Week #19: Solo Album, Richard Carpenter: "TIME"
- Thread starter Chris May
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bluebird1111
Member
Well, well, well. This thread prompted me to dig out my TIME CD. It occurred to me while considering my vote that it had been a long time since I had listened to it. 1988 to be exact. Whoa.
So, I popped it in for a listen. "When Time Was All We Had" gets my vote. It made me tear up a bit. Amazingly, the lyrics haven't left me, and as I began to sing along a slew of memories came rushing forth.
I still think "Say, Yeah" is terminally icky 80s pop and that Richard chose keys which are too high for a male voice, making his vocals a little too thin and falsetto for my taste. And the Scott Grimes number..........no comment. But overall it was a better listen than I had expected.
Mark
So, I popped it in for a listen. "When Time Was All We Had" gets my vote. It made me tear up a bit. Amazingly, the lyrics haven't left me, and as I began to sing along a slew of memories came rushing forth.
I still think "Say, Yeah" is terminally icky 80s pop and that Richard chose keys which are too high for a male voice, making his vocals a little too thin and falsetto for my taste. And the Scott Grimes number..........no comment. But overall it was a better listen than I had expected.
Mark
Catching up at last ...Richard's TIME is one of my favourite Carpenters related albums ....after starting / stopping work in 1985 ...and after 2 years- this release was a delightful surprise ...Richard composing /arranging / producing a great solo set ..with some wonderful lead vocals .....
Favourite vocals include Calling Your Name ..../ When Time Was..../ Who Do You Love...plus Richard trying something different & challenging ....Say Yeah ...fans should not really compare this song to others on TIME or to Carpenters tracks.Say Yeah is more comparable to the surprise / shock of Karen's My Body Keeps Changing My Mind or Still in Love in You ....totally different musical genre / music styles...this opens the album with great energy ....
Richard's choice of leading female vocalists ....two of the greatest known ....Dusty Springfield with her smokey vocal singing her best song in years alongside Richard ....A&M should have given her a full credit on the single & video film ....wonderful performance ...
Dionne Warwicke's handling of Richard / Bettis In Love Alone highlights her unique phrasing ....shame both have not worked on other original songs since .... due to this being a possible 1983 Carpenters recording ...some fans always refer to how Karen would have performed this song ...they need to move on ....not everything has to be Karen , Richard or Carpenters related ....Dionne gives a wonderful reading of this fav track ....
TIME is refreshing instrumental ...really Richard should have added an extra original instrumental to provide more light & shade ....
The only weak track is the dirge-like Remind Me Tell....which is average musically & with poor lyrics ....even Richard seems bored by this track ...ideally one of his TIME out-takes would have been a better selection ....
My overall favourite is : I'm Still Not Over You ....dream of a Carpenter / Bettis song ....great melody / arrangement / lyrics ....with one of Richard's outstanding lead vocals .....
TIME was sadly neglected by A&M , not supported enough and with the birth of Richard's first daughter in August 1987 ...lead to Richard not actively promoting as much as he should have ....due to family changes , other projects & some fans disappointment & misplaced comparisons to Carpenters studio projects ... this set stands on it's own...
TIME is an excellent debut album , far beyond most fans expectations of Richard's first solo set ....it should have done far better and deserves Richard to remaster / re-issue with bonus tracks ...for ideally 2006 ...and his 60th birthday anniversary .....
Peter
Favourite vocals include Calling Your Name ..../ When Time Was..../ Who Do You Love...plus Richard trying something different & challenging ....Say Yeah ...fans should not really compare this song to others on TIME or to Carpenters tracks.Say Yeah is more comparable to the surprise / shock of Karen's My Body Keeps Changing My Mind or Still in Love in You ....totally different musical genre / music styles...this opens the album with great energy ....
Richard's choice of leading female vocalists ....two of the greatest known ....Dusty Springfield with her smokey vocal singing her best song in years alongside Richard ....A&M should have given her a full credit on the single & video film ....wonderful performance ...
Dionne Warwicke's handling of Richard / Bettis In Love Alone highlights her unique phrasing ....shame both have not worked on other original songs since .... due to this being a possible 1983 Carpenters recording ...some fans always refer to how Karen would have performed this song ...they need to move on ....not everything has to be Karen , Richard or Carpenters related ....Dionne gives a wonderful reading of this fav track ....
TIME is refreshing instrumental ...really Richard should have added an extra original instrumental to provide more light & shade ....
The only weak track is the dirge-like Remind Me Tell....which is average musically & with poor lyrics ....even Richard seems bored by this track ...ideally one of his TIME out-takes would have been a better selection ....
My overall favourite is : I'm Still Not Over You ....dream of a Carpenter / Bettis song ....great melody / arrangement / lyrics ....with one of Richard's outstanding lead vocals .....
TIME was sadly neglected by A&M , not supported enough and with the birth of Richard's first daughter in August 1987 ...lead to Richard not actively promoting as much as he should have ....due to family changes , other projects & some fans disappointment & misplaced comparisons to Carpenters studio projects ... this set stands on it's own...
TIME is an excellent debut album , far beyond most fans expectations of Richard's first solo set ....it should have done far better and deserves Richard to remaster / re-issue with bonus tracks ...for ideally 2006 ...and his 60th birthday anniversary .....
Peter
Must Hear This Album
Well-Known Member
Sorry; late to the party. My pick, "Say Yeah!"
I bought this LP when it was released my junior year of high school. I wore the vinyl thin, much to my brother's chagrin (he preferred Def Leppard and Whitesnake; rock on, my brotha!), but then the 90's and college happened, and CDs and cassettes travelled back and forth much more easily. After ditching my turntable after my first year in college, the album sat for years in my room back home, un-played. I recently rediscovered the album on iTunes, I bought it again, and was surprised by how contemporary the music was for the time period: mid-to-late 1980's.
To wit: "Say Yeah!" could have been featured on any Kenny Loggins album of that period, and the arrangements, writ large, were spry and energetic. In fact, my wife and I recently watched (for the first time) the original "Footloose" film, from the 80's, and we both thought "Time's" tracks could have easily fit the feel and energy of that neon-colored time capsule. Richard was clearly paying attention to what was happening in the middle to later half of the 80's, and I believe he did a remarkable job demonstrating that he could throw down with the best of them.
Sadly, the radio wasn't as interested in playing his capable, brave singles that year, and as we all know, the album quickly faded away. By Richard's own admission, his voice is more suited for background and ensemble work. The songs on "Time," while exceptionally produced, arranged, composed, etc., demonstrate this. Per others' notes, I've always dreamed that Richard might team up with a female vocalist along the lines of Rumer or Carrie Clough (from Call and Response), and put together an album vis-a-vis the instrumentation of his early 70's work (similar to what Elton John's been doing for his last few albums and to great effect).
Just for fun, check out the first verse of Clough's vocals on this classic Bread song: Shades of Karen...
I bought this LP when it was released my junior year of high school. I wore the vinyl thin, much to my brother's chagrin (he preferred Def Leppard and Whitesnake; rock on, my brotha!), but then the 90's and college happened, and CDs and cassettes travelled back and forth much more easily. After ditching my turntable after my first year in college, the album sat for years in my room back home, un-played. I recently rediscovered the album on iTunes, I bought it again, and was surprised by how contemporary the music was for the time period: mid-to-late 1980's.
To wit: "Say Yeah!" could have been featured on any Kenny Loggins album of that period, and the arrangements, writ large, were spry and energetic. In fact, my wife and I recently watched (for the first time) the original "Footloose" film, from the 80's, and we both thought "Time's" tracks could have easily fit the feel and energy of that neon-colored time capsule. Richard was clearly paying attention to what was happening in the middle to later half of the 80's, and I believe he did a remarkable job demonstrating that he could throw down with the best of them.
Sadly, the radio wasn't as interested in playing his capable, brave singles that year, and as we all know, the album quickly faded away. By Richard's own admission, his voice is more suited for background and ensemble work. The songs on "Time," while exceptionally produced, arranged, composed, etc., demonstrate this. Per others' notes, I've always dreamed that Richard might team up with a female vocalist along the lines of Rumer or Carrie Clough (from Call and Response), and put together an album vis-a-vis the instrumentation of his early 70's work (similar to what Elton John's been doing for his last few albums and to great effect).
Just for fun, check out the first verse of Clough's vocals on this classic Bread song: Shades of Karen...
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
Yes, Richard is on record as having said he wrote 'In Love Alone' for Karen. He invited her to a house party of his in December 1982 where he planned to play it for her, but given the rain that night she decided against it and never got to hear it.
I don't think "Time" is worthy of the designation "album of the week"-It's a lackluster,dated set and definitely too "pop/rock" sounding for Richard. "Something In Your Eyes" is probably the best track-but again,the type of material that doesn't "gel" for Richard or Dusty.(Dusty's follow-up single "Nothing Has Been Proved",in 1989,was more well-suited to her style).It also sounded too much like Heart's "Alone"-which was a top-10 hit at the time "Something In Your Eyes" was released.
The curious thing about that Richard/Dusty duet-Dusty wasn't given any credit for the single back in 1987,it was on Richard's album and considered his song.Now,25 years later,It's only available on Dusty's "Ultimate Collection" and regarded as her single.
The curious thing about that Richard/Dusty duet-Dusty wasn't given any credit for the single back in 1987,it was on Richard's album and considered his song.Now,25 years later,It's only available on Dusty's "Ultimate Collection" and regarded as her single.
Dave60640
Active Member
Wow. I still remember waiting, waiting and waiting for this CD to come out. I picked I'm Still Not Over You. The song that was called (by Paul Grein I believe) "the best Chicago song Chicago never recorded." I still play this track along with SIYE, ILA and Time in playlists I have created throughout the years. I would really like to hear RC play this number "live."
BarryT60
Well-Known Member
I love Something In Your Eyes... The lyric is magical.... And as I watch you framed in sunlight - and a sky of blue.... that's some good stuff.... In Love Alone; a close second... Rally, I remember liking most of the lp when it was first released... and it was lovely hearing Richard's arrangements again.... although in retrospect, some of MIA and some of this album have a little 80's feel - whereas so many of the rest of the entire Carpenters library does not... I almost thing there was an airier sound - - even with the piano - that was more period in the arrangments... but that said, I thought the album was a nice way for RC to get back into the recording world.
Sidebar: It is my fervent dream that Richard will one day produce a "standards" album with the likes of a Trisha Yearwood one of these days.... I keep planting that seed all through the Nashville reording circles and I know one day someone will realize that is a fabulous idea! Second choice: K D Lang!
Sidebar: It is my fervent dream that Richard will one day produce a "standards" album with the likes of a Trisha Yearwood one of these days.... I keep planting that seed all through the Nashville reording circles and I know one day someone will realize that is a fabulous idea! Second choice: K D Lang!
I agree this album hasn't dated very well, but it still has its moments. My personal favorite is the instrumental, "Time", which I feel showcases Richard's talents more than any other on the album. He would be a great composer of movie score music if he ever chose to do so. The sax, though, sounds like it came from the theme to "L.A. Law", which was popular at the time of this release.
"In Love Alone" and "Something In Your Eyes" are exceptional. I also think "Calling Your Name Again" had potential as a big single if it had been sung by Dionne, Dusty or any number of other singers.
I personally like "That's What I Believe" quite a bit, even if it is teeny bopper-ish. Scott has a good lead voice. Overall, this album is quite good. Between this and Karen's solo, I'll take the latter.
"In Love Alone" and "Something In Your Eyes" are exceptional. I also think "Calling Your Name Again" had potential as a big single if it had been sung by Dionne, Dusty or any number of other singers.
I personally like "That's What I Believe" quite a bit, even if it is teeny bopper-ish. Scott has a good lead voice. Overall, this album is quite good. Between this and Karen's solo, I'll take the latter.
Just as a point of information, we don't consider whether an album is "good" or not when picking the album of the week, since "good" is such a relative term. The main consideration is, is it an album that readers of this site will have heard and will post about? There are many AOTW threads of the past that have had no replies...probably since nobody has the album!
So basically, any A&M album can be AOTW, but since Richard Carpenter is one of the most significant artists on the label, any album he has released would warrant being picked at some point, just because it's going to generate a lot of comments. (And, this album has a lot of fans as you can tell from the above posts.)
CarpentersToYou
Somehow you brought the gambler out in me...
GaryAlan
Well-Known Member
I actually have cassette versions of the album "Time" and the cassette single for "Something in Your Eyes".
It was incredibly difficult to locate this release at the time, as I recall.
Too bad, as it is not a bad effort. Quite good at times.
Richard deserved more recognition for this effort.
From Readers Digest Magazine: Richard quoted as saying-"People will listen to some songs and say,'Oh great,but it would
have been really great if Karen were singing lead'.I will understand that completely,because I'll be among them."
It was incredibly difficult to locate this release at the time, as I recall.
Too bad, as it is not a bad effort. Quite good at times.
Richard deserved more recognition for this effort.
From Readers Digest Magazine: Richard quoted as saying-"People will listen to some songs and say,'Oh great,but it would
have been really great if Karen were singing lead'.I will understand that completely,because I'll be among them."
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