Singles That Shouldn't Have Been Singles

[SongForYou]

There aren't many that I can think of, but the infamous "Goofus" comes to mind. I can see it, and possibly be okay (somewhat) with it being just another track, but a single?! What the hell?! I cannot think of the reasoning behind releasing this small, unmemorable track for a standout. Why weren't You or One More Time -- two beautiful pieces -- considered or picked to be a shining standout? Boat To Sail and Sandy would have also made much better singles.

Do you think there are more?

 

[Mark-T]

Beechwood 45-789. Ugh. How about Strength of a Woman? Not perfect but a much better choice.

 

[Harry]

Picture this scenario:

You're forced to spend time on a desert island where no-one knows you are. You have no music with you at all, only the memories in your head. Fifteen years go by, and you finally find a way of building a raft that will get you back out to sea. Your raft lands you on another desert island, where all that exists other than trees and sand, strangely enough is a jukebox, that's plugged in and works. On top of the jukebox is a dime, enough for one spin of one record. There are hundreds of tunes by many artists, but only one Carpenters record - and it's "Goofus."

Do you use your dime to play "Goofus"? Or do you play something else?

I know - this story sounds a little "Goofus" to me too!

Harry

 

[Mark-T]

Something else. I can hear Karen in my head.

 

[Dave]

I think "Jambalaya" would have made a better single than "Goofus"... Wonder why that wasn't even considered...

Pat Boone even did "Jambalaya" on a lone MGM album, a year or two before Carpenters Now And Then was done... (An album of country songs, on which anything but a "Goofus" would have made it!)


-- Dave

 

[Toolman]

Either "Goofus" or "Sing". The latter obviously did well for them...I just don't feel that it contributes much to their artistry nor did it help their image issues. "Goofus" makes sense as an album cut homage to their Spike Jones roots. I never though Karen sounded particularly good on it, though. She seems to strain to hit the high notes on the chorus. I'm really surprised Richard let that one out of the box.

Re: desert island question...not "Goofus".

 

[Chris May]

You guys also have to remember that this was a song that actually charted as a hit in the past, with Les Paul taking it to #21 on Billboard in 1950. Richard and Karen were fond of throwbacks, and I guess at the time, the song wasn't quite as far away from one's memory as it perhaps is now. I agree, probably not the strongest song to release as a single. But let's be honest, as much as I like the "Hush" album as, what I call, a "mood" album, it really wasn't their best effort all the way around IMHO.

And by the way, it still took the #4 position on the easy listening charts, so SOMEBODY liked it!

 

[newvillefan]

This one's easy! Apart from Goofus, the other one I think should never have been released as a single is 'It's Going To Take Some Time'. A pretty, but uneventful song and definitely not good enough to be released commercially as a single.

Beechwood was ok, almost like a second coming of Postman, but 1982 was not really a year to be releasing bubblegum covers from the 1960s.

I don't really think they should have released 'I Believe You' either, not because it's not a nice song, but because it came out in 1978, when they had no album to promote and no other chart or promotional activities going on that would have publicised it more. It was never performed on TV and there's no video to go with it either. A very curious decision to release it, and it sank without a trace, only to re-appear three years later on the next album.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

As a radio program director at the time I can tell you "Goofus" was the nail in the coffin. And coming off "Kind Of Hush" and "I Need To Be In Love", I was totally open to playing a single from them. The only one I'd ever passed on before was "Solitaire", which would be my second choice for a "shouldn't have".

"Boat to Sail" was the flip side of "Goofus"...but nobody in radio cared enough to flip the record and play that instead. "Sandy" was the B-side of "I Need To Be In Love". "Jambalaya" would have been reaching back three years, and the last time they tried that ("I Won't Last A Day Without You", from a two-year old LP), they broke a four-record Top 10 streak.

