⭐ Official Review [Album]: "TIME" (SP 5117/CD 5117/DX 1687)

HOW WOULD YOU RATE THIS ALBUM?

  • ***** (BEST)

    Votes: 8 12.5%
  • ****

    Votes: 13 20.3%
  • ***

    Votes: 24 37.5%
  • **

    Votes: 12 18.8%
  • *

    Votes: 7 10.9%

  • Total voters
    64
There appears to be no "Official Review" Thread for
Pianist/Arranger/Composer/Conductor.

As incredible as we all find Richard's keyboard work on the song
This Masquerade,
it really is surprising to me that he did not choose to perform that song for his PACC-solo effort.
I was listening to This Masquerade a few minutes ago,
and that would have made a terrific addition to this second solo outing.
 
***
I like Richard's album, but it's missing one key ingredient. His sister. For example there are some great background vocals, and just when you would expect Karen to jump in, you hear Richard. He is the best arranger/producer, keyboardist, but not a singing talent. That is his downfall. His background vocals on "Something In Your Eyes" are wonderful, as is Dusty Springfield singing the lead. But one can only imagine what it would of sounded like with a Karen lead. I also like "Time" and the very 80's opening track, "Say Yeah." I think it would of been interesting to feature a few of these songs on Carpenters compilations in the 90's or 2000's. He certainly has done a fine job of continuing the Carpenters legacy, that seems to be his primary job, not a recording artist.

I never owned his second solo effort, "Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor." I like the song selection, I'm sure it's beautiful. I was hoping for a pop-type album with maybe an instrumental or two. This is just not my cup of tea. But I will listen to it.
 
And, too, interesting (?) that Newsletter #59 May 1978, is the first official mention of
the Karen Carpenter Magic Lamp single.("Richard has passed on the information relating to numerous inquiries...").
A Simple Exercise:
Compare each solo album.
Each, of course, has its merits.
However, only one of those discs is a true "spreading of the wings" of any type of musical endeavor.
(1) Majestic Album Artwork on the Time Album....very well thought-out (I like it, actually).
Query: why was that same majestic creativity not utilized on Karen's Cover? She is a radiant beauty, she deserved a fantastic
Cover --not the cover that was settled upon.
(2) Richard spent how long on his solo effort (1-2 years? ) But, Karen's effort was taking too long?
(3) Richard sings too high, at times, for his solo songs. The same charge was levied against Karen's solo effort.
(Since when is a female denounced for singing higher notes?).
(4) A simple comparison of the drumming and guitar work between the two albums delineates the alternative arrangement styles.
(5) There are good songs on Richard Carpenter's album. There are some great songs on Karen Carpenter's album.

This leaves no doubt in my mind:
Carpenters, as a musical entity, was the sole reason that Karen's effort was cancelled.
Carpenters, as cash-cow for A&M, was the sole reason for releasing Richard's effort.
Whether admitted publicly, or not, every printed source--from Billboard to the Newspapers---clearly
and emphatically pronounce that Karen and Richard Carpenter are One.
That Richard is the genius,the leader; Karen, the tag-along sister, who just happens to sing and drum. She, nothing without him.
Apologies for the bluntness, but Article after article which I have posted on this forum--from Google News
and Newspaper Archives--clearly shows who 'ran this musical entity'.
Karen Carpenter was never allowed the same freedom, that's a fact:
(i.e., Sing only what you are told to sing, drum when you are allowed to drum, No Disco!...on and on, without respite...)
As I have proclaimed elsewhere, what befell them both could have happened in no other way---given all we now know.
Peruse the literature of the day (some, of which, I have already posted in the 'Anybody Read This').
Indeed, the reality of the situation is as complex, tortured and maddening as any modern day tragedy.

