NOW...Karen's last song

[cam83]

Hi All,
I have always loved this song. I remember when I got this album in late Spring 1988. I just would spend hours looking at her face and thinking how beautiful she was. How silky her voice was. Beautiful bone structure, wonderful expressive eyes(although in that pic she looks sad...VOICE OF THE HEART cover), and I loved her nose and mouth. It makes me sad sometimes to think that she didn't think she was pretty, much less beautiful. Although, the VOICE OF THE HEART cover, she thought she looked pretty, "Look at me Itch! I'm pretty. I'm Really pretty!" she said in a rare outburt...that quote is from the New York Times article on her 1996 Solo album.
I guess for me, at that time, it was near the end for my family, but I didn't know it at that time. But I remember feeling sad Karen was no more. That I would hear no more music. I just fell in love with that voice! This song, was so beautifully done.

NOW- Beautiful intro by Richard. Just sublime and the write amount of gentle orchestration before Karen's vocals come thru...Now, now when it rains, I don't feel cold(very chilling to hear...Rain...as in Rainy Days and Mondays...and now, I don't feel cold...she is in a better place)...I love how she says, "I was always afraid love MIGHT forget me..." sounds so beautiful. You almost don't want this song to end. The background vocalists(OK CHORALE...I know, we discussed this already, but I feel they add to Karen's reading...echoing her)sound lovely. Just a poignant read by Karen. I know some don't like the high range of the song but I feel she never sounded lovelier and what a treat for fans to get this album...Speaking of that, For all the older fans, when did you hear about the VOICE OF THE HEART album coming out? When did you get it? What are your thoughts regarding the first listen?

My thoughts,
Cameron

[Moe]

I remember finding this album unexpectedly in 1983 and couldn't wait to get it home and play it. "Now" is a "chill" factor song. The low note that opens the song to the hopefulness of the song's message has made it special to me.

I always think of what Karen could have recorded if she had lived....

[enigma]

Hey Cam and all
This is a truely beautiful song by far my favorite off the VOH album. It is difficult to listen to because it was her last song and I get the feeling of the end of an era when I hear it. This does not stop me from listening to and enjoying this song however, sometimes it just hits me what this song was. I liked Richards "softer" approach to this song and the way Karen sings it just melts my heart she sang so beautifully.
For me I heard of an unfinished album coming out by the Carpenters a few months after Karens death. I had mixed emotions about this because it had been done so many times before when an artist had died and I was still morning Karen. I had some time to consider it as it did not come out until several months later and decided to purchase it. I could not get through the first listen especially when Now came on but after alot of listens and tears I liked some of the record and still don't really consider it a new album but more of a B sides and unreleased compilation; MIA is still considered the final Carpenters album for me. The releases after MIA including VOTH are gifts by Richard to the fans as far as I am concerned. VOTH is not my favorite album as far as the whole Carpenters catalogue is concerned but it is a pleasent listen and Now just floors me which makes my purchase of the album worth it for that song alone.

[Federico Cruz]

I remember finding this album later in 1983 or early in 1984 in the greatest music store of my country, Dominican Rep. : Musicalia.
They only had one copy, waiting for me to buy it.
And it wasn´t expensive (whao! ).
Well, apart of "Sailing On The Tide", "You're Enough", "Make Believe It's Your First Time" and
"Your Baby Doesn't Love You Anymore", I felt the album was no much atractive.
"Now" seemed a Connie Francis song in the last notes.

[Rick Henry]

"Now" is a really good song, but not neccesarily my favorite song by C's, but I still like it.

I first heard of the album coming out from the music store I worked in at the time. I was very excited about it. When the album finally came out, I was only lukewarm about it. I felt many of the songs at best were just average. Regardless, I still the played the record like crazy. In the record store we displayed it in the front row at the entrance of the store. I remember hearing someone say that they didn't like the album cover.
I thought for sure the album would end up being a big seller, but it ended up selling very slow.
With time I've come to appreciate the album more. "Sailing On the Tide" was always my favorite song on the album - but that was actually recorded in 1976 (or was it 1978?). I also came to really like "Prime Time Love".

