Carpenters Make the Cut of Top 10 Romantic Albums of All Time

[Jamesj75]

I saw this story in today's (Feb. 14, 2014, Calendar, p. 24) Orlando Sentinel. But it is reported elsewhere (http://articles.orlandosentinel.com...tic-albums-20140213_1_lovers-rock-albums-sade).

The Carpenters' Love Songs is among the Top 10 Most Romantic Albums of All Time, based on a poll of the retailers in the Music Business Association. Complete list (in alphabetical order) is as follows:

• 21, Adele
• Avalon, Roxy Music
• Come Away With Me, Norah Jones
• I'm Still in Love With You, Al Green
• Kind of Blue, Miles Davis
• Let's Get It On, Marvin Gaye
• Love Deluxe, Sade
• Love Songs, Carpenters
• Lovers Rock, Sade
• To Be Loved, Michael Buble

This should give us a smile on Valentine's Day, 2014!!!

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

Thanks James, great to know Love Songs made the list, it's a great compilation and contains one of my favorites, "You're The One"

 

[Must Hear This Album]

Great compilation, indeed! Not surprised that Sade landed two on the list (sidebar: when “Smooth Operator” was ubiquitous on the radio in the spring of 1985 (U.S.), I was in the midst of my teenage Carpenters awakening, exploring, one-by-one, all of their albums from my sister’s collection. I couldn’t help but get excited when I heard the first few licks of “Smooth Operator” on the radio, my ears mistaking them for the first few licks of “This Masquerade.” Am I alone in this phenomenon? I always wondered if Sade borrowed that riff from the Now & Then track). If I had to pick most romantic Carpenters regular release, I’d pick Close To You, as almost every track is an outright love song.

 

[A&M Retro]

The first 'boy/girl' parties I attended in our neighborhood where make-out sessions took place (around 7th grade) featured the 'Close to You' album prominently. I was quite happy even then to see Karen get so much airplay. This would have been 1974-1975.

 

[GaryAlan]

Carpenters mention in this article today:
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music-arts/phil-collins-reviled-revered-article-1.1608626

 

[Tapdancer]

Thanks for that, Gary! If I can quote a few lines from that article:

"Collins isn't the first performer to grow on artists, and critics, in time. When the Carpenters came up....[they] were viewed as neoconservative purveyors of lukewarm pop."

As the famous English composer Peter Warlock reminds us, good music is good music, regardless of when it was written.
And if it took two decades for these "smarties" (as the author coins them) to come to the realisation that Carpenters music was actually highly sophisticated rather than lukewarm, then you have to question how musically intelligent and independent-thinking some mainstream artists and critics really are.

That's major validation for those of us who listened to what our ears and our hearts were telling us at the time, in spite of what others may have been thinking.

 

[A&M Retro]

Thanks for the tip on the article, TapDancer. Great comments!

 

[A&Mguyfromwayback]

Trying to figure out who finds Adele's album romantic - I love her, but most of her songs are of the 'you broke my heart, you jerk, so I'm writing a song about you' variety. (I know, I know - no one listens to the words.....but I'm a lyricist so I ignore that fact.)

 

[mr J.]

Interesting that "Love Songs" made the list.While it's an excellent compilation,and K&R's most definitive single-disc package,I think it places more emphasis on torch songs-rather than love songs. I would hardly consider "This Masquerade", "Rainy Days" or "Solitaire" to be romantic-and definitely not essential music for a romantic Valentine's Day dinner.

Ironicly,"Made In America" was K&R's most "romantic" album-and not a single MIA track is featured on "Love Songs". "Touch Me","I Believe You" and "Somebody's Been Lyin" would've definitely set a more romantic tone to that set.

 

[BeeBee1]

Yeah, Love Songs is a weird set. Most of the tracks don't have anything really to do with love - in a romantic form. I mean, Solitaire?!