I like to go way back in the threads from time to time...reading your comment Gary from almost 4 years ago, the only thing I have to say is RIGHT ON!, I agree completely.
 
gave this album a listen to last night, only the second time I`ve listened to it. as others have said, it is very 80s, but hey, it was the 80`s when it was released, so I`m not sure that`s a bad thing.
I like the album to be honest, with the exception of one track, `Say yeah`.
for want of a better word, my `favourite` track, or just the one I enjoyed listening to the most, was `Calling Your Name Again`, but I also enjoyed the Dionne Warwick track.
I know it didn't do very well, but it should have, I think the issue here wasn't that the album was bad, but rather that `Carpenters` image Richard couldn't escape from and with Karen gone at this point, interest was gone, especially given the interest was only mainly in Karen in the first place :)
 
gave this album a listen to last night, only the second time I`ve listened to it. as others have said, it is very 80s, but hey, it was the 80`s when it was released, so I`m not sure that`s a bad thing.
I like the album to be honest, with the exception of one track, `Say yeah`.
for want of a better word, my `favourite` track, or just the one I enjoyed listening to the most, was `Calling Your Name Again`, but I also enjoyed the Dionne Warwick track.
I know it didn't do very well, but it should have, I think the issue here wasn't that the album was bad, but rather that `Carpenters` image Richard couldn't escape from and with Karen gone at this point, interest was gone, especially given the interest was only mainly in Karen in the first place :)

I don 't know how Richard was able to dupe the world into thinking he had talent for most of the '70s. what a hack.....baby.

[Moderator: In the interest of future clarity, the above post was intended as sarcasm, but has been misinterpreted.]
 
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I don 't know how Richard was able to dupe the world into thinking he had talent for most of the '70s. what a hack.....baby.

he did have talent, although his voice may not have been one of them AFTER the Carpenters, but hey, I`ve heard worse!
I`ve heard Paul Maccartney sing lately and I still don`t know how he gets away with it :laugh:
 
A number of 'newspaper' outlets and even the Reader's Digest had blurbs mentioning
the upcoming solo album by Richard Carpenter. Those news items never failed to mention
that the album was missing one big thing: Karen Carpenter vocals.
So, from the beginning, all involved knew it would be an uphill climb.
My perspective has changed a bit from my post of 4-years ago.
I still believe the Album artwork for Richard's solo album is very good.
There are some very good songs, or rather three that I really like:
Something In Your Eyes, Calling Your Name Again, I'm Still Not Over You.
The production standard is first-rate, of course.
Arrangements are very 'Carpenters-esque.' How could it be otherwise ?
And, believe-it-or-not, I get a kick out of the first track: Say Yeah...
I do not like the track That's What I Believe.
Now, during the same 80's period, Richard gave us something that I still love:
that is, the song, How Could I Ask For More ?
 
he did have talent, although his voice may not have been one of them AFTER the Carpenters, but hey, I`ve heard worse!
I`ve heard Paul Maccartney sing lately and I still don`t know how he gets away with it :laugh:

I saw Sir Paul riding around with James Corden in another (yawn...) addition of "Carpool Karaoke" recently. That should be the "official" end of his singing career. :laugh:
 
A number of 'newspaper' outlets and even the Reader's Digest had blurbs mentioning
the upcoming solo album by Richard Carpenter. Those news items never failed to mention
that the album was missing one big thing: Karen Carpenter vocals.
So, from the beginning, all involved knew it would be an uphill climb.
My perspective has changed a bit from my post of 4-years ago.
I still believe the Album artwork for Richard's solo album is very good.
There are some very good songs, or rather three that I really like:
Something In Your Eyes, Calling Your Name Again, I'm Still Not Over You.
The production standard is first-rate, of course.
Arrangements are very 'Carpenters-esque.' How could it be otherwise ?
And, believe-it-or-not, I get a kick out of the first track: Say Yeah...
I do not like the track That's What I Believe.
Now, during the same 80's period, Richard gave us something that I still love:
that is, the song, How Could I Ask For More ?

Looking back on my vote count for this album...I'd still give it 3 stars, like Gary...I really only like a few tracks like: When Time Was All We Had, Time, Calling Your Name Again, I'm Still Not Over You. I don't care for any of the duets. I would put Akiko's City of Angels at a 4 star rating. Even though I can't understand most of what she sings...it's still a more emotional listening experience from an album aspect. I still think that The Reply is one of the most beautiful songs off the album. That song makes me think of Karen....
 