I liked the Carpenters enough that I played the next five singles after "Goofus" ("All You Get From Love Is A Love Song", "Calling Occupants", "Sweet, Sweet Smile", "I Believe You" and "Touch Me When We're Dancing"), but I knew none of them were going to be big hits.

Strictly my opinion: Richard should have toughened the image a bit after "Goodbye To Love", where he had a window where even Carpenters detractors had to admit it was a good song, a great performance and that Richard surprised them with Tony Peluso's guitar solos. "Yesterday Once More" and "Only Yesterday" were strong enough to follow. "I Won't Last A Day Without You"...maybe. But "Sing", "Top Of The World", "Please Mr. Postman" all helped convince the less-than-faithful that "Goodbye To Love" was a fluke.

 

[Mark-T]

^^ Very insightful post! I am still shocked that there wasn't a 3rd single off Now & Then. They could have had another year of sales from it had they released a full length oldie remake.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

^^ Very insightful post! I am still shocked that there wasn't a 3rd single off Now & Then. They could have had another year of sales from it had they released a full length oldie remake.

I think I would have left the oldies alone, followed "Goodbye To Love" with "I Won't Last A Day", skipped "Sing" and "Top Of The World", waited until a few weeks before Now & Then to release "Yesterday Once More" as a single, followed that with "This Masquerade", and then built anticipation by not releasing a single until a month or so before Horizon. Then I would have reversed the order and led with "Only Yesterday". That would have gone a long way toward keeping the image problem in check. They still wouldn't have been the hippest act on the charts by a long shot, but it would have eliminated some of the stigma and allowed Karen and Richard's talents to be more fully appreciated at the time.

It's a lot of ballads, I know, but this would put us right around the time that Barry Manilow came along and made a fortune with them. Assuming different choices in single releases might have meant different choices in material overall, Karen and Richard might have been able to stay in the Top 10 through '76 and '77, if not '78 when even Manilow had to acknowledge disco (Copacabana).

 

[Dave60640]

Goofus was a single release due to fan (club) inquiries and a hope, and im sure pressure, to return to the top 10 with another hit oldie. I don't hate the tune, in fact I think it's a great re-do, but with the tunes of the day going in the vein of More, More, More...this little ditty just didn't do.

 

[Jamesj75]

This one's easy! Apart from Goofus, the other one I think should never have been released as a single is 'It's Going To Take Some Time'. A pretty, but uneventful song and definitely not good enough to be released commercially as a single.

My feelings are the same on "It's Going to Take Some Time," and I'm glad I'm not alone. I think it's a pleasant enough song, more appropriate as an album cut.

Interestingly, I recall Richard's extremely favorable comments about Dishwalla's rendition of the song on the tribute CD, If I Were a Carpenter. I see his point---it is my favorite song on that tribute CD.

 

[SongForYou]

This one's easy! Apart from Goofus, the other one I think should never have been released as a single is 'It's Going To Take Some Time'. A pretty, but uneventful song and definitely not good enough to be released commercially as a single.

Beechwood was ok, almost like a second coming of Postman, but 1982 was not really a year to be releasing bubblegum covers from the 1960s.

I don't really think they should have released 'I Believe You' either, not because it's not a nice song, but because it came out in 1978, when they had no album to promote and no other chart or promotional activities going on that would have publicised it more. It was never performed on TV and there's no video to go with it either. A very curious decision to release it, and it sank without a trace, only to re-appear three years later on the next album.

You know after I posted, I thought about "Going To Take Some Time" as an odd single. Though I actually really like I Believe You and think that it works better as a '78 single, oddly, than with Made In America, as it sounds kind of out of place there.

 

[SongForYou]

I think "Jambalaya" would have made a better single than "Goofus"... Wonder why that wasn't even considered...

Pat Boone even did "Jambalaya" on a lone MGM album, a year or two before Carpenters Now And Then was done... (An album of country songs, on which anything but a "Goofus" would have made it!)


