The Carpenters. Studio/Live/Solo/Selected Compilation Albums Poll.

First of all, I got this information/dates etc from Wikipedia, so blame them if anything's wrong.

I obviously couldn't include all the comps, but I've chosen what were generally the best received. The final option is for you to pick something other than what's listed.

Pick as many as you want.

And yes, I know I spelled 'conductor' wrong. It wouldn't let me change it.

 

I am marking the albums I have owned or own.

 

can anyone attest to the quality of the DSD version of the Singles compilation?

 

The Singles was released twice on SACD. The first has a 5.1 layer. I haven't heard this one, though it's supposedly very good.

There's also a SHM SACD disc that was released in 2014. This is stereo only. I do own this version and it's beautiful. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a bad review of this title. Not sure if it's still in print, but it's worth getting if it is.

 

I've got 40/40, that does for me nicely.

 

Not quite.

The first SACD that contained the surround sound area was not the same, content wise, as the later SACD. The former is the singles comp that covers 1969-1981 and, beyond the surround area being new mixes, it contains a lot of remixes with rerecorded parts.

The later SHM SACD is a stereo only reissue of the original The Singles 1969-1973 album. No re-recorded parts other than those that were done for the original vinyl release, and no new remixes.

 

I only voted for the albums that definitely rank at the top for me. Not that I don't like some of the other albums, but there isn't much point in voting in a poll if I'm just going to choose "all of the above."

For me, the best compilation is the original Singles 1969-1973 though I also voted for the later Yesterday Once More comp. In terms of the original albums, my top three are Carpenters, A Song For You, and Horizon.

 

I love The Singles 1969-1973 comp. For many it will be the only Carpenters album they own or need. The duo had plenty more comps down the line, but there's something special about that one. Even with Richard's tweaks.

 

This thread prompted me to listen to the 5.1 mix on the Carpenters SACD. I didn't listen to the stereo area. I have to say that I was bothered less by Richard's tinkering this time around, though I do think some of the mixes are better than others. The only track that just irritates me to no end -- thus causing me to skip it every time I play this disc -- is "It's Going To Take Some Time." Too much rerecording on that one.

 

What I like about the SACD particularly, is that we all know Richard was creating an entertainment, not a "document". In the '70s, if I buy an album named, "Singles", I don't think I'm out of line for expecting an album of...SINGLES. Parts that are unfamiliar, segues that never existed, and an overall pleasing experience for me is continuously undercut by the knowledge that I'd been cheated. Cheated, by musicians I've come to expect a fair value for the 3 minutes I crank the radio up in the Reliant. And naturally, feeling cheated by a product everybody around me thinks is just ducky.

And, turning on the radio, where I first learned to love these songs and the exact way they sound...they talk about the album, as if they don't to seem to realize how different a listen the LP is - can they really be that clueless, knowing every DJ there has had each song squarely in their heads under headphones, probably twice or three times every shift they worked there! In the '70s I had no idea it's perfectly okay to have music sound one way on the medium I discover, then another when I take the record home. Why is that singing different here? Why is the song slower at home. And heeyyy...what happened to that frikkin' piccolo trumpet?!?!

Enough of us go into Richard's SACD mix with some preparation (yeah, 20 years of remixes'll do that to ya...), that to expect exact reproductions of what it says on the title: Singles, is inviting disappointment. Knowing that ahead of time, helps take that out of the way; so when Karen's voice suddenly turns your center channel driver into a spotlight, your eyes soften, the jaw drops a little, you tilt your head a bit, and you back in the, "Ohhhhh...!"

 

so, the single bit DSD available at Acoustic Sounds is a good option?

The Carpenters-Singles 1969-1981-DSD Single Rate 28MHz64fs Download|Acoustic Sounds

 

It's kind of like the Eagle's greatest hits. Definitive collection of a beloved time period in their career.

Mine was "Yesterday Once More" the CD that introduced me to that voice! It sounded wonderful, but at that time I never realized most songs had been tweaked, that being an understatement. I prefer the original recordings and single mixes.
The Christmas music is essential and "From The Top" box set is an interesting listen. Also the solo album.

 

went for close to you....figured the singles had an unfair advantage. it is a pretty faultless release

 

I bought the double CD comp a good while back, it cost about £20 so expensive.
I can't remember what it's called but it might be Only Yesterday......

 

Probably Yesterday Once More. That was a double comp from the 80s.

 

Yes it was that one, it was released in 1997, I just checked it on Amazon.
Wow 20 years ago, it seems like erm...only yesterday.

 

I have "THE SINGLES 1969-1978" SACD, in 5.1. I haven´t played it for years, but I remember being impressed by the sound. Surrounded by The Carpenters ain´t the worst place to be.

 

This was the one I meant. I bought the CD in 1985. Sold it later. It's not cheap to pick up now.



For saying they didn't record that much music, the Carpenters have certainly had their share of compilations..

 

I bought it around the same time, but I kept it! Thought about getting rid of it, but there were some songs exclusive to this compilation back then. (Excluding full studio albums, I mean.) I also knew some of the sequencing on this was new, though I didn´t always like them.

The one shining star that I discovered on this was their version of "SOLITAIRE". What bliss! The rest of the songs I had heard before.

And the one song I wouldn´t have missed at all was their version of "DON´T CRY FOR ME, ARGENTINA". I actually love the song, but prefer Julie Covington´s version.

 

The one I have is a double released later, it is the full version of the pic above were Karen is waving.

 

You'd imagine Karen would knock Don't Cry For Me Argentina out of the park... But she doesn't, does she? She sings it like she would Top Of The World or something.

 

This one..

Redirect Notice

 

No, she doesn´t deliver a