CARPENTERS: THE TELEVISION SPECIALS
- Thread starter newvillefan
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ullalume
Well-Known Member
Thanks for starting this.
Out of ten
1st) 7
2nd)5
3rd)3
4th)4
5th)9
In my opinion only the 1st and last come close to the treatment the Carpenters deserved. There's a sense of fun in '76, and a sense of class in '80. Were it not for the xmas theme, those two specials would rank even lower. . .shoddy and downright amateurish. Space Encounters - DIRE.
Out of ten
1st) 7
2nd)5
3rd)3
4th)4
5th)9
In my opinion only the 1st and last come close to the treatment the Carpenters deserved. There's a sense of fun in '76, and a sense of class in '80. Were it not for the xmas theme, those two specials would rank even lower. . .shoddy and downright amateurish. Space Encounters - DIRE.
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
100% agree with you about the first and the last specials Neil. I rewatched the first TV special today and really enjoyed it. It's fun, has a bit of (the dreaded) schtick, but is full of Karen's personality, great music and some great side pieces like the car racing (a nod to Richard's interest there). The last special was devoid of much personality from Karen because it's too staged and is focused entirely on the the music rather that their personalities, so that's why I'd say the first one was just a notch better as it was more 'rounded' and appealed to the masses. At least with the 1980 special we got to see Karen drum again. The rest suffer from terrible scripts, too much cheese, terrible acting and Z-list celebrities.
As a side note to the admins: I hope it was ok for me to start this thread, not sure if it's an 'Official Review' since these specials have never seen the light of day officially. Maybe it could be renamed 'Poll'
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Murray
Well-Known Member
In my opinion, the first special was the best of a bad lot. At least that special had decent guests, and as Stephen said, a sense of fun about it. The first Christmas special had those horrible puppets (was ABC too cheap to spring for the Muppets?), and the scene with Richard and Harvey Korman in the bowling alley is too painful to watch. Christmas Portrait suffers from poor guests (other than Gene Kelley), and horrible dialogue (the kitchen scene and references to food from a too thin Karen... what were they thinking?). Space Encounters is a total wreck in every way. The last special, while not suffering from the cheese factor, is sterile and joyless. Prerecorded vocals (save for Ella, bless her heart), prerecorded orchestra (who were only on camera as studio props), John Davidson (need I say more). What bugs me the most about the MMM special, is the "duet" with Ella Fitzgerald. Why the heck would Karen not take the opportunity to actually duet with a legend, instead of standing there, moving her lips to a recording?
Frankly, I don't really care anymore if these specials are ever released on DVD. What I would really like to be released is the Boston Pops concert.
Frankly, I don't really care anymore if these specials are ever released on DVD. What I would really like to be released is the Boston Pops concert.
ullalume
Well-Known Member
An interesting thought. . .must have made for an unusual atmosphere on the set - though not uncomfortable. . . .I've seen 20 mins of outtakes from that sequence and the 2 ladies are clearly enamoured with one another.
I know, as RC has stated, the 2 of them adored studio reproductions to ensure "perfection" . . .maybe Karen felt intimidated (she had no need to be, listening to her live 1978 "Yesterday Once More" or "IKTBIL" she could hold her own with Ella.).
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
I'd love to know what Ella thought about Karen miming while she sang live...
song4u
Well-Known Member
Me too! What a missed opportunity to sing live with Ella Fitzgerald huh. Sometimes the control R&K exercised over their performances ran amok. I think I appreciate hearing Karen's "working lead" recordings more because it was her just being spontaneous.
GaryAlan
Well-Known Member
September 16, 1981, Observer-Reporter:
" ABC Network has scheduled Perry Como and The Carpenters
to headline their own Christmas Specials."
Source:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=KV0NAAAAIBAJ&pg=6612,2606662&hl=en
" ABC Network has scheduled Perry Como and The Carpenters
to headline their own Christmas Specials."
Source:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=KV0NAAAAIBAJ&pg=6612,2606662&hl=en
CraigGA
Well-Known Member
My favorite is the Ella and Karen medley and the Bacharach songs from MMM and the Carpenters medley from TVFTS. In fact, I like all the music, just not the skits. I also like the song Dance In The Old Fashioned Way (can't remember which special) and thank God for the first Christmas special for the music was awesome and I think I remember another year went by before the album Christmas Portrait was available. I taped them on an old cassette portable machine and played them until the album arrived. The same with Little Girl Blue and From This Moment On, and the Perry Como Christmas medley. The Carpenters were the only pop group at the time who had a diverse selection of music to perform. They certainly stepped outside the comfort of their hits to give a well rounded musical experience.
I wonder what Karen actually thought of this. I think this lip-syncing with Ella taping live is one of the sore spots on the Carpenters' career. It was so unnecessary. Karen could well have held her own with this great lady. This "we are a recording act, not a live act" can be taken too far. And it was. The true test of a singer, or any musician, is live performance, not records.
Rick-An Ordinary Fool
Well-Known Member
and if I could go a step further....Karen often gives an even more personal interpretation on her live lyrics....take for instance "I Need To Be In Love" from the Bruce Forsyth Show, a live recording in which not only does Karen nail it but her interpretation is even more intimate and personal than the studio recording on A Kind of Hush. I'd sure like to know who decision it was to keep Karen lip synching while Ella performed live.
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