Bacharach snub for K&R's close to you?

[JAZZ4JEFF]

Burt Bacharach has a new two CD collection out of his greatest hits called "anyone who had a heart". It features recordings by everyone from Barbra Striesand to Elvis. Yet, no "close to you" or any Carpenters recordings are included. Really? They even use the Issac Hayes version of "I'll never fall in love again". I wonder why one of his biggest hits and two of his biggest fans are not included? It's such a dramatic exclusion.

Here is the track list:
Disc: 1
1. I Say A Little Prayer (Aretha Franklin)
2. Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head (B.J. Thomas)
3. I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself (Dusty Springfield)
4. Waiting For Charlie To Come Home (Etta James)
5. The Story Of My Life (Marty Robbins)
6. The Look Of Love (Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66)
7. A House Is Not A Home (Brook Benton)
8. Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)(Christopher Cross)
9. Baby It's You (Smith)
10. Tower Of Strength (Gene McDaniels)
11. Magic Moments (Perry Como)
12. Take A Broken Heart (Rick Nelson)
13. Wishin' And Hopin' (Brenda Lee)
14. Don't Make Me Over (Sybil)
15. Any Day Now (Elvis Presley)
16. Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa (Gene Pitney)
17. I'll Never Fall In Love Again (Isaac Hayes)
18. Love's (Still) The Answer (Ronald Isley)
19. Anyone Who Had A Heart (Dionne Warwick)
20. What The World Needs Now (Jackie Deshannon
Disc: 2
1. What's New Pussycat? (Tom Jones)
2. Alfie (Barbara Streisand)
3. Make It Easy On Yourself (The Walker Brothers)
4. This Guy's In Love With You (Herb Alpert)
5. Message To Michael (The Marvelettes)
6. One Less Bell To Answer (The Fifth Dimension)
7. Walk On By (Gloria Gaynor)
8. Trains And Boats And Planes (Astrud Gilberto)
9. Let The Music Play (Diana Ross & The Supremes)
10. You'll Never Get To Heaven (If You Break My Heart)(The Stylistics)
11. Wives And Lovers (Jack Jones)
12. Love Is My Decision (Chris De Burgh)
13. Keep Me In Mind (Patti Page)
14. On My Own (Patti Labelle And Michael McDonald)
15. Nikki (Burt Bacharach)
16. My Little Red Book (Manfred Mann)
17. Overnight Success (Gladys Knight & The Pips)
18. Toledo (Elvis Costello & Burt Bacharach)
19. That's What Friends Are For (Kevin Eubanks)

 

[no1kandrfan]

I did some research and found, at the All Music site, that there are 40 tracks - disc 2 (above) only shows 19. But that "missing" track is Heartlight. Very strange that there is no Carpenters on this compilation - and no Close To You by anyone else...

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Highly likely that it was just a licensing issue. It's clear from interviews in the past that Bacharach considered the Carpenters version of "Close to You" to be the best. Most likely, Universal just wanted too much $ for the track and it wasn't in the budget.

 

[Actorman]

This is the track listing for US version of this set. There is also a 2-disc UK version with a different track list as well as a 6-disc UK box set version. (Interestingly, there are tracks on each of the 2-disc sets which are not included in the 6-disc box set, so to get every track you would actually need to buy all three versions. Not sure what mastermind came up with that idea.)

This (US version) is kind of an oddball collection all around. It looks to me like it's intended as more of a showcase of how many different artists have recorded Bacharach songs than to present his actual "greatest hits." It seems to have a "one song per artist" rule which necessitated "non-hit" substitutions of key songs. They also seem to have included some tracks primarily for "name value" like Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand and Diana Ross & The Supremes.

I totally agree with Mike B. that the absence of Carpenters' "Close to You" was probably a licensing issue. The song is represented on both of the UK sets by the Richard Chamberlain version!! Carpenters' "Somebody's Been Lyin'" appeared on an early, leaked track listing for the 6-disc set, but was not included on the final version.

The other big head scratcher here for me is "That's What Friends Are For" by Kevin Eubanks. Kevin Eubanks? Really? If they couldn't/didn't want to use the Dionne & Friends version, why not the original Rod Stewart version from the Night Shift soundtrack? But at least it's represented, unlike "Close to You."

This is still a definite buy for me because I love Bacharach covers and many of these I don't have. However, I feel bad for the uninitiated who might pick this up thinking it is a true representation of Burt's best work when it is missing so many key tracks and definitive versions.

 

[Vinylalbumcovers]

The other big head scratcher here for me is "That's What Friends Are For" by Kevin Eubanks. Kevin Eubanks? Really? If they couldn't/didn't want to use the Dionne & Friends version, why not the original Rod Stewart version from the Night Shift soundtrack? But at least it's represented, unlike "Close to You."

Likely, the reason they avoided Rod's version is because Bacharach doesn't like it. Bayer-Sager said as much in "The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits". She said she was interested in hearing what his take on it would be but when she did, she didn't like it at all. I agree with her; I think it's awful. It sounds so sad in his hands.

Ed

 

[Mike Blakesley]

It's really sad that licensing costs have gone so sky high. It's what has kept many great classic TV shows like WKRP In Cincinnati from being properly released on video.

My own idea is: If the song is the REASON for the purchase (for example, you're buying a concert video) then yeah, the licensing is justified in being high. But if a song is a three-second background clip playing from a radio, then it should be reasonably cheap -- because nobody would be buying the video for THAT reason, they want to see the show as a whole.

