Disco de Carpenters: “Singles (1974-1978)”

"The Singles: 1974 - 1978", is the second Carpenter Greatest Hits album. It is a follow-up to the immensely successful "The Singles: 1969-1973".

The songs included on this album were not as big a hits as those on the first album. The Carpenters made a big splash on the music scene in the early 1970's and the creative genius of Richard and Karen Carpenter is clearly evident, as they had a string of phenomenal hits from 1970 to 1975. It is extremely difficult for any group to stay on top of the charts for an extended period of time, and the Carpenters are no exception. Their record sales dropped off in the mid-70's somewhat and their single releases did not top the charts as high as their previous successes. This is not a reflection of the quality of their music, but rather a the fickle nature of fans and the gradual evolution of music.

I cannot honestly recommend this album because the songs here are included on a number of other greatest hits albums that are more complete than this one. Richard Carpenter has released a half-dozen greatest hits compilations and of all the "hits" albums, this one is perhaps the weakest. Instead, I'd recommend the double disk album, "Yesterday Once More", "Carpenters Gold", or better yet, one of their box sets. Most of the songs on this album are on the ones mentioned, but you get much much more as well.

As a lifelong Carpenters fan, I hate to not recommend an album of theirs, but in this case I'd purchase on of the others as mentioned.

Jim "Konedog" Koenig

The Carpenters career was indeed slowing down by 1978, their music was simply going out of style. They did grace the airwaves with one more hit in 1978, the re-recording of "Merry Christmas Darling" which has become a modern day standard and a holiday staple. This particular collection was released around the same time as the "Christmas Portrait" album and was eclipsed by that release for good reason, the Christmas album was of new material, not a repackage of singles. One standout track on this collection is the single version of "Can't Smile Without You," the arrangement is better than the album version, it experiments with a jazz horn solo and and alternate vocal lead and lyric. After this release "I Believe You" was released as a single, recorded around the same time as the Christmas sessions and until 1981, the Carpenters as a recording act took a hiatus for reasons we all know about, scoring their last top twenty hit "Touch Me When We're Dancing."

Richard and Karen Carpenter were very popular throughout the seventies and this compilation, as originally released on vinyl, was their second volume of singles. I tend to think that the first volume (1969 to 1973) is slightly stronger, though not by much.

The set begins with two country songs - Sweet sweet smile (a top ten American country hit - their only country hit) and Jambalaya (a cover of the old Hank Williams classic that almost made the top ten in the British pop charts) and ends with their strange song about outer space with a very long title - Calling occupants of interplanetary craft (the recognized anthem of world contact day). In between, the album is filled with pop songs typical of the Carpenters - a mix of brilliant originals and classic covers. One of the songs (I won't last a day without you) was originally released in 1972 but re-issued in 1974 so that's how it qualifies for this set.

The covers here include There's a kind of hush (Herman's hermits), Please Mr Postman (Marvelettes) and Solitaire (Neil Sedaka). Can't smile without you, a song that I associate with Barry Manilow, is also here but the Carpenters recorded it before Barry. The originals include Only yesterday, All you get from love is a love song, Happy and I need to be in love.

The music here is brilliant although there are plenty of more comprehensive compilations available these days.