[Rob813]

I was devastated by Karen's death. If I had lost my own sister, I probably would have felt the same way. I was a member of the fan club and in a newsletter after Karen's death they spoke of the VOTH album. I purchased it when it first came out. I remember Richard saying how hard it was to produce the album because he could hear Karen's breath sounds on the recordings and it was as if she were still present. I was struck by Now and Look To Your Dreams. At the time I didn't know that Now was Karen's last recording or that LTYD was recorded a number of year's earlier. All I knew is that we had lost someone so precious. I remember feeling so sad and anxious. Also, I remember feeling so cheated by her death and that I would not hear anymore beautiful music. Under my picture in my high school yearbook it says I enjoy listening to Carpenters music. I was never ashamed of my love of their music. I never thought I was "dorky" for listening to it. I just thought I knew wonderful music when I heard it and THIS was it! Everyone who knows me knows of my love for Karen. I visited her grave (the old one) April of 2003 and prayed at the site. I feel wonderfully priviledged for having had Carpenter music be a part of my life for all these years. I still tend to get depressed if I dwell on all of this too much, so I pull away sometimes and distance myself, but I always come back to get refreshed and partake of my passion. Thank you everyone for sharing your passion with me. It's nice to know that I can always find my Carpenter family/friends here anytime I want to hook up. Thanks Cam for the beautiful way you describe Karen and how eloquently and lovingly you phrase every word on this site. God bless you for it. By the way, I consider Now my favorite song on the album. I can't understand why it was not a hit single. The world missed out on a treasure. Karen sings with such passion and I find it ironic that she recorded an essentially "up" song while going through such an incredibly painful time - facing her anorexia - with such courage and determination. Rest in peace dear Karen. I love you.

[Rick Henry]

Just to elaborate a bit more on this. "Voice Of The Heart" is a special album for me because it was the one released shortly after Karen's death. And at that point I was so appreciative to be able to purchase yet one more album of new Carpenters music.
Although I felt it was not their best effort, I also understood that for the most part it was made of up of songs which were recorded several years earlier. As enigma put it a gift from Richard to the fans. The song that intially caught my attention was "Ordinary Fool", what a wonderful arrangement and Karen's voice was somewhat bluesy, I loved this song immediately. Though "Sailing On The Tide" is the song that I really came to love on this album. I always felt "Now" was an outstanding track, but for some reason not one of my favorites.
As time has gone by I have come to appreciate this album tremendously. Though on the whole this is not in my Carpenters Top 5.

[OceanKing]

"Voice of the Heart" was released in October of 1983, only 8 months after Karen's death. I learned about the album that month when Richard went on a promotional tour, giving newspaper and TV interviews (he was even on "Good Morning America" with his parents). Of course I got the album as soon as I could.

"Now" just blew me away. Coming so soon after Karen's passing, the lyrics took on a strange double meaning, almost like Karen was singing to us from the next world, telling us that she had finally found peace and happiness. I even liked the OK Chorale; somehow, it was appropriate to hear a heavenly choir backing Karen on this tune. And Richard's arrangement was incredibly perfect, especially that final note that goes on so long, as if Richard doesn't want the song to end.

At the time, it was not known that "Now" was Karen's final recording. Richard didn't reveal that until 1991, in the liner notes for "From the Top." But we really didn't need to know. The song, and Karen's vocal, relayed that message to us even if we didn't realize it at the time. I've always thought that "Now" was a very lovely farewell from an amazingly gifted artist. Thank goodness Richard was able to work through his grief to complete the song for us. I can only imagine how painful it must have been.

I remember Richard's interview in my local newspaper. He denied that VOTH was a collection of outtakes from previous albums (recently I read an interview where he admitted that all but a couple of songs actually were outtakes).

The reporter also asked him if there would be any more unreleased songs coming in the future. Richard replied that he had enough material for one more new album, plus a second Christmas album.

Well, the following year, he released "An Old Fashioned Christmas," and in 1989, he released "Lovelines."

After that, I figured all he had left were the soundtracks from the TV specials, and, sure enough, we got "As Time Goes By" in 2001.

Sure, the posthumous releases have not been as good as the albums released during Karen's lifetime, but I still treasure them as special gifts to the fans. At the time of Karen's death, who would have dreamed we would get to hear great "new" songs like "Ordinary Fool," "You're the One," "Where Do I Go from Here," and "The Rainbow Connection," to name just a few.

I very much appreciate Richard's stewardship of the Carpenters catalogue and of Karen's legacy.

[Rick Henry]

Guest-OceanKing said:

Sure, the posthumous releases have not been as good as the albums released during Karen's lifetime, but I still treasure them as special gifts to the fans. At the time of Karen's death, who would have dreamed we would get to hear great "new" songs like "Ordinary Fool," "You're the One," "Where Do I Go from Here," and "The Rainbow Connection," to name just a few.

I very much appreciate Richard's stewardship of the Carpenters catalogue and of Karen's legacy.

Very well said OcenaKing, my thoughts exactly.

As for another release of previously unreleased tracks. well we know of the unreleased Karen solo tracks, there are a few more songs from the televisions specials which have not been released. there are also about 3 or 4 songs from the 1978 recording sessions still not released. and I'm sure there are several others from 1969 to 1982 which are still in the vaults. I wouldn't be surprised if there is enough to fill another two albums. And than there's enough to release a great LIVE album or two.

[cam83]

Hi All,
I may be wrong, but I do recollect that NOW was mentionned as Karen's last song from the last session, in the Fan Club Newsletters...somewhere located in the Fan Club Newsletters Archives...(before FROM THE TOP in 1991 listed info on NOW as such).

My thoughts,
Cam

[OceanKing]

You may be right about the newsletter, Cam. I was never a member of the fan club (don't ask me why), so I wouldn't have known. I only knew the Carpenters through the commercial releases, so I thought the first mention of "Now" being Karen's final song was on "From the Top."

And Rick, you may be right about there being enough material for another one or two CDs. I just wonder about the quality of the remaining vault tracks, and whether they are worth releasing. There are a few of them that I would like to hear, like "All My Life" and "Try to Win a Friend" and "Thank You for the Music" (if it's complete).

This is why Richard should get his official website up and running!! As a treat to fans, he could offer downloads of some of these lost songs. I'd even be willing to pay a couple of dollars for the download, as would most of the fans that visit sites like this one. Richard may be at the point that he worries that releasing any more outtakes will water down the whole Carpenters catalogue.

So his website would be the perfect solution. Diehard fans (like us) could acquire these rare tracks for our personal collections, without them taking space away from the hits compilations in the CD stores.

[Rob813]

I don't think Carpenters legacy would be diluted by Richard releasing more tracks that are stored in a vault. In my opinion their legacy is complete right now. Anything else would just be "gravy" for their fans. The quality of Carpenter songs is legendary and even the rock hipsters from the 1970's will begrudgingly admit that. The truth is those arbiters of taste were wrong and it probably is difficult to admit that now. And, as I've said before, if it weren't for Carpenters, A&M studios would never have been the success it became. Carpenters carried that studio singlehandedly!

[BethMosior]

The song is such a wonderful song, at 1st it was very hard to listen to, because all I could think of was how much I miss Karen but now, no pun intended wow what a song, I just love it, when the first note is so low, NOOOOOW,now when it rains, I don't feel cold, etc......... I really have to get a sweater, and a cup of something hot, for it chills me down to the core so haunting yet sooooo beautiful what a great song Bravo

[Rob813]

Beth, you have such a beautiful way of expressing yourself; so descriptive and refreshing. I always feel blessed when I read what you have to say. I will always think of your description when I listen to "Now" from now on!