Sailing On The Tide...and other thoughts

[DowneyDiSampson]

I loved her version of "Solitaire". I don't know that she ever disliked the song, but she felt the version they recorded was too slow and just dragged.

 

[song4u]

I'm with Karen on that.

Her voice was impeccable as always, but it just wasn't her song.

 

[Calvin R Murty]

Calvin, that line always made me think that too. The track, At the End of a Song puts me in a place that while she is singing the lyrics are so true to life, her voice is the song and you feel that warmth, yet when the song is over, so is her voice and the finality of it is real again.

Another one that does that for me is the last one, Look to Your Dreams, I will forever think that this was Karen telling me, I'm gone but Look to your Dreams. It was erie in a way when the album first came out cause her death was still so fresh and then to hear these songs...but now as the years go by the songs are more comforting and endearing to me as I still miss her and the voice she left behind.

I play this album a lot.

Yesterday, I was reading this book by another one of my favourite singers - Amy Grant, entitled 'Mosaic - Pieces of My Life So Far', and in a chapter entitled 'Uncle Larry' (about her uncle who died in an accident at an early age), she writes:

I love Frederick Buechner's words in his essay on remembering:" For as long as you remember me, I am never entirely lost." Just because a life is cut short doesn't meant it can't provide a lifetime of impact for those still living.

This made me think immediately about Karen - we, and generations to follow, will remember her because of her musical legacy, and so she will never be 'lost'. Like Richard said at the American Music Awards in 1984: In a sense, she will live forever, as long as the records continue to played and enjoyed...

And yes, to this day, she impacts me and hundreds of others with her irreplaceable voice and talent.

 

[Mark-T]

Well said, Calvin. By the way, I'm a huge Amy fan, too. Look here: http://insightsandsounds.blogspot.com/2008/07/music-plays-on.html

 

[Calvin R Murty]

Well said, Calvin. By the way, I'm a huge Amy fan, too. Look here: http://insightsandsounds.blogspot.com/2008/07/music-plays-on.html

Cool! I had the privilege of meeting her and Michael W Smith in 1994 when they both came to Singapore for a combined concert tour - she was also promoting her House of Love album then. Managed to chat with them for a bit and they signed a couple of my LPs. Like the A&M promotions guy you wrote about, Amy was really nice and sincere, and when you spoke to her, she made you feel like you were the only one in the room! I was impressed! Smitty was the same way. I often wish I could have personally met K&R but I guess I should be glad that I got to meet at least a couple of my other faves in my lifetime, such as Amy+Smitty.

 

[Mark-T]

Cool you got to meet Amy and Smitty!
Maybe one day.
I did get to meet K&R. She was very nice and spoke with us for quite awhile actually. He was in another room and stopped to say hello before returning to a roomful of beautiful blondes!

 

[richard_sloat]

I loved her version of "Solitaire". I don't know that she ever disliked the song, but she felt the version they recorded was too slow and just dragged.

To me their version sounds perfectly fine, it is certainly more enjoying than Neil Sedaka's one, he has such an annoying voice. Maybe she was lying when she said she didn't like the song or she didn't WANT to like it because she had such a lonely life herself in matters of love like the character from the song.

I had no idea Solitaire was a cards game untill I watched a low-budget thriller movie, The prophet's game, in which this lady tells Dennis Hopper "solitaire" is the only game he would have in his PC.

 

[Mark-T]

^^ And just so you know, Richard, Solitaire is a game played by only one person.

 

[richard_sloat]

Yep, I came to know that as I saw the movie scene, it is indeed the only cards game I actually KNOW by how many people it is played, the one who is featured in Windows (if Windows feature more cards game, I don't know them). I can't play it though, I never learnt to just like I never learnt how to play any other cards game.

In Portuguese it is named "paciência", which would literally translate as "patience". It is a very different word from "solitaire", hence I never suspected its meaning.

 

[Nicko]

That's what this game is called in the UK, "Patience"

 

[newvillefan]

From Sailing On The Tide to Amy Grant to Patience in one thread! Gotta love forums lol!

 

[richard_sloat]

Just a little patience... yeaaaaah, yeaaaah... I like that song.

 

[newvillefan]

This song is definitely the one tune that ties together the "classic" Carpenters' sound in with the rest of the album, given the time period it was actually recorded, not to mention all of the 4-part vocal overdubs

It's actually the only song on the entire album with any background vocals by Karen:

Now - OK Chorale
Sailing On The Tide - Richard and Karen
You're Enough - OK Chorale
Make Believe It's Your First Time - OK Chorale
Two Lives - OK Chorale
At The End Of The Song - OK Chorale
Ordinary Fool - none
Prime Time Love - Richard only
Your Baby Doesn't Love You Anymore - Richard only
Look To Your Dreams - none

I think this is why Lovelines worked far better as a posthumous album and felt more cohesive, because Karen's backing vocals are much more present (helped of course by the inclusion of 4 solo tracks):

Lovelines - Karen only
Where Do I Go From Here? - none
The Uninvited Guest - OK Chorale
If We Try - Karen
Wen I Fall In Love - none
Kiss Me The Way You Did Last Night - Richard, Karen and Siedah Garrett
Remember When Lovin' Took All Night - Karen only
You're The One - none
Honolulu City Lights - OK Chorale
Slow Dance - Richard and Karen
If I Had You - Karen only
Little Girl Blue - none

 

[goodjeans]

2 cents...the only thing that I like about the OK Chorale is it's clever name.

