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Post by Rick Henry on Oct 9, 2008 19:41:03 GMT -5
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Post by BethMosior on Oct 10, 2008 12:38:36 GMT -5
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Post by beaner on Oct 10, 2008 14:28:11 GMT -5
Mine is pre-ordered but not by me. I gave the link to a friend who asked about what I wanted for Christmas so it looks like I'll have to till then.....arrrrgh! Oh well, I'll have to hear what you guys say about it and then it will be that much more enjoyable - maybe  |
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Post by Rick Henry on Oct 10, 2008 21:07:49 GMT -5
Mine is pre-ordered but not by me. I gave the link to a friend who asked about what I wanted for Christmas so it looks like I'll have to till then.....arrrrgh! Oh well, I'll have to hear what you guys say about it and then it will be that much more enjoyable - maybe |
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Post by Rick Henry on Oct 24, 2008 2:52:46 GMT -5
 I received my copy of the new DVD/Book. I am happy to report that the book is not the album by album mini book (little pink covered one) written by John Tobler. The new book is, yes, written by John Tobler and does cover each original studio album from 1969 to 1981. What I like about the book is that John interjects less of his opinions and sticks with the facts, although the book cover territory we have all already heard of, there is nothing new in this book. The DVD is the same, there's nothing new. I mean, it's a whole new documentary with critics speaking; such as John Hoerburger (editor of the New York Times). The documentary is different in that it's et up, like the book, to review each original studio album from 1969 to 1981. On the down side the video does not offer any new or different information on the music that we didn't already know. I also found it disappointing that they did not include "Christmas Portrait" in this review, as this was a studio album released while Karen was still alive. They really only skimmed the surface of each album, it never really got to detailed. The reviews on the last three albums "A Kind Of Hush", "Passage" and "Made In America" were very brief. Their general consensus on the last three albums is as follows... "A Kind Of Hush" had nice moments, but didn't have any real magic, it was lackluster. (I had to agree on that one). "Passage" was an effort to reverse the downward trend. It was experimental. It should have been bigger, but the timing was wrong. "Made In America" was technically fine but lacks spark and lacks inspiration. John Hoerburger said that Richard Carpenter had commented that Karen was not well enough to be recording a solo album. But, John reminded us that the same was true for "Made In America". He went on to say that on MIA, Karen's voice was so "light" compared to what she had done earlier. I felt this critical review was completely spot on in pretty much everything they had to say about each album. I will come back with more of their comments on the first five albums from "Offering" to "Horizon"... they had a bit more to say about each of these albums. Overall I give this new set 3 stars out of 5. It's definitely worth the purchase for the diehard fan. |
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Post by Rick Henry on Oct 25, 2008 8:59:44 GMT -5
I received my copy of the new DVD/Book. I am happy to report that the book is not the album by album mini book (little pink covered one) written by John Tobler. The new book is, yes, written by John Tobler and does cover each original studio album from 1969 to 1981. What I like about the book is that John interjects less of his opinions and sticks with the facts, although the book cover territory we have all already heard of, there is nothing new in this book. The DVD is the same, there's nothing new. I mean, it's a whole new documentary with critics speaking; such as John Hoerburger (editor of the New York Times). The documentary is different in that it's et up, like the book, to review each original studio album from 1969 to 1981. On the down side the video does not offer any new or different information on the music that we didn't already know. I also found it disappointing that they did not include "Christmas Portrait" in this review, as this was a studio album released while Karen was still alive. They really only skimmed the surface of each album, it never really got to detailed. The reviews on the last three albums "A Kind Of Hush", "Passage" and "Made In America" were very brief. Their general consensus on the last three albums is as follows... "A Kind Of Hush" had nice moments, but didn't have any real magic, it was lackluster. (I had to agree on that one). "Passage" was an effort to reverse the downward trend. It was experimental. It should have been bigger, but the timing was wrong. "Made In America" was technically fine but lacks spark and lacks inspiration. John Hoerburger said that Richard Carpenter had commented that Karen was not well enough to be recording a solo album. But, John reminded us that the same was true for "Made In America". He went on to say that on MIA, Karen's voice was so "light" compared to what she had done earlier. I felt this critical review was completely spot on in pretty much everything they had to say about each album. I will come back with more of their comments on the first five albums from "Offering" to "Horizon"... they had a bit more to say about each of these albums. Overall I give this new set 3 stars out of 5. It's definitely worth the purchase for the diehard fan. I wish to