Favourite Posthumous Album

Which album is your favourite?

  • Voice Of The Heart (1983)

    Votes: 8 25.8%
  • An Old Fashioned Christmas (1984)

    Votes: 3 9.7%
  • Lovelines (1989)

    Votes: 15 48.4%
  • As Time Goes By (2001)

    Votes: 5 16.1%

  • Total voters
    31
By the way, for those folks above discussing
I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day:

According to the back cover sleeve of An Old Fashioned Christmas.....
Peter Knight arranged
I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day.
(Not Richard Carpenter).
 
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Lovelines is probably the most cohesive of the posthumous albums, but putting the solo tracks to one side and focusing only on the 'Carpenters' tracks, there are several tracks on Voice of the Heart ('Ordinary Fool', 'Your Baby Doesn't Love You Anymore', 'Two Lives', 'Look to Your Dreams') that I'd rate higher than the songs used on Lovelines. That said, I do have a soft spot for 'Slow Dance'.

I have to confess that I'm not really all that familiar with An Old Fashioned Christmas as an album. It was always very hard to find in the UK as it wasn't a hit or promoted here, so there aren't many copies floating around, and I never bothered upgrading to The Christmas Collection after getting the special edition of Christmas Portrait.
 
Every time I hear the line, "Carols being sung by a tree" in 'An Old Fashioned Christmas', I think, "Why would a tree be singing carols??" :) It must truly have been an enchanted Christmas.
I always think of a family sitting by a tree singing carols.

And Murray with Bells, it's the whole instrumentation of the song. The organ sounds downright like something you'd hear at a funeral.
 
Carpenters Santa Claus is Coming to Town review New Musical Express Speaking of 'An Old Fashioned Christmas', here's a review of Carpenters' single, 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town', from the UK music paper, New Musical Express, from December 6th, 1975.

Interesting photo of Karen!

The review describes the recording as 'oddly sensuous', states that Karen's singing is 'yearning, if not erotic' and calls her 'Special K!'

Santa Claus is Coming to Town' reached Number 37 on the UK charts after debuting on December 20th, 1975.

I find it interesting that this song had been a recent Top 40 hit, (less than twelve months old, anyway), at the time that Karen and Richard staged their concerts in the UK in November, 1976. They should have performed a live version - an early Christmas present for 1976.

Chart position and dates from 'Record Hits - New Edition', edited by Clive Solomon, 1979 Omnibus Press, ISBN 0 86001 607 2.
 
^^^^
"Special K sings in a voice that's yearning, if not erotic. Maybe it's the thought of Santa coming down her chimney."

:laugh: How delightfully cheeky! I love British humour.
 
To help show our diversity, here is my ranking in a nutshell:
1. Christmas songs from Karen are the best!
2. I like Ordinary Fool better than any other non-seasonal song. Next in line is Tryin To Get The Feeling Again, which is not on one of the albums on the list.
4. I agree that At The End Of A Song is a favorite.
3. I enjoy all the other songs that Karen sings equally with each of them brining something to the plate not always typical.
4. Any disappointment comes from songs yet not included that are are most likely finished recordings shelved.
5. I really really really like Magic Moments and Catch A Falling Star from the Como Medley, I mean really like them, but really...the rest of the Medley is better listened to from the original Perry Como Christmas Show. It could have been the highlight from the cd. The bonus song, And When She Smiles, can not be downloaded. It is not set apart as a numbered choice, nor is it attached to the end of the medley, but it is awesome to hear on the CD.
6. I would like to hear each of the songs with the “ok Chorale” without them. Maybe I just prefer the worklead versions. Honolulu City Lights can be my example. I love the worklead that appears on YouTube. It is simple and refreshing.
 
Voice of the heart , I love this album for many reasons. Not only the cover but also the choice of songs. I can't believe the Now was recorded in one take. I had this album on vinyl and then tape and cd. It's an album I play many times. I also like the way the album ends with Look To Your Dreams and the way the piano fades out.
 
Voice of the heart , I love this album for many reasons. I also like the way the album ends with Look To Your Dreams and the way the piano fades out.
Yes, I love the way the piano fades out, playing the melody of 'Look To Your Dreams'. Although, at first, the lyrics seem to be about using your dreams to create a better future or to maintain positivity, the melancholy piano gives you a sense of looking back at something that is lost forever - that wonderful voice. You feel that those good old dreams will never be as good again.

It's the same feeling that you get at the end of the 'Only Yesterday' / 'Yesterday Once More' DVD when Carpenters' version of 'Close to You' is replaced by Burt Bacharach's version, which melts into that sad, lonely, fading piano phrase.

But on 'Voice of the Heart', those magnificent songs are there to be played over and over.....so your dreams are sung to life once more every time you put the album on again.
 
As Time Goes By For Me. Probably because I was a later Carpenters fan (1994) who'd collected albums in a non chronological order and so had heard many of the songs on Loveliness and Voice Of The Heart through other compilations (Treasures, Interpretations, Reflections and From The Top) and also Karen's solo album, so their wasn't that same level of anticipation as I had for As Time Goes By. I also love the cover. It's not an album I'd recommend someone who had never heard the Carpenters start with (which is ironic as I usually place it at the front of the Carpenters section in HMV purely for the album cover), but neither are Voice Of The Heart or Lovelines. An Old Fashioned Christmas on the other hand I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.
 
Lovelines for me, no question. At the time of its release, hearing bits of Karen's solo LP was a treat. I'd loved "Little Girl Blue" since "Space Encounters" so finally having that was special. So was getting "Honolulu City Lights," which until "Lovelines" I'd almost thought I had dreamed...I heard one verse and chorus over a very static-y radio station when it was first released, and since it wasn't back-announced, wasn't really sure if I'd heard a new Carpenters track or not...after that one hearing, it remained a mystery that wasn't answered until Lovelines. Quite a nice album that explored all sides of K&R's talent. The other options in this poll all have merit, but Lovelines will always hold a special place in my heart.
 
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