Really, it’s his second solo album, which I think a lot of us would prefer didn’t exist, in that “Time” really leaves PACC in its dust.
True however if one enjoys instrumental versions of the Carpenters hits equally as much as the original versions (in this case I'm only one of those who do) PACC serves as a good example of Easy listening instrumental music (that by the time it was released radio had long abandoned it and the only interest in it was had by fans like myself) and the fact it was Richard who did this IMO would have been played in regular rotation on the kind of stations that would have played it ( MOR/EASY LISTENING FORMATS) Had Richard recorded this during the late 70s or early 80s and just did it for radio airplay ( as was the case for much of the EZ listening programming at the time) it might have stayed in the vault for awhile and got released later which again what happened with much of that kind of music just my opinion of course
 
True however if one enjoys instrumental versions of the Carpenters hits equally as much as the original versions (in this case I'm only one of those who do) PACC serves as a good example of Easy listening instrumental music (that by the time it was released radio had long abandoned it and the only interest in it was had by fans like myself) and the fact it was Richard who did this IMO would have been played in regular rotation on the kind of stations that would have played it ( MOR/EASY LISTENING FORMATS) Had Richard recorded this during the late 70s or early 80s and just did it for radio airplay ( as was the case for much of the EZ listening programming at the time) it might have stayed in the vault for awhile and got released later which again what happened with much of that kind of music just my opinion of course
Richard Clayderman released a couple of instrumental albums of Carpenters songs around the same time as PACC and they are a lot more MOR than PACC. Clayderman’s albums are more energetic and bright. Richard Carpenter’s PACC is very gloomy and broody.
 
Richard Clayderman released a couple of instrumental albums of Carpenters songs around the same time as PACC and they are a lot more MOR than PACC. Clayderman’s albums are more energetic and bright. Richard Carpenter’s PACC is very gloomy and broody.
Point well taken and I have some of Clayderman's music in my library including the Carpenters songs and they are great
 
Richard Carpenter’s PACC is very gloomy and broody.
Around the time that ‘Voice of the Heart’ was released, I think it was, Richard appeared on a number of US TV shows playing instrumental versions of Carpenters songs - just him and piano. The arrangements were quite ornate and intricate - almost semi-classical, and bright. I was dissapointed when PACC was released that the tracks weren’t more like those performances.
 
I don 't know how Richard was able to dupe the world into thinking he had talent for most of the '70s. what a hack.....baby.

Oh, he had it and I know you know that...LOL! He is a fantastic vocal arranger. That, for me, is the one thing he does that travels safely from singer to singer. They worked for Karen beautifully and they work on others too. I don't really love the Scott Grimes stuff but the vocal arrangements save a lot of it from being mundane. Even "That's What I Believe" is largely saved from disaster by his vocal arranging prowess. He can almost always get my ear with them - even on the most awful tunes. Why he didn't continue as a vocal arranger for others is entirely beyond me. For me, that's his greatest gift.

Ed
 
Actually, I think Richard Carpenter is held in higher esteem these days than days gone by:

A few snippets from
2018:
(1) "Richard’s rich, sophisticated musical settings to create a sound still unrivaled in popular music..."
Source:
theseconddisc.com/2018/11/ticket-to-ride-carpenters-with-the-royal-philharmonic-orchestra-arrives-in-december/
(2) "Richard also acted as the album’s producer and arranger, and his involvement in every single piece is distinct..."
Source:
www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/music-reviews-the-carpenters-lead-the-way-with-reworked-offering-37597419.html
(3) "Richard Carpenter, long noted as a gifted arranger..."
Source:
www.wataugademocrat.com/mountaintimes/in-review-carpenters-with-the-royal-philharmonic-orchestra-continues-to/article_6212a3c4-fe43-51dd-be36-c0a759a75435.html
(4) "The pristine writing, arranging and producing by Richard Carpenter..."
Source:
spillmagazine.com/spill-album-review-carpenters-carpenters-with-the-royal-philharmonic-orchestra/
 
Excerpt:
Richard Carpenter, Washington Post Interview, July 1985,
Now he has decided to go solo. "I had to sit down and think out what I really wanted to do and in what order," he said. "Produce another act? Stick to writing? Play the piano? As much as I like doing all of that, I enjoy making records more than anything. There's something about doing one's own product that just can't be matched."
----
"But he does not approach his solo career with trepidation. It won't be that different, he said, just that when it comes time to sing the lead, "it'll be like oh, this is for me.
"I'm going to enjoy myself making records . But it won't be the same as working with Karen. It can't be."

More:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/arch...8e5-ae3c-4bac01203e7d/?utm_term=.0ecf35c76a6b
 
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