters'.
(It was also the first time I'd heard of the words "anorexia nervosa".)
The following Monday, at school, I was surprised that only 2 - 3 fellow pupils briefly mentioned Karen.
Incidentally, a female cousin (a year or two older than myself) was a big fan and even had the same haircut
that Karen sported circa 1974 (My cousin also played me her copy of the Singles 1969 - 1973 compilation
album.)

If memory serves, I first heard (the) Carpenters' when I was 5 (back in '73.)
Having heard Lynn Anderson (of Rose Garden fame) on UK radio (singing Top of the World), I remember being
mystified when, weeks later, a different version was being played (with, of course, Karen on vocals.)
At the time, I didn't think I was paying (the) Carpenters' particular attention - but, as it turns out, I now realise I
was - for I remember every word and every note (It's possible I'd heard Sing and Yesterday Once More before
then - but, given the passage of time, I'm not sure.)

For what it's worth, I can't imagine being in Richard's shoes.

 

[Jack A.]

Here is a piece I wrote last year for the 40th anniversary of her passing. It tells the story of meeting her after a concert in Tulsa.

My Ten Minutes With Karen

1971 photo of Karen Carpenter in concert Ten Minutes. It was February 23, 1971. I got to spend ten minutes with Karen Carpenter. I wa...

www.mikesmithenterprisesblog.com

Fascinating read - even just talking to people who met Karen 50 years ago is really cool. It's only been a dream for someone like me, but I know that it did actually happen to a lot of people on here. Always great to hear the experiences of those who luckily didn't have to dream it.

 

[1969]

Here is a piece I wrote last year for the 40th anniversary of her passing. It tells the story of meeting her after a concert in Tulsa.

My Ten Minutes With Karen

1971 photo of Karen Carpenter in concert Ten Minutes. It was February 23, 1971. I got to spend ten minutes with Karen Carpenter. I wa...

www.mikesmithenterprisesblog.com

Thanks for this. Only 20 years old with the whole world ahead. She really loved Christmas...