-- Dave

Yes! Sonuva gun Jambalaya is upbeat, fun, and very catchy! It seems like a perfect kind of single that would be very popular on the airwaves.

 

[SongForYou]

Either "Goofus" or "Sing". The latter obviously did well for them...I just don't feel that it contributes much to their artistry nor did it help their image issues. "Goofus" makes sense as an album cut homage to their Spike Jones roots. I never though Karen sounded particularly good on it, though. She seems to strain to hit the high notes on the chorus. I'm really surprised Richard let that one out of the box.

Re: desert island question...not "Goofus".

I love Sing. Even though the "la, la, la, la, la's" can irritate a little -- I think it's a pretty good single, and they made the right choice, even though A&M thought they were crazy for considering it. But it payed off in spades.

I still think, however, that Goofus would fit better on Passage for some reason. It's an odd, cornball tune that feels more out of place along the mellow and atmospheric feeling of the Kind of Hush album.

 

[Dave]

Oooh, time to shift gears a little bit & break away from "Dooof---", er, I mean, "GOOFUS"!!!!

"Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft (World Contact Day)"--and what exactly IS "World Contact Day", anyway?! (I forgot what words come before "World Contact Day" in the title, as well...) I remember seeing "Klaatu" being the writer for it, & taking as a playful pseudonym for "Richard and/or Karen", in reflection to the sort of Sci-Fi theme this song insinuate, but "Klaatu" is the name of the group which had originally done this song w/o the "Alienation-intro, and I only remember hearing their bad Paul McCartney imitation "The Love Of A Woman" on the radio--to paraphrase the idea that these guys (actually a Canadian band) were erroneously thought of as actually BEING the "actual Beatles", reformed!

And why, oh, why did one radio station have to play this as often as something more desirable like "Hurting Each Other", "We've Only Just Begun", "Yesterday Once More" or even "Sing"????!!!! (--And to me, it seemed like this song got played much more than those former titles did!)


-- Dave

 

[SongForYou]

Oooh, time to shift gears a little bit & break away from "Dooof---", er, I mean, "GOOFUS"!!!!

"Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft (World Contact Day)"--and what exactly IS "World Contact Day", anyway?! (I forgot what words come before "World Contact Day" in the title, as well...) I remember seeing "Klaatu" being the writer for it, & taking as a playful pseudonym for "Richard and/or Karen", in reflection to the sort of Sci-Fi theme this song insinuate, but "Klaatu" is the name of the group which had originally done this song w/o the "Alienation-intro, and I only remember hearing their bad Paul McCartney imitation "The Love Of A Woman" on the radio--to paraphrase the idea that these guys (actually a Canadian band) were erroneously thought of as actually BEING the "actual Beatles", reformed!

And why, oh, why did one radio station have to play this as often as something more desirable like "Hurting Each Other", "We've Only Just Begun", "Yesterday Once More" or even "Sing"????!!!! (--And to me, it seemed like this song got played much more than those former titles did!)


-- Dave

I like the song okay. The first half of it is interesting, but after that I usually go to another song. I can't believe that it got so much airplay! Though it was probably to compete with the funky disco that was overshadowing K&R (i.e. Saturday Night Fever) and to tie-in with the Star Wars Craze of '77. It was around '76 when the duo were starting to seem like has-beens in a way, and somthing like this didn't help much.

But, I would listen to this song over and over if I didn't have to ear, Man Smart, Woman Smarter which is horribly misguided. It makes Goofus seem like a Carpenters masterpiece. Not only only was the lyrical material dumb, the random noises and and everything else was just soul scratching.

 

[Chris]

It's interesting to see that several of you feel "It's Going To Take Some Time" was not a strong choice for a single. I've always felt that way about it as well. I wanted to like it more, but just felt it was lacking. It's rather bland. I like the song, but surprisingly it was just this past month that I was listening to it again and found myself appreciating it much more. I like the alternate vocal take that was used in the surround version on the SACD. Karen's take on it sounds a bit more free and more energized somehow.