Anyway -- back on topic....that set doesn't have NEAR enough Dionne Warwick to be a true "Best of Burt Bacharach." There are alot of great tunes on it though, and a few that are pretty hard to find.

 

[song4u]

It's really sad that licensing costs have gone so sky high. It's what has kept many great classic TV shows like WKRP In Cincinnati from being properly released on video.

Your mention of WKRP reminded me of the "Phone Cops" episode. Dr. Johnny Fever thinks the phone cops are after him for destroying a phone and he's trying to hide from them. At about 1:20 he says "Travis, I'll play anything, I'll play the Carpenters, I'll play Barry Manilow, just hide me!

 

[Dave]

Well, w/ only two discs, it can't included EVERYTHING! But, yes, the tune Karen & Richard--and Burt, Himself!--are the most famous for, inexplicably left off! Why?

The other big head scratcher here for me is "That's What Friends Are For" by Kevin Eubanks. Kevin Eubanks? Really? If they couldn't/didn't want to use the Dionne & Friends version, why not the original Rod Stewart version from the Night Shift soundtrack?

Hmmmm... --But "Rod The Mod" doing what Dionne, Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder & Elton John did better? I think I would rather have Kevin "Tonight Show Band" Eubanks doing it instead! (Anyone else here agree?)

My vote for the most obscure is "Where There's A Heartache, There Must Be A Heart", by the Sandpipers & as of a year ago I'd discovered Pat Boone recorded it! (It's one of the few songs on a Comp, or two of his, NOT re-recorded (really, his '50's-'60's stuff is, anything from the early '70's, there is not) & I even ordered a '45' (non-LP, on Pat's MGM-distributed Lion label before it became Lion & Lamb) of it, too!)

There are so many "(They Long To Be) Close To You's" out, that the Andy Williams live version on a single-disc Bacharach set I have, is what I would settle for, or give me Tommy Roe's!


-- Dave

 

[mr J.]

This is not a "snub" by Burt Bacharach-Richard would not give Burt or Universal permission to license "Close To You".K&R's original A&M contract featured a clause that prohibited A&M from releasing any Carpenter recording without their permission or licensing their recordings to a third party without their permission.That A&M contract rolled-over to Polygram in 1990 and then Universal in 2000.

Richard has rarely allowed A&M/Polygram/Universal to license a Carpenters track.Richard is not a big fan of "multi-artist" compilations,and I believe he wants to keep Carpenters recordings on Carpenters albums.

He did allow Burt to use "Close To You" for his "Look Of Love" boxed set in 2003.Elsewhere,he did license "Merry Christmas Darling" once or twice for a multi-artist Christmas compilation.But,as most forum members have probably noticed,You will almost never see a Carpenters recording anywhere except on a Carpenters album.This is one of the ways in which Richard has been very faithful in preserving Karen's legacy.

 

[A&M Retro]

I understand Richard's initial desire to keep Karen exclusive from multi-artist compilations (especially in the days of cheap K-Tel hits collections). But enough time has passed, and he should lighten up on that rule.

The many Time-Life compilations of the '60's, '70's and '80's we all see advertised on TV would be the perfect showcase for Karen and Richard's recordings. Carpenters are blatantly missing, and no '70's compilation can be taken seriously without their sound. Furthermore, today's compilations are far classier than the old hit stuff offered in the '70s and '80s.

Unfortunately, the Carpenters are rarely played on the radio these days. Allowing Carpenters recordings on multi-artist compilations today would ensure their music gets heard. My personal feeling is that Richard's constant control and boycott of those sets is not good for their legacy at all, but limits it considerably for potential future listeners.

The good news is the Carpenters WERE featured on the new Burt Bacharach PBS special that aired tonight. They showed 'Close to You' from the Don Knotts Show (Karen at the drums miming to the record that's also on the "Interpretations" DVD). Very nice choice.

 

[Harry]

There have been a number of compilations over the years with a Carpenters song or two, and few of them are in fact Burt Bacharach themed. Just off the top of my head, in my collection, is:

THE LOOK OF LOVE, THE BURT BACHARACH box set (Rhino) - contains Carpenters' "Close To You"
BURT BACHARACH AND FRIENDS GOLD, 2-disc set (Universal) - contains Carpenters' "Close To You" (as the first track!)

and three compilations from Japan, all on A&M:

A&M COMPOSERS SERIES, VOL. 3, ROGER NICHOLS & PAUL WILLIAMS - contains "We've Only Just Begun", "I Won't Last A Day Without You", "I Kept On Loving You", "Let Me Be The One" and "Rainy Days And Mondays" all on the same disc!
A&M SONGS OF BURT BACHARACH - contains Carpenters' "Baby It's You" and "Close To You"
A&M JOURNEY OF BURT BACHARACH - contains "I'll Never Fall In Love Again"

And those are just the CD era things I have. I know there are some LP compilations with Carpenters tracks here and there.

Harry

 

[Song4uman]

was just flipping stations and turned to PBS. They are doing their fundraising right now in St. Louis and the show tonight is Burt Bacharach's Best. If you pledge you can get a DVD of the program and 4CDs of music. Close to You was featured and is on the DVD...and I think on the CD also.
Jonathan

 

[Mike Blakesley]

"Close To You" is on the A&M 50 set as well.