defending the honor of karen carpenter in a hostile environment
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All last weekend, I was basically sequestered in a hotel ballroom where numerous representatives of the music industry tried to come to a consensus on some musical matters, and if you think the debates in Congress over the bailout plan were contentious, you should have been in the room when Amy Winehouse's "Frank" album was discussed (for example: when a debut album is released in the U.S. after the artist's second album...oh, it's too ridiculous to get into).
And so a recording was played by a "rock" band of some fame, and success far in excess of its abilities, and one member of the deliberating panel said, "I've heard heavier guitar solos on Carpenters records," and the person representing the interests of the "rock" band threw a verbal fit, saying that whatever one might think of the band in question, its reputation should not be tarnished by comparison to the Carpenters. And the other person, the one who allegedly sullied the good name of the "rock" band, said that he was, in fact, a big fan of the Carpenters, and was just making a stylistic observation about a particular approach to guitar playing on the track in question.
The general feeling among fans of the Carpenters (I am one, pretty much), is that Tony Peluso's guitar solos on the recording "Goodbye To Love" are quite rockin', and that Karen delivers one of her signature forlorn vocals, combining to make a single that should, in a fair world, need no defending against people who scoff at the sibling duo from Downey.
I wasn't going to MOG about this. The new Dylan Bootleg box is out ("Red River Shore" is a lost masterpiece), and Randy Newman was brilliant at Carnegie Hall, and there's a new Leona Naess album most of you would like, and Dion's new album is filled with cool '50s (and a couple of early '60s) R&R covers, and I haven't written about Jenny Lewis.
But I felt it was more vital, at the moment, to hear Karen sing "Goodbye To Love" and hear Tony Peluso play some guitar.
Comments (8)
I have written about "Goodbye to Love" in the past ... in fact, if you type "tony peluso" into Google, the first hit is my blog post on the subject. Over the years, I have been subjected to the slings and arrows of many Carpenters fans, including, if the signature is to be trusted, and I suspect in this case it is, Jimmy Iovine. I stand by my original opinion: Peluso's two solos on "Goodbye to Love" are transcendental moments in rock history, are pretty much the only worthwhile thing about the entire Carpenters catalog, and in fact are all the more transcendental for occurring where they do. As I said at one point in the comments, it's as if John the Baptist suddenly showed up in Target and grabbed shoppers by the throat, saying "there's something going on here!"
I always felt Karen was a great singer who sang bad songs. She should have done the Nelson Riddle songbook albums instead of Linda Ronstadt.
emscee, right on!
Masoo, his solos sound pretty transcendental to me. I like your John the Baptist metaphor. Differing musical opinions are not something that the National Bureau of Standards' aesthetometer can arbitrate, so why should you have to be the recipient of slings and arrows? I like a lot of the Carpenters' including this song, but what would be the point of my then antagonizing a tough Omar-type like you by trying to convert your tastes? )
(Sometimes I convince myself that if something is unhip, that means it must be hip.)
He definitely kicked the tune up a notch or 3..Is there any other key recordings of Mr.Peluso we need to check out? It reminded me of Ernie Isley..
HA, great comment Masoo. The only think I know about Karen is that Kim Gordon wrote a song about her, so I bow to all of you.The fuzz on the guitar is almost surreal, puts it even more over the top.
Admittedly, his guitar work is the only thing that makes this track for me. Yes, she had a pretty voice but the Carpenters recorded some truly awful stuff. I think their covers of Beatles' tunes (Please Mr. Postman, Ticket to Ride) were some of the worst covers I've ever heard in my life.
Then again, "Superstar", "Close to You" and "Rainy Days and Mondays" are classics.
God save us from the terminally hip. I own no Carpenters CDs at this juncture but do own her posthumous solo CD and she had a fabulous voice.
Be warned, though. Expressing admiration for anything smacking of MOR invites the scorn of Mike The Naff.
I really enjoyed this post and it's comments