Gold (Limited Edition) - Carpenters > Reviews > Pure Gold

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	A good mix of the Carpenters classic hits at a great price .
Disadvantages:	Some of the hits can be a little 'samey', no lyrics included to sing - along to .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The Carpenters Gold (1x) CD is a collection of Greatest Hits by the Brother and Sister who's music I think encompasses originality and incredible talent. For those who have heard of the Carpenters tunes or do not no anything about them, If you are into your love songs, meaningful lyrical content and catchy sounds then this may be worth a listen. This is a great CD with all the hits on that you love or may have heard before. This music falls in the category of Folk/Pop. Sometimes there are just those albums you just have to have in your collection-this is one of them, alongside The Beatles, Elvis and Stevie Wonder. I like my Pop music and my RnB, quite a mixture really and I'm open to lost of other music, I just find that sometimes going back and looking at older bands and different music gives you something that just doesn't happen in the charts today. It's also an AM records album with 20x tracks on. The Carpenters were special because they performed and wrote most of their own music.

I am 27 years of age, so may find it a bit strange that I'm listening to music from an era before I was born, but even though the Carpenters released ten albums between 1970 and 1981 I still love to listen to their music. I remember my parents used to love listening to the Carpenters music and also I had seen the 'Karen Carpenter' movie which really got me into their music, and I learned a bit about their lives and how they came to fame. It's sad how Karen's eating disorder eventually killed her-kind of makes the music that little more special and haunting.

The Carpenters were Karen and Richard, brother and sister from Connecticut in America. With Richard's mastery on the piano and Karen's incredible voice they started of as a jazz band and eventually went on to become superstars know world-wide.

Price: I purchased the Carpenters Gold CD at my local HMV Store for just £6.00, which for 20x tracks on one CD I thought was very good value for money. I notcied that online through Amazon it retailed at about £9.95, so a bargain from HMV!

The Packaging: The CD and inlay is as you can imagine Gold! the contrast of black writing on gold really stands out which is eye-catching. I really like the Carpenters logo-they have just used their name 'Carpenters' in a great fluid style font that kind of reflects their music-fluid and inspirational. The inlay has some lovely pictures of the siblings and a good 8x pages of text about how they came to fame and about the songs themselves.

The tracks:
1.'Yesterday Once More'-a great first track from the early seventies about listening to the radio. Great piano and Karen's voice a catchy tune. This is originally from the the album 'Now and Then'. Quite a slow track. Karen's voice is warm and welcoming.
2.'Superstar'-I love this track it's a big hit from their third album. Bette Midler originally performed this track but The Carpenters version seemed to hit the spot at the time. A great tune.
3.'Rainy Days and Mondays'-This although quite a sad track with a harmonica sound in the background and words of being down and out of love, it's so lovely and smooth and it's my favourite track from this album. I just love Karen's voice on this one.
4. 'Goodbye to love'-Another catchy tune with more guitar on this one, may sound a bit dated to some.
5. 'It's going to take some time'-Another slightly dated track, it wasn't a great in teh UK this one. Great harmonies in this one though and an uplifting tune.
6.'I won't last a day without you'-another love song with a sad tone but Karen's voice seems to keep up the mood.
7. 'For all we know'-A very dated sounding track a bit of a weakest link.
8.'Jambalaya'-Quite a funky sound and a big hit in the US. A bit country-sounding.
9.'Touch me when we're dancing'-A hit from 1979, this one is gentle and a lovers song really. Reminds me of the Bee-Gees sound of High-pitch tones.
10.'Please Mr. Postman'-This songwas originally ecorde by the Beatles, this was abig hit for the Carpenters and a great version of the song. Great and classice of Karen's ability to sing anything.
11.'I need to be in Love'-written by Richard Carpenter-a mellow tune with some lovely moments. A catchy meldoy and great piano.
12.'Solitaire'-A big hit in the UK from 1973, a slow track quite haunting.
13.'We've only just began'-A classic from the 'Close to you' album. Very catchy and the lyrics stay with you alway's. Great harmonies and drums in this track.
14. '(They long to be) Close to you-Another classic and I love this track so catchy and lifts you. The lyrics to this trac are so magical and original.
15. 'This Masquerade'-a quite jazzy sound in places, very sassy.
16.'Ticket to Ride'-Another version of a Beatles classic, they do it well.
17.'Top of the World'-So country it's unbeliveable! but a very catchy and uplifting track-a classic.
18.'Only Yesterday'-A bit of another weak lins, but great beats to this one.
19.'Sing'-Very dated, but catchy. You can tell by karen's voice that she enjoyed this track.
20.'Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft'-Bit strange at first this one, very unique and original in it's sound and beginning of the track-quite comical how it begins with an american radio station picking up alien signals. A good tune. Would be a great track fro kids to listen to-they would love it! very inspirational and gentle.

Conclusion: Overall this is a great CD with all the classic Carpenter tracks you will love and some new ones to listen to too. It's great value for money and is an album which will enhance your collection. If you are into your pop or folk music then I would recommend trying this out.
Some of the tracks sound quite dated but some are timeless and really uplifting. The lyrical content and amazing sound of Karen's voice on the CD is like no other. Most of the tracks are quite slow and are love songs. It's a shame that there are no lyrics to the tracks included in the CD, but that's they only downside really.

Enjoy xx