 

[Song4uman]

The OK Chorale should be called the Irritating Choir...... on so much of their backing vocals, they sound like a choir from Disney's Bambi.....no depth to the sound...the ladies sound like little girls. Maybe that was intentional as to not take away from Karen's warmth.

I have been a HS choir director for over 20 years and work to have my HS girls sing with mature tone......

I like the choirs on the Christmas albums (is that OK also....I don't have my copy out at the computer)....but just can't stand them on the "pop" stuff......I hate listening to them on the Music, Music, Music......

jonathan

 

[newvillefan]

I like the choirs on the Christmas albums..but just can't stand them on the "pop" stuff......I hate listening to them on the Music, Music, Music......

Yeah on MMM they do nothing for songs like 'Someday'. Richard said Karen was happy to be re-recording at least part of it, but they ruin the simplicity of the song that she did in 1969.

I suppose after Karen's death, Richard had to do something to try and at least come anywhere near the choral sound that they once had, and his own overdubs plus the OK Chorale was a solution but the only problem was, Karen wasn't included in that.

Which kind of tells you where the Carpenters magic lies really, whatever Richard's talents.

 

[richard_sloat]

Didn't he and Siedah Garrett did the backing singing for Kiss me the way you did last night? To me, they could have done it with all the Voice of the heart album as well. Or he and any other female singer with overdubbings.

 

[GaryAlan]

Well, hopefully everyone has had the opportunity to listen to the
great Tony Peluso perform this, his, song:

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

Cool....^^^this is new to me, when did he record this?

 

[arthowson]

Sailing on the tide is one my favourite Carpenters songs...

I'd love to hear Sailing without Karen's voice doubled.

 

[newvillefan]

That Tony Peluso version is new to me too! I noticed the first line of the chorus is different lyrically to the Carpenters version, but the arrangement is identical to Richard's. He's definitely better suited to playing guitar than singing though

 

[Graeme]

I've always liked the out-tros to Sailing On The Tide and Happy. All those twiddly bits and what-not. Sandy, though not a song I listen to very often, is another one that ends well. Tony's version of Sailing on a par with the Carpenters for me.

 

[Rumbahbah]

Very interesting to hear Tony's version. Was this the demo version given to Richard or did he actually record it? The arrangement is certainly very similar to the Carpenters' version in places.

'Sailing on the Tide' is a bit of a curate's egg for me. I really like the verses and the harmonies are very nice (probably made all the more pleasant because of the OK Chorale's appearance on so many of the other tracks on Voice of the Heart), particularly towards the end of the second verse ('takin' my time, trying to find time to unwind'). However, I've never much cared for the chorus or the ending - the instrumental fade-out drags terribly.

When was the song recorded? I seem to recall 1977 and the Passage sessions being suggested for this, but it doesn't seem to fit well with the other tracks recorded then. It sounds more like another 1980 outtake.

 

[newvillefan]

Very interesting to hear Tony's version. Was this the demo version given to Richard or did he actually record it? The arrangement is certainly very similar to the Carpenters' version in places.

Richard has said the song was a nightmare to finish because he couldn't get the arrangement right. This tends to make me think Tony recorded his after the Carpenters because it's Richard's arrangement to a 't'.

When was the song recorded? I seem to recall 1977 and the Passage sessions being suggested for this, but it doesn't seem to fit well with the other tracks recorded then. It sounds more like another 1980 outtake.

It was actually recorded in 1977 during the sessions for 'Passage'. Heavens knows why they didn't include it, it's far better than songs like 'Man Smart, Woman Smarter'.

 

[Rumbahbah]

Richard has said the song was a nightmare to finish because he couldn't get the arrangement right. This tends to make me think Tony recorded his after the Carpenters because it's Richard's arrangement to a 't'.

It was actually recorded in 1977 during the sessions for 'Passage'. Heavens knows why they didn't include it, it's far better than songs like 'Man Smart, Woman Smarter'.

It's possible that Tony cut his version later, but based on the fact that Richard followed the arrangement on the demo version of 'All You Get From Love is a Love Song' by the Righteous Brothers quite closely for the Carpenters' version, he might have done the same with 'Sailing on the Tide'. After all, he wasn't in great shape in 1977 and wasn't so inspired in his arranging work as he had been earlier in their career. There is something incohesive about the arrangement and maybe that's the issue I have with it - the various parts of the song don't gel that well together.

It is far superior to 'Man Smart, Woman Smarter', that's for sure, although it doesn't fit the 'eclectic' criteria used for many of the tracks on Passage. 'Man Smart, Woman Smarter' at least fulfils that, although alas it fails the more important criteria of being at all listenable!