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Post by cam83 on Dec 1, 2003 2:12:41 GMT -5
Hi All, I was just thinking of my fave Karen memory, and mine would probably be of the footage of her winning her first and second Grammy Award in 1970. Number one, I love her outfit. Very cute, cool and she looked so happy and bewildered after their win. When the camera pans to them during the mention of the nominees, Karen looks so serious and almost mad, but I think she is concentrating and trying not to show any emotion at all. Then when they win, she is shocked and smiling and very exuberant. Also, they are nervous on stage, not really knowing too much what to say...but neat because these are a brother and sister, who are normal and just like your average jack and jill, who happen to have incredible talent and hit it big. It is amazing! And so nice to see normal people on their way to becoming international superstars...
My thoughts, Cameron
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 1, 2003 16:26:39 GMT -5
:)I think it was on TV land or Nick @nite stations that they were having a special on folks who won either Emmys or Grammys and they would show old footage of folks who won in the past. The one I saw, the footage, was that David Cassidy and Shirley Jones presented Karen and Richard their award. Karen had on some kind of long dress that was pink and yellow some kind of big design on it. Seems like I read somewhere she wasn't going to wear that particular dress at first or something, and ended up wearing it anyway, so maybe she was still a little bothered about thinking about the dress. But she was so pretty anyway. And so graceful. Looking at pics. of her now or on video, it just makes you want to be right with her and just chat with her. Just hug or squeeze or hand and give her a little praise and support. Maybe a lot of praise!
smoothie
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Post by Rick Henry on Dec 1, 2003 23:13:27 GMT -5
One of my favorite memory is watching Karen do the drum solo on the television special of "Space encounters" - I think that was the special. She was wearing a green outfit - green pants, green top.
But my ultimate memory was seeing them in concert in 1977 and being able to see Karen do that wonderful drum solo live. She was awesome.
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Post by Sammy on Dec 2, 2003 10:31:30 GMT -5
This is a tough one. I have so many favorite Karen memories. I would have to say it's when her solo album was relaesed in October 1996. I knew the release date, so I waited for the day to come. I went to Tower records, since I live very close to it. At that time I still was buying cassettes. They were out of the cassette, so I bought a CD. I actually bought the last CD, they said they were shipped 25 copies of the CD that day and sold out completely.
But I still wanted to cassette so I could listen to it in my car. I went to another local store, they were completely out of both cassette and disc, I tried another and another. I ended up going to 5 stores before finding the cassette. I spent about 2 1/2 hours on this journey, but I got what I wanted.
It was great when I popped that cassette into my car stereo on the way home and heard the opening lines of Lovelines, I was in Karen Carpenter heaven. I was just totally blown away by All Because Of You.
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 2, 2003 21:43:30 GMT -5
And once again..how really blessed you were and are to have such a wonderful memory Rick of seeing Karen and Richard in concert! I know how very very ecstatic I was to be able to have seen J. Denver in '78..I guess I was 19. Anyway, to be in the presence of such performers who really connect so well with the audience, is really special. I recall in one of the Carps bio. on tv, seeing Karen I think on one of their own shows. She was not too thin at all, she sat on a piano as Richard played. She wore a long dress and it seemed a little tight on top and the dress was all white or off white with a gathers around the waist (or pleats). Her hair reached her shoulders maybe a little past her shoulders and was curly with I think a wide headband. She was surely so beautiful and she sang "A Song For You". That song is so special anyway, especially now because she is dearly remembered singing for us. At that time, she looked very well, and sang it with such ease as usual. Thinking about the part that says "I've sang a lot of songs, I've made some bad rhyme"....I just thought and do now....girl, now WHEN EXACTLY did YOU EVER EVER..... make BAD rhyme or sing off-key ?.. NEVER that I know of! And in the Japan video that I have of them, the close-ups of Karen are so very special..such beauty and depth and intelligence can be seen in those big brown eyes!
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 3, 2003 0:36:49 GMT -5
:)hi Sammy..these are nice memories ..aren't they? I like it when you used the phrase "in Karen Carp. heaven"....haven't thot of that one..that's exactly where she puts me when I hear her. So, she must be up there!
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Post by Moe on Dec 3, 2003 23:38:34 GMT -5
The Grammy memories noted earlier were also part of the VH1 special on the Carpenters. That is where I saw it, anyway. I can't find my tape of that show!!!
My favorite Karen memory was when she and Richard appeared on the Tonight Show in the late 70's. I usually didn't have a chance to watch the show because it came on too late, but for some reason, I caught this episode. Burt Reynolds hosted and he commented on his admiration for them. Karen sang, "Thank you for the music" and the medley of "Rainy Days/Superstar/Goodbye to love." It is the one of the only times I saw them on a talk show and will always remember it.
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Post by Rick Henry on Dec 4, 2003 8:37:34 GMT -5
Another great memory was waiting for the album "A Kind Of Hush" to be released. I had been a member of the fan club for about 3 or 4 months at that point, so I was aware of it's release date. I went and bought it immediately. I was so excited I could hardly wait to get home and play it. first thing I noticed was the outer jacket had the Carpenters logo printed all over the inside - it looked great. Next was the music. It was great all the way through. the two songs that stood out were "Goofus" and "Boat To Sail". I must have played the entire album about 50 times in that first week.
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 4, 2003 11:57:03 GMT -5
:)it's fun to think of those times..and even now we're excited when something new is released, and I hope Richard will manage to put out songs that have been in hiding all this time or something new. Of course with me, I want to find more of the videos, but have to be able to buy them too.. I love Kind of Hush album cover and altogether it is a little different than some of the others. I like the pics of both R. and K.smiling rather than not smiling as on the Horizon cover. I always loved it when an album had the words included so I could sing along, and I think most of the Carps did.