I have to agree about "Goofus" taking the cake as the absolute worse choice for a single. "Those Good Old Dreams" seems like a poor choice as well.

Michael Hagerty, I enjoyed reading your thoughts about the latter single choices. Yes, I guess there was just one too many "Sing's" and "Mr. Postman's" in that batch. : ) I love those songs, but "Masquerade" would have been much better for the Carpenters in the long run.

 

[A&Mguyfromwayback]

In defense of "It's Going To Take Some Time" - remember, Carole King's Tapestry was sort of the Thriller of its day....so covering it and releasing it as a single surely made a lot of sense at the time.....it's pretty mellow, but not out of place with so much on the radio in those days.....

 

[JAZZ4JEFF]

Just to give it some support, I always liked Goofus. Not as a single, but as a cool album cut. My vote for worst single is "Back in my life again". While I like the song, the production of the record was so bland. It really seemed tame compared to what was on the radio at the time. Not one of Richard's finest moments.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

Yes! Sonuva gun Jambalaya is upbeat, fun, and very catchy! It seems like a perfect kind of single that would be very popular on the airwaves.

And it was. For John Fogerty..ex of Creedence Clearwater Revival, who released it in late 1972 as a single under the name 'The Blue Ridge Rangers'. It went to #16 in Billboard, #11 on KHJ in Los Angeles (which Karen and Richard listened to). It had just left the charts as "Now and Then" was released. In fact, it's possible they recorded it after hearing Fogerty's version on the radio.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

Oooh, time to shift gears a little bit & break away from "Dooof---", er, I mean, "GOOFUS"!!!!

"Klaatu" is the name of the group which had originally done this song w/o the "Alienation-intro, and I only remember hearing their bad Paul McCartney imitation "The Love Of A Woman" on the radio--to paraphrase the idea that these guys (actually a Canadian band) were erroneously thought of as actually BEING the "actual Beatles", reformed!

-- Dave

It should be noted that nobody thought Klaatu sounded like or might be The Beatles until Capitol Records started saying that people thought that. And, I might add, started offering radio stations hundreds of Klaatu albums and T-shirts to give away if they'd run a "Is Klaatu The Beatles?" promotion. I took one listen to their version of "Calling Occupants" and the flip side "Sub-Rosa Subway" and said no.

The two other stations in the chain I worked for said yes. They had a weekend of free albums, but egg on their face when the contest winners got their albums, listened and discovered that not only were Klaatu not The Beatles...they weren't very good. Major credibility-killer.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

I have to agree about "Goofus" taking the cake as the absolute worse choice for a single. "Those Good Old Dreams" seems like a poor choice as well.

Michael Hagerty, I enjoyed reading your thoughts about the latter single choices. Yes, I guess there was just one too many "Sing's" and "Mr. Postman's" in that batch. : ) I love those songs, but "Masquerade" would have been much better for the Carpenters in the long run.

Thanks. "This Masquerade" was such a good song. It would have reinforced the Carpenters-Leon Russell connection from "Superstar" (another record that, like "Goodbye To Love", even the haters couldn't find much fault with), which would only have helped their image.

It would have deprived George Benson of a hit a few years down the road, but he would have done fine anyway.

 

[Harry]

In defense of "It's Going To Take Some Time" - remember, Carole King's Tapestry was sort of the Thriller of its day....so covering it and releasing it as a single surely made a lot of sense at the time.....it's pretty mellow, but not out of place with so much on the radio in those days.....

This is what I've been meaning to say in support of "It's Going To Take Some Time" but hadn't gotten around to it.

I remember when I first heard it on the radio one sleepy, Sunday morning, and I thought, "Now who is THIS covering a great Carole King TAPESTRY song already?" Then I recognized the vocals and immediately thought better of it. Since then, I've always liked the song and Carpenters' rendition of it.

Harry