Carpenters Music Video Opinions

Arthur Talarico

Arthur Talarico

Member
Hey, guys! Yesterday I was watching some Carpenters music videos and I decided to ask the following question: is there anything you would change in a Carpenters music video, maybe because you found something strange or something that could be improved?
 
In the 1985 yesterday once more compilation (later renamed only yesteday), i wish they used the two 1970 videos of Karen playing the drums and singing to close to you and we’d only just begun instead. This would show off her drumming talent, and would be a more accurate reflection because at the time these two songs were recorded Karen was usually behind the drums at concerts, and also she was more comfortable then behind drums and so looked better.

I particularly wish they didn’t put the 1981 those good old dreams video right after that 1973 we’ve only just begun video, even if musically it made sense. The contrast is too much and sad to see.

Also, I really wish they made a yesterday once more video like the only yesterday or the all you get from love ones… that would get 100 million views on YouTube easily as their biggest international hit.
 
Good question - the music video technique that I dislike the most is when they play the soundtrack for a given song but use sections of video(s) for one or more other songs to accompany it...far better to simply display a slideshow of still pics instead of pretending it's the video for the song being heard.

The music video for "Now" is particularly bad in this regard. But there are others...
 
Something that's always confused me is why the "Rainy Days and Mondays" video found on YouTube just fades through several pictures of Karen at the beginning, rather than using the full version of the footage (beginning with a faraway shot slowly zooming in on Karen at her drum set), which was used when the video first aired on TV.

Other than that, the RDAM video is just about perfect in my book, although I feel like they could have been more creative with it - a lot of the video was really just the camera showing Karen singing from different angles/close-ups.
 
Jack A. said:
Something that's always confused me is why the "Rainy Days and Mondays" video found on YouTube just fades through several pictures of Karen at the beginning, rather than using the full version of the footage (beginning with a faraway shot slowly zooming in on Karen at her drum set), which was used when the video first aired on TV.
Click to expand...

Maybe Richard felt the long zoom in from afar didn’t really work for the compilation. I like those photos - there are one or two of Karen in silhouette that really emphasise the introspection of the opening few bars of the song.
 
Jack A. said:
Something that's always confused me is why the "Rainy Days and Mondays" video found on YouTube just fades through several pictures of Karen at the beginning, rather than using the full version of the footage (beginning with a faraway shot slowly zooming in on Karen at her drum set), which was used when the video first aired on TV.

Other than that, the RDAM video is just about perfect in my book, although I feel like they could have been more creative with it - a lot of the video was really just the camera showing Karen singing from different angles/close-ups.
Click to expand...
I like the transition from still pics to the video - in a certain way I think it matches the transition from the slower, sparsely accompanied arrangement of the first verse to the fuller accompanied arrangement of the second verse (where the rhythm section & strings kick in)...

And I also like the concentration on Karen throughout - after all this is one of her top two or three finest vocal performances - in fact, the one part of the video that irks me is when, after the sax break, the camera stays too long on the guy playing the harmonica and doesn't get back to her quickly enough...
 
Superstar is my favourite. The way she walks out onto that huge stage this isolated, small figure. The low, moody red lighting. The styling of Karen and the band. The camera edits. And she is just so distant in how she sings in that promo - it all creates the perfect visual for the song.

If there is one shame in relation to the duo and music videos it's that they never made more - I imagine Yesterday Once More, Sing, IWLADWY etc would be firm YouTube favoutites if they existed ....
 
For me, the music videos of "Only Yesterday", "All You Get From Love Is a Love Song", "Please Mr. Postman" and "Those Good Old Dreams" are perfect. I completely agree that the songs "Yesterday Once More" and "Let Me Be The One" should have music videos, which unfortunately did not happen. I think "A Song For You" should also have a music video. Some music videos that I don't like very much are "There's a Kind Of Hush" and "Top Of The World", considering that they are only live performances and, in the case of "Top Of The World", it was recorded years after the original recording of the song. As for the video for "Touch Me When We're Dancing", I don't really like the montage of two people dancing on top of the piano. It looks artificial and strange. Likewise, the montage of three men dancing in the video for "Beechwood 45789". However, I must understand that special effects were on the rise at the time, which is when the Carpenters saw the opportunity to use them in their music videos.
 
There is a lot happening in "Touch Me When We're Dancing". Would get rid of the people dancing in the piano and Bob Messenger as well.
 
kprather said:
There's a music video for "Now"?
Click to expand...
Yes, but it's not a Carpenter production - it was pieced together by one Ned Nickerson (who did some others) and consists of still pics and segments from the videos of other Carpenter songs - the most stunning part of this video is near the end when Karen's image from the VOTH album fades gradually to a bright white light, apparently symbolic of her passing...

 
Arthur Talarico said:
For me, the music videos of "Only Yesterday", "All You Get From Love Is a Love Song", "Please Mr. Postman" and "Those Good Old Dreams" are perfect. I completely agree that the songs "Yesterday Once More" and "Let Me Be The One" should have music videos, which unfortunately did not happen. I think "A Song For You" should also have a music video. Some music videos that I don't like very much are "There's a Kind Of Hush" and "Top Of The World", considering that they are only live performances and, in the case of "Top Of The World", it was recorded years after the original recording of the song. As for the video for "Touch Me When We're Dancing", I don't really like the montage of two people dancing on top of the piano. It looks artificial and strange. Likewise, the montage of three men dancing in the video for "Beechwood 45789". However, I must understand that special effects were on the rise at the time, which is when the Carpenters saw the opportunity to use them in their music videos.
Click to expand...
For the original album version of "Top of the World" there is a video of them lip-synching to the recording. It was taped for the 1972 Bob Hope Special. One year later they performed the singles version of it on the 1973 Bob Hope Special.
 
JohnFB said:
Yes, but it's not a Carpenter production - it was pieced together by one Ned Nickerson (who did some others) and consists of still pics and segments from the videos of other Carpenter songs - the most stunning part of this video is near the end when Karen's image from the VOTH album fades gradually to a bright white light, apparently symbolic of her passing...
Click to expand...
I figured that was the one you were referring to, but you made it sound like you thought it was an official video.
 
kprather said:
I figured that was the one you were referring to, but you made it sound like you thought it was an official video.
Click to expand...
Yes, you're correct - didn't mean to give that impression, but I'll have to be more exacting in the future...

However, you just asked about a "music video" and not an "official" video, which is somewhat ambiguous...
 
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