clarify what I mean in some of the previous comments and what the critics were getting at. First none of the critics in the DVD were saying anything to tarnish the reputation of either Karen or Richard. They all agreed that both of them are (were) phenomenally talented. All of them also agreed that they produced some of the finest music of their time. And above and beyond they all agreed that Karen Carpenter is one of the most unique vocalists to ever live. On the topic of the album "A Kind Of Hush", the critics did not rip it apart, but they spoke truthfully about the record. They did not say it was a terrible album (and I am not saying that either), but they did say it was an album not up to the Carpenters' high standards (Richard Carpenters himself has agreed with this statement). It was an album that was rushed in the making during a period shortly after Karen had been in the hospital and Richard was in the throws of a quaalude addiction. They were also embarking on a huge world tour. Carpenters just did not put the time and effort into AKOH, as they did "Horizon". I remember someone on another Carpenters forum stating the he didn't understand what the difference was between the quality of "Horizon" and "A Kind Of Hush", as they were both recorded in the same studio, with the same musicians and about the same time period. There were a few main differences. First (due to Karen's health issues) her voice had went from being bold and robust to showing it's first signs of softening and straining to hit notes that used to come to her with ease. She wasn't singing with the same verve and excitement anymore. Songs like "You" and "I Have You" (both nice songs) lacked the energy and perfect pitch that was found in "Solitaire" or "Desperado". Another was the time that Richard (and the entire band) put into every detail. During the recording of "Horizon" every single instrument and vocal had it's own microphone and recording channel. The studio was totally wired during the "Horizon" sessions, this was a major task, which reaped it's rewards in the final outcome. But, with "A Kind Of Hush", they did not take this extra step. The sound was still excellent, but not quite as in depth or as well defined as with "Horizon". The casual music listener may not hear the difference as much as say one who has worked in a studio and can hear the intricate nuances in detail. The reason these extra steps were not taken with "A Kind Of Hush" was simply due to the fact that both Karen and Richard were exhausted. Some have suggested that they should have taken the entire year off from both recording and touring. Instead of taking time off (both of them continued to decline in health) but knowing that their last product "A Kind Of Hush" was hugely inferior to any product they had released before they went into the studio to regain their panache and put in that extra effort with "Passage". "Passage" definitely found Carpenters back in top form musically. The album was an outstanding triumph of musical adventure. The issue with this album was the fact that it lacked a certain direction. Each album from "Close To You" to "Horizon" seemed to flow together as an entire work, whereas "Passage" (as musically excellent as it truly is) was all over the map musically. Some called it diversity, others had a hard time relating to it because it wasn't the same Carpenters sound. At the beginning of the DVD, John Hoersburger started out by commenting that the Carpenters weren't rock, nor jazz, nor country, nor classical. But their music had elements of all these genres and that with all this they created a gem of musical masterpieces. |
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Post by Rick Henry on Nov 7, 2008 18:32:30 GMT -5
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Post by YesterdayOnceMore on Nov 8, 2008 16:53:28 GMT -5
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Post by Rick Henry on Nov 8, 2008 20:49:02 GMT -5
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Post by beaner on Nov 9, 2008 7:27:10 GMT -5
That's too bad for whatever reason that it was discontinued in the stores. However, I did check with my friend and I do have it coming to me for Christmas so that's pretty cool. I'll still be able to give it a view and listen.
Good though, that if it ends up being a collector's item, I'll be lucky enough to have one also.
Hope you are able to find out some more of the scoop on this, Rick.
Good luck!
Beaner
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Post by beaner on Dec 28, 2008 7:14:42 GMT -5
I'm happy to report that I did, in fact, receive the DVD "Carpenters: The Ultimate Critical Review" for Christmas so if it still remains off the shelves, I'm glad to know it may be a collector's item someday.
I have not had a chance to view it yet though. Hopefully sometime over this next week as I don't return to work until January 5th.
I also received the book and audio CD called Carpenters "Transmissions" which is a live concert recording from Japan in 1972. I did listen to a little of that and the sound is not really strong and clear but just knowing it's a "live" concert is cool.
I also received a few items for my "Karen's Kondo" so I'm hoping to get back to work on that these next few winter months.
I'm trying to sell my drums so I can have room for the dollhouse to move it and be placed on a turntable. That way, it can be viewed easily by spinning it around to see the front and then the inside of the rooms.
Have you found anything more out Rick, about the DVD?
Beaner
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yahooooooooo 
thanx again Rick for the information 
