🎶 Album Sides THE ALBUM SIDES [Poll]: "HORIZON" (SP-4530)

Which side is your favorite?

  • Side 1

    Votes: 27 46.6%
  • Side 2

    Votes: 31 53.4%

  • Total voters
    58
Horizon is my favorite Carpenters album. In my opinion, Karen and Richard never sounded better than they do on this album. I would usually say that I love both sides equally but for purposes of this poll, side 2 wins by a hair. Solitaire is my all time favorite Carpenters song and I Can Dream, Can't I is number 3 on my personal list. Everything else between sides 1 and 2 is a tie.
 
I picked Side Two after changing my vote from Side One. They're really equally great, but 'Solitaire' is just otherworldly and 'Happy' is the best b-side Karen and Richard ever released.
I'm about to reconsider, myself! Only Yesterday is my favorite single of the latter years, so I went with 1 - but side two had all fresh material on it... I've never been a huge fan of I Can Dream Can't I - so I may switch....
 
This was the toughest decision I have yet made with respect to the Polls !
Initially, I gravitated to Side One, as Only Yesterday (my all-time favorite song)
and Please Mr.Postman (another favorite) both occurred on this Side.
Finally, two thing swayed me (barely) to Side Two:
Solitaire
is simply one of the finest Karen Carpenter vocals ever put to 'tape'
and-- as to the other songs-- each time She lingers on those words "....Sea..."
in Caught Between Goodbye And I Love You, my heart melts.

But, truthfully, I love both Sides.
I Love everything about this fantastic Album: Horizon



what he said! :wink:
 
“ Only Yesterday" sounds overproduced and over-tinkered-with to me.

I’ve been hearing this track a few times today and I knew there was one dissenting opinion on this widely adored track and went back to look. I do really like the song, and it has great energy, but I think it is overproduced and there’s not enough air in the mix like there had been with previous singles. It’s just too tight and over-polished that it doesn’t come alive in the way that it should. When things calm down and Karen sings about how she’s found her home in her love’s arms, it’s like an intimate ray of sunlight poking through the production. I wish she had more room to breathe here.

I think a sparkling track like “AYGFLIALS” has more life and joy to it because it’s arranged and moves more organically.
 
I’ve been hearing this track a few times today and I knew there was one dissenting opinion on this widely adored track and went back to look. I do really like the song, and it has great energy, but I think it is overproduced and there’s not enough air in the mix like there had been with previous singles. It’s just too tight and over-polished that it doesn’t come alive in the way that it should. When things calm down and Karen sings about how she’s found her home in her love’s arms, it’s like an intimate ray of sunlight poking through the production. I wish she had more room to breathe here.

I think a sparkling track like “AYGFLIALS” has more life and joy to it because it’s arranged and moves more organically.

'Only Yesterday' was very exciting in comparison to other singles on the radio when it came out, though, which is why it reached Number 4 on the US Billboard Singles charts. It really was authoritative amongst the other releases of the day. It stood out as something special. I think it still stands out today, nearly half a century later. And nothing can beat those low 'E's that Karen sings so richly and effortlessly.
 
'Only Yesterday' was very exciting in comparison to other singles on the radio when it came out, though, which is why it reached Number 4 on the US Billboard Singles charts. It really was authoritative amongst the other releases of the day. It stood out as something special. I think it still stands out today, nearly half a century later. And nothing can beat those low 'E's that Karen sings so richly and effortlessly.

I get that they were always striving for commercial hits, but this is one that leaned maybe a bit too much into that mindset. Richard even said he designed this specifically to appeal to the average record buyer, and if worked, but it can feel a bit bloodless, which most others past singles didn’t.
 
Being my all-time favorite song of any artist, Only Yesterday is a prime example of what Richard and Karen Carpenter
were able to accomplish within the constraints of pop-music-- in 4 minutes time.
If over-produced means filling every available track with an instrument, all properly placed, then guilty as charged.
If over-produced means leaving no stone unturned, regards lead vocals and background harmony, then guilty as charged.
A fan-club newsletter reminds us that this was their most "overdubbed" song.
It is a sparkling gem of a song--even if it was "manufactured" to be that way.
Jim Gordon is incredible on drums. Castanets, a nice touch.
Sax break is great, followed by great guitar work (Tony Peluso).
Strings well-place throughout.
I would not alter a thing.
Perfect.
 
Even after all these great points made it still feels it should be “free-er” to me, more expansive, more fluid. I love hearing it and it sounds sparkling and timeless, but the quibbling nuances keep me from embracing it completely.
 
Being my all-time favorite song of any artist, Only Yesterday is a prime example of what Richard and Karen Carpenter
were able to accomplish within the constraints of pop-music-- in 4 minutes time.
If over-produced means filling every available track with an instrument, all properly placed, then guilty as charged.
If over-produced means leaving no stone unturned, regards lead vocals and background harmony, then guilty as charged.
A fan-club newsletter reminds us that this was their most "overdubbed" song.
It is a sparkling gem of a song--even if it was "manufactured" to be that way.
Jim Gordon is incredible on drums. Castanets, a nice touch.
Sax break is great, followed by great guitar work (Tony Peluso).
Strings well-place throughout.
I would not alter a thing.
Perfect.
This is also my favorite song of all time.
I love the fact that it is so produced, down to the electric guitar solo fading into the same strings note.
I listen to this song every week.
 