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 4, 2003 11:59:48 GMT -5
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Post by Rick Henry on Dec 4, 2003 18:54:37 GMT -5
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Post by Boat2Sail on Dec 4, 2003 21:40:55 GMT -5
Faorite Karen memory? Where do I start? There's so many. Receiving my Japanese import copy of As Time Goes By in the mail. I ordered it over the phone, I checked my mailbox everyday in anticipation. It finally came 2 weeks later. Seeing the album cover for the first time made my heart race. Finally a new album of all previously unreleased Carpenters music. As Sammy stated in an earlier post, I was in Karen Carpenter heaven.
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Post by kathy on Dec 11, 2003 17:40:32 GMT -5
My favorite Karen memory was my 18th birthday when my boyfriend set up a special meeting at A&M records between Karen and myself. It was a surprise gift to me when I met her. She gave me two gifts that I will always cheerish. What a sweet and talented lady she was, and I'll always cheerish the gifts and memory of my 18th birthday.
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Post by smoothie2 on Dec 11, 2003 23:39:11 GMT -5
:)hi Kathy..WOW...! I CAN SEE HOW THAT IS A VERY SPECIAL MEMORY! LUCKY YOU!
SMOOTHIE
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Post by Moe on Dec 12, 2003 4:15:47 GMT -5
What an honor to actually meet Karen. I didn't even have a chance to see her in concert! How lucky your are!
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Post by Alan on Jan 3, 2004 19:29:40 GMT -5
I saw the Carpenters in concert two nights in a row in 1973 when I was a senior in high school. I was and am a rabid Carpenters fan! One concert was in Waco, TX ... April 5, 1973. I know as I still have the ticket stub in my scrap book! Can't believe I've managed to hang on to for all these years! It's about 100 miles between Austin and Waco, TX, and I grew up in a town about half way between. So I made the concert in Austin either the next night or the night before too. I didn't manage to hang on to the Austin concert ticket stub, so can't remember for sure. I remember they had choral groups from local elementary schools who accompanied them with SING. I also remember them doing Yesterday Once More and the oldies medley though this was, of course, yet to be released. They announced that it would be on a future album release. Memories, memories, and a much more innocent time!
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Post by Alan on Jan 3, 2004 19:32:02 GMT -5
I saw the Carpenters in concert two nights in a row in 1973 when I was a senior in high school. I was and am a rabid Carpenters fan! One concert was in Waco, TX ... April 5, 1973. I know as I still have the ticket stub in my scrap book! Can't believe I've managed to hang on to for all these years! It's about 100 miles between Austin and Waco, TX, and I grew up in a town about half way between. So I made the concert in Austin either the next night or the night before too. I didn't manage to hang on to the Austin concert ticket stub, so can't remember for sure. I remember they had choral groups from local elementary schools who accompanied them with SING. I also remember them doing Yesterday Once More and the oldies medley though this was, of course, yet to be released. They announced that it would be on a future album release. Memories, memories, and a much more innocent time!
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Post by Alan on Jan 8, 2004 15:09:17 GMT -5
This Carpenter’s memory has been so long ago, but the memory is still so intense I feel compelled to write it down. Profound it’s not, so I have no idea why I remember this day so well.
This was in 1972. I already had the “Carpenters” album and was ready to purchase all future releases as soon as available. “A Song for You” was released and I was absolutely beside myself with excitement. My best friend and I drove sixty miles south of our hometown to Austin, TX for a little shopping trip … mainly for records. We both worked at a local grocery store and were eager to spend a little of the money we had earned. I bought several albums, but the only other one I remember now was Elton John’s “Honky Chateau.”
Anyway, on the way home, I was busy unwrapping the discs. These were all in vinyl, so you also had a big wonderful piece of art to go along with your new record. That’s the only thing I miss about the vinyl days … those wonderful album designs. And I never did buy 8 tracks that were big at the time. I was so anxious to get home and throw that record on the stereo that I was about to scream. “It’s Going to Take Some Time” had already been released, so that was familiar. But, I was immediately taken with “A Song for You,” “Good Bye to Love, “and “Top of the World.” Then came to love most of the others as well. I thought “Road Ode” very sophisticated … and still do. But then, so is “A Song for You.”
But looking at that “A Song for You” album cover … I really didn’t know just what to make of it! Even that early on, I was already aware of their image problem. But there was something interesting about it. Just couldn’t decide if I liked it or not. I mean, it is kind of sugary! But that was OK with me. Now over thirty years later I still can’t decide if I like or not! But still think it’s interesting. Their classiest album design to me is the “Carpenters’ cover, with its letter flap design, the tasteful beige color , and only their now immediately recognizable logo on the front.
In response to some of the posts above, I was so busy with school and work in my young life that I regret to say I missed many of their TV appearances. But I remember them early on when they appeared on Johnny Carson. This was earlier than the appearance mentioned in a post above. They did the Bacharach medley. Also, saw the Grammy’s when they presented to Bette Midler. Thought that kind of tense. I was already aware of the friction there. Glad to read somewhere that Bette apologized for her behavior back then. Guess she’s the kinder, gentler Bette now! Also, remember seeing them on some special when “Top of the World” was soaring up the charts. Watched it in a dorm lounge. Of course, there’s not much percussion in the song, but by that time, Karen was pretty much relegated to the front anyway, except for her drum solos. Anyway, one guy made the comment … “I guess they have enough money now that she doesn’t have to play the drums.” I thought that so funny at the time ... and also thought … you got that right!!!
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