Phil Ramone laments over Karen

[mr J.]

Producer Phil Ramone's new music memoir "Making Records" includes a detailed discussion about Karen and her solo album-and he exposes a few details that are somewhat of a revelation:

Karen and Richard signed a new deal with A&M the day before she died,and they were planning to record a new album that spring.(This phone call was mentioned in Ray Coleman's Carpenter biography,but no details about the call were discussed).That new album would have been issued in Fall,1983-but,as it turned out,that contract renewal provided for the release of Voice Of The Heart,Old Fashioned Christmas and Lovelines.

Phil mentions that Richard(not A&M) held up the release of Karen's solo album until 1996,when he felt that enough time had passed.(The fact that Richard was able to include four solo cuts on "Lovelines" in 1989 confirms this fact-He had control over the album since Karen's death.

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

I don't think this is any new revelation, we pretty much knew the solo album was held up by Richard at least I always felt that way, others may not. It was at the ardent request of the fans that kept asking Richard over and over to release it that is was done.

I always thought in a round about way he was telling us this in his liner notes when he wrote in Caps: AS TIME PASSES AND EVENTS UNFOLD one's perspective on certain matters can change as has mine regarding this album.

 

[Rumbahbah]

It always seemed to me that it was Richard’s decision not to release Karen’s solo album – after all, I think the Coleman biography said that he’d insisted on a clause in their contract with A&M that he had the final decision as to whether A&M could release any Carpenters material, and presumably although it wasn’t Carpenters proper, after Karen’s death he would have assumed responsibility for it. However, whilst he’s clearly never been a fan of it (in any TV interview I’ve seen on the subject he’s pretty critical of the song choice and the use of Karen’s higher register), for a long time he was pretty coy about the reason for its cancellation and subsequent non-appearance – his comments on the solo album up to the early 1990s were always rather vague and I take “time passes and events unfold” to mean he was being asked about it so often: had there been no pressure from fans I think he may well have never released it, and I suspect his perspective on the quality of the album has changed very little.

I always think it must be quite strange for Phil Ramone to still be asked about the album so much, given that he’s worked with many artists on many albums both before and since, and about a record that’s really a footnote in his career as a producer. He always seems fairly measured in interviews about the reason not to release the album and respectful of Richard, which is nice of him given that he obviously disagrees with Richard on this subject. Mind you, Itchy Ramone always seems a bit more frank on the same topic.

 

[Mark-T]

The album may be a "footnote" but the artist he worked with is legendary!

 

[Dave]

Phil Ramone worked with Phoebe Snow, Burt Bacharach, Paul Simon and Billy Joel... He should be lucky Karen came along, long-after she started her career years ago and Miles Away...!



Dave

 

[mr J.]

I forgot to mention-the album itself is pictured on the back cover of the book,stacked alongside many of Phil's classic albums(as producer).Even though it's a horrible album,He evidently considers it equal to Stan Getz' "Getz/Gilberto" and Billy Joel's "The Stranger",among others.

 

[no1kandrfan]

I just finished this book yesterday. I've always been intrigued by the recording process and Phil provided great insight as to the technical side of things. His comments regarding various artists and the ways in which they recorded were also fascinating.