Being my all-time favorite song of any artist, Only Yesterday is a prime example of what Richard and Karen Carpenter
were able to accomplish within the constraints of pop-music-- in 4 minutes time.
....
I would not alter a thing.
Perfect.
Not quite - it's only perfect at two points - the first one is at the very beginning, for the beginning 60 seconds, when Karen is shown singing into the mic in the studio, and it's just only her own pure, natural, gorgeous solo voice we hear (with a minimum of bass, drum & very light string) - this is one of the most beautiful minutes in the recording history of KC - the other occurs just past the 2 minute mark when she briefly returns for the last verse without double-tracking or overdubbing her own voice - this overdubbing by Karen of her own lead vocals was always the biggest mistake in recording they ever made, and they kept doing it over and over and over - why in hell's name would anyone ever want to distort or hide or disguise that incredible voice?
 
Not really a fair question. The whole album is outstanding. Love it all and my most played album, part from CHritsmas Portarit, which play every day now!
 
Not really a fair question...
Not only a fair question, but given the extraordinary quality of her voice - and the absolutely passionate love expressed by all here for it - it might be the most important or critical question one could ask about their recordings - I'd be very surprised if the pros and cons of Karen's double-tracking or overdubbing of her own lead vocals (as opposed to any vocal "stacking" she did on accompaniment harmony or background vocals) wasn't discussed and debated at length and in depth on at least several occasions here in this Forum...
 
Pardon my late vote, but I voted Side 1 based on 2 songs; Only Yesterday & I Can Dream Can't I. However, I do believe that Solitaire (Side 2) is one of the greatest vocalizations in pop music history -- and I have said so many times within the threads of this wonderful forum. EVERY attribute of her God-given voice is on magnificent display!
 
Pardon my late vote, but I voted Side 1 based on 2 songs; Only Yesterday & I Can Dream Can't I. However, I do believe that Solitaire (Side 2) is one of the greatest vocalizations in pop music history -- and I have said so many times within the threads of this wonderful forum. EVERY attribute of her God-given voice is on magnificent display!
Don’t worry. I haven’t voted either since I have no idea which side is better on this very weak album.
 
^^tomswift2002 writes: "...this very weak album."
Obviously, we all have are own perspectives.
I have been listening critically to Horizon since 1975 (north of 1000 vinyl album plays in its entirety)
in my opinion, it is a great album--even with its shortcomings.
 
Don’t worry. I haven’t voted either since I have no idea which side is better on this very weak album.

in my opinion, it is a great album--even with its shortcomings.

It’s not a bad album but it’s not absolutely outstanding either. It doesn’t have the shine or charm of A Song For You. If it has any weaknesses, they stem from the overall listlessness I hear when I listen to it. Doubling Karen’s leads just produced a very strange sound on that album, almost a phasing effect. During her earlier years, doubling her leads worked because her voice was clear and strong. By 1975, it was softer and more whispery and the doubling didn’t work anywhere near as well.
 
^^It has never dawned on me that Karen's 'doubling' of her own voice presented any credible issue to listening.
My assumption was that Richard did that (with Karen's vocals) to try something different from previous albums.
Given that this album is post-Jack Daugherty and employs differing technology plus alternative studio techniques
(detailed upon perusal of the A&M Compendium interview, 1975) there should be a clean break from previous studio albums.
And, there is a clear difference. The album is wholly distinct from all Carpenters' albums that preceded it.
The artwork is superior. The songs are mature, overall. The arrangements are priceless. Karen's vocals are incredibly nuanced.
How anyone can not think this a great album astounds me (great as a pop album, that is,
not just in comparison to previous Carpenters' albums).
I love the album A Song For You, but I am not searching for a replication of it.
Unfortunately, each Carpenters' album has its own weaknesses, but I never once thought Karen's vocals
on Horizon were part of its weakness.
 
^^It has never dawned on me that Karen's 'doubling' of her own voice presented any credible issue to listening.
My assumption was that Richard did that (with Karen's vocals) to try something different from previous albums.
Given that this album is post-Jack Daugherty and employs differing technology plus alternative studio techniques
(detailed upon perusal of the A&M Compendium interview, 1975) there should be a clean break from previous studio albums.
And, there is a clear difference. The album is wholly distinct from all Carpenters' albums that preceded it.
The artwork is superior. The songs are mature, overall. The arrangements are priceless. Karen's vocals are incredibly nuanced.
How anyone can not think this a great album astounds me (great as a pop album, that is,
not just in comparison to previous Carpenters' albums).
I love the album A Song For You, but I am not searching for a replication of it.
Unfortunately, each Carpenters' album has its own weaknesses, but I never once thought Karen's vocals
on Horizon were part of its weakness.

What you said.
 
Late to this vote thread as well.

If Solitaire had been on side one, this would be a slam-dunk easy decision. But it's not; so with some effort, I choose side one. Only Yesterday simply must have it's due.
 
I’ve just re-read this thread expecting to go back through lots and lots of comments and am actually shocked that it was started in October 2016 and stretches to a paltry two pages in length!
 
I’ve just re-read this thread expecting to go back through lots and lots of comments and am actually shocked that it was started in October 2016 and stretches to a paltry two pages in length!

I would submit that the best work has the least amount of comments as many, if not most, are in agreement. Not much room for passionate discussion where there is vast agreement; however, by contrast, look at the page (pages?) regarding Karen's solo album. They go on and on and on and on and on....why? Because it's so universally loved?

By comparison, when was A Song For You page started? Or Close to You? How many pages do they have?
 
Horizon is nothing more than a sleepy EP. it’s better than Made In America, but aside from Postman, and “Happy”, the other tracks are slow and don’t have much punch. But the album also seems short.

It’s funny but Passage only has 8 tracks, but it’s more upbeat and it feels longer than Horizon.
 
Oh, I suppose that's my problem, as I listen to LP Horizon to unwind,
sometimes I use it to fall asleep, other times to simply revel in some beauty.
Does every album have to be a party ?
The tan LP is every bit as short as Horizon...so, should it be termed a fast-paced EP ?
But, to each his own.
 
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