Post by CarpentersFan2003 on Jan 14, 2004 19:52:21 GMT -5
Chapter Five.
Karen was just finishing putting in her second diamond stud earring when her door bell rang out the first six notes of We’ve Only Just Begun. Karen took a final look in the mirror. Crossing the living room to the front door she peered through the peep hole. She saw a distorted view of Nathan, she opened the door.
“ Come in Nathan. Let me get my purse. Make yourself at home.” Karen said as she disappeared into her bedroom.
Nathan sat on the edge of the loveseat and looked around the room. On the walls where several gold albums and singles. On a shelve Karen proudly displayed her three Grammies. He called to Karen.
“ Quite a impressive set of awards you have here!”
Karen reappeared in the archway to the hall. She saw that Nathan was looking at her trophies.
“ Thank you. It’s been a immense run of success, but it was not that easy in the beginning. Richard and I had to go through rejection after rejection before Herb Alpert gave us our break.”
Nathan got to his feet and went to where Karen was standing and looked her over.
“ You look gorgeous.” Giving Karen a peck on the cheek. Taking Karen’s arm he led her to the door. “ Shall we?”
Karen nodded.
When Karen and Nathan arrived at the Italian bistro that she’d spoke of, the two of them where mildly surprised to see that the line up for a table was outside of the door. Karen was thankful that she’d made reservations that afternoon.
She and Nathan went to the head of the line and spoke to the hostess.
“ I have a table for two under Carpenter for seven p.m.”
When Karen spoke her last name it sent a ripple of recognition through the people in the line. Karen bristled when she heard the phrases “Poor little rich girl.” and “She’s still so thin.”
“ This way.” The hostess said.
Once Karen and Nathan where seated the hostess told them that their server would be along in a few minutes for to take their drink orders.
“ I heard what those people said back there Karen. I’m sorry.” Nathan said as he put his napkin in his lap.
“ It comes with the territory. I’m used to it.” Karen dismissed it with a small smile. Some people had no sense of conduct.
“ So tell me more about yourself. I will be honest with you I have only heard your name. I have not really followed your career. I have heard you on the radio of course but other then that I know nothing.” Nathan leaned forward.
Karen at first, was taken aback at hearing this. Most of the men that she dated knew more about her life then she did. It was like they tried to impress her with their knowledge. This was new and refreshing to her. So she started at the beginning.
“ Well, my parents moved to California when I was thirteen. My father got a better job out here and he wanted to escape the brutal winters of the eastern sea board. The move was also for my brother as well. He had been playing the piano for since he was six. Our parents felt Richard had a better chance at a future here.”
“ What about you? Where you singing by this time?” Nathan asked.
Karen pulled a face as only she could.
“ Lord no. I was still too interested in playing baseball and tag with the neighbors kids. I was a real tomboy. It was not until I was in high school and in the marching band that I found my love of playing the drums. I was sixteen when I got my first kit. I have been playing ever since. My vocal potential didn’t appear until a few months later.” Karen stopped to sip at her water glass then continued. “ Richard and I won the Hollywood Battle of the Bands in 1966, as a jazz trio. That led to a short contract with RCA Records, that deal folded within a year. So a good friend of ours Joe Osborn who happened to have his own studio in his garage let us record there. He also launched his own label called Magic Lamp. I was signed to it as a solo artist. Joe released a single of mine, but due to the company having no PR only five hundred records where pressed. It’s now a rare collector’s item. After nine months the company went out of business. So Joe allowed Rich and I too cut a demo tape and we started to send out copies. We had a few offers but we where told that our sound wouldn’t sell. It wasn’t until a friend of a friend got Herb Alpert to listen to the tape. He signed us in 1969. Our debut album called Offering didn’t do all that well and the only single off of it was a cover of the Beatles “ Ticket to Ride.” It peaked at number fifty-four on the charts. Which was less then stellar…”
“ May I take your drink orders now?” Their server came out of nowhere.
“ A bottle of your finest white wine.” Nathan said and waved the young man off. Turning back to Karen he said.
“ Please continue.”
Karen cleared her throat and then said.
“ Well when “ Ticket” failed on the charts the pressure was on Herb to release our contract. He basically told everyone that he was going to give us one more chance. That was when Burt Bacharach heard our version of “Ticket” on the radio and passed my brother the lead sheet to “ Close to You.” It was recorded by Dionne Warwick in 1966 and didn’t do to well. Richard and I where working on a material for a benefit concert and we got word that Herb really wanted us to record it. So at the beginning of 1970 Richard worked out his arrangement of the song. The rest they say is history.”
The wine came then. Nathan tasted it and nodded his head. The waiter poured a glass for Karen. He then gave them each a menu and then moved off.
Reading the menu Nathan realized that it was in Italian. He looked at Karen and smiled lopsidedly.
“ I can’t read this.”
“ It’s okay. I know what to order. Do you like seafood?” Karen asked.
“ Everything but lobster why?”
“ Well they have a to-die-for seafood pasta here. I think it has mussels, scallops and shrimp. I use to order it all the time when I came here.” Karen explained.
“ Sounds great.” Nathan agreed.
When the waiter returned Karen ordered for both she and Nathan.
The rest of the evening passed in a haze of pleasure for Karen. She ate a full meal and dessert. The wine was hitting her a little harder then she’d have liked but she was still in control. Lord don’t let this night end. Was all that Karen could think.
