Carpenters

With their light, airy melodies and meticulously crafted, clean arrangements that appealed to a variety of audiences, the Carpenters stood in direct contrast with the excessive, gaudy pop/rock of the '70s; yet they became one of the most popular artists of the decade, scoring 12 Top Ten hits, including three number one singles. Karen Carpenter's calm, pretty voice was the most distinctive element of their music, settling in perfectly amidst the precise, lush arrangements provided by her brother Richard. Though their popularity began to fade as the '70s progressed, the duo continued to make music together until Karen's tragic death in 1983.

As one of the most popular pop groups of the 1970s, brother-and-sister duo the Carpenters (Richard and Karen Carpenter) enjoyed a string of era-defining hits, among them "We've Only Just Begun" and "Close to You." In time, however, the demands of fame and image exacted a tragic cost as both siblings allegedly struggled with drug addiction, and Karen developed the anorexia nervosa that eventually claimed her life in February 1983.

"The Carpenters" (originally released as "Horizon") is the sixth consecutive platinum-certified album by American musical duo Carpenters. It was particularly successful in the United Kingdom and Japan, topping the charts and becoming one of the best-selling albums of 1975 in those countries. Horizon also reached no. 3 in New Zealand, no. 4 in Canada and no. 5 in Norway. An American duo consisting of sister Karen Carpenter and brother Richard Carpenter. Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to as "The Carpenters", their name on official releases and press materials was "Carpenters". During a period in the 1970s when louder and wilder rock was in great demand, Richard and Karen produced a distinctively soft musical style that made them among the best-selling music artists of all time. No fewer than ten of their singles went on to become million-sellers, and by 2005 combined worldwide sales of albums and singles well exceeded 100 million units.

When Karen Carpenter died on February 4, 1983 at the age of 32, more than one generation mourned. Karen and her brother, Richard, had achieved monumental success as purveyors of soft-rock soulfulness, aided by their wholesome, wistful looks…

Carpenters
Vinyl Rip in 24-Bit/96-kHz | FLAC tracks | cue | no log | Covers | FS, MU, HF | 625 MB 3% rec
1971 | Genre: Pop Vocal | Label: A&M | SP-3502 | US pressing

Carpenters is the third studio album by the Carpenters. Released on May 14, 1971, the album was successful, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200 chart and #12 in the UK. With the hit songs "For All We Know", "Rainy Days and Mondays" and "Superstar", Carpenters solidified Karen Carpenter as one of her generation's most endearing pop vocalists.

(wikipedia)

The Carpenters' radio-friendly soft rock virtually defined the genre in the early 1970s, and this album - their third full-length - was the group's ace card. Following on the heels of the wildly successful Close to You, Carpenters features more breezy melodies marked by rich arrangements and beautiful lead vocals, courtesy of siblings Richard Carpenter and Karen Carpenter, respectively.
The record is most notable for two of the duo's strongest and best-loved singles. "Rainy Days and Mondays," written by soft pop gods Paul Williams and Roger Nichols, is a bittersweet pop masterpiece fleshed out by Richard's string orchestrations and smoothly produced backing vocals, while Leon Russell and Bonnie Bramlett's "Superstar," from its melancholic verse to its dramatic chorus, is equally hard to resist…