Karen was just finishing putting in her second diamond stud earring when her door bell rang out the first six notes of We’ve Only Just Begun. Karen took a final look in the mirror. Crossing the living room to the front door she peered through the peep hole. She saw a distorted view of Nathan, she opened the door.
“ Come in Nathan. Let me get my purse. Make yourself at home.” Karen said as she disappeared into her bedroom.
Nathan sat on the edge of the loveseat and looked around the room. On the walls where several gold albums and singles. On a shelve Karen proudly displayed her three Grammies. He called to Karen.
“ Quite a impressive set of awards you have here!”
Karen reappeared in the archway to the hall. She saw that Nathan was looking at her trophies.
“ Thank you. It’s been a immense run of success, but it was not that easy in the beginning. Richard and I had to go through rejection after rejection before Herb Alpert gave us our break.”
Nathan got to his feet and went to where Karen was standing and looked her over.
“ You look gorgeous.” Giving Karen a peck on the cheek. Taking Karen’s arm he led her to the door. “ Shall we?”
Karen nodded.
When Karen and Nathan arrived at the Italian bistro that she’d spoke of, the two of them where mildly surprised to see that the line up for a table was outside of the door. Karen was thankful that she’d made reservations that afternoon.
She and Nathan went to the head of the line and spoke to the hostess.
“ I have a table for two under Carpenter for seven p.m.”
When Karen spoke her last name it sent a ripple of recognition through the people in the line. Karen bristled when she heard the phrases “Poor little rich girl.” and “She’s still so thin.”
“ This way.” The hostess said.
Once Karen and Nathan where seated the hostess told them that their server would be along in a few minutes for to take their drink orders.
“ I heard what those people said back there Karen. I’m sorry.” Nathan said as he put his napkin in his lap.
“ It comes with the territory. I’m used to it.” Karen dismissed it with a small smile. Some people had no sense of conduct.
“ So tell me more about yourself. I will be honest with you I have only heard your name. I have not really followed your career. I have heard you on the radio of course but other then that I know nothing.” Nathan leaned forward.
Karen at first, was taken aback at hearing this. Most of the men that she dated knew more about her life then she did. It was like they tried to impress her with their knowledge. This was new and refreshing to her. So she started at the beginning.
“ Well, my parents moved to California when I was thirteen. My father got a better job out here and he wanted to escape the brutal winters of the eastern sea board. The move was also for my brother as well. He had been playing the piano for since he was six. Our parents felt Richard had a better chance at a future here.”
“ What about you? Where you singing by this time?” Nathan asked.
Karen pulled a face as only she could.
“ Lord no. I was still too interested in playing baseball and tag with the neighbors kids. I was a real tomboy. It was not until I was in high school and in the marching band that I found my love of playing the drums. I was sixteen when I got my first kit. I have been playing ever since. My vocal potential didn’t appear until a few months later.” Karen stopped to sip at her water glass then continued. “ Richard and I won the Hollywood Battle of the Bands in 1966, as a jazz trio. That led to a short contract with RCA Records, that deal folded within a year. So a good friend of ours Joe Osborn who happened to have his own studio in his garage let us record there. He also launched his own label called Magic Lamp. I was signed to it as a solo artist. Joe released a single of mine, but due to the company having no PR only five hundred records where pressed. It’s now a rare collector’s item. After nine months the company went out of business. So Joe allowed Rich and I too cut a demo tape and we started to send out copies. We had a few offers but we where told that our sound wouldn’t sell. It wasn’t until a friend of a friend got Herb Alpert to listen to the tape. He signed us in 1969. Our debut album called Offering didn’t do all that well and the only single off of it was a cover of the Beatles “ Ticket to Ride.” It peaked at number fifty-four on the charts. Which was less then stellar…”
“ May I take your drink orders now?” Their server came out of nowhere.
“ A bottle of your finest white wine.” Nathan said and waved the young man off. Turning back to Karen he said.
“ Please continue.”
Karen cleared her throat and then said.
“ Well when “ Ticket” failed on the charts the pressure was on Herb to release our contract. He basically told everyone that he was going to give us one more chance. That was when Burt Bacharach heard our version of “Ticket” on the radio and passed my brother the lead sheet to “ Close to You.” It was recorded by Dionne Warwick in 1966 and didn’t do to well. Richard and I where working on a material for a benefit concert and we got word that Herb really wanted us to record it. So at the beginning of 1970 Richard worked out his arrangement of the song. The rest they say is history.”
The wine came then. Nathan tasted it and nodded his head. The waiter poured a glass for Karen. He then gave them each a menu and then moved off.
Reading the menu Nathan realized that it was in Italian. He looked at Karen and smiled lopsidedly.
“ I can’t read this.”
“ It’s okay. I know what to order. Do you like seafood?” Karen asked.
“ Everything but lobster why?”
“ Well they have a to-die-for seafood pasta here. I think it has mussels, scallops and shrimp. I use to order it all the time when I came here.” Karen explained.
“ Sounds great.” Nathan agreed.
When the waiter returned Karen ordered for both she and Nathan.
The rest of the evening passed in a haze of pleasure for Karen. She ate a full meal and dessert. The wine was hitting her a little harder then she’d have liked but she was still in control. Lord don’t let this night end. Was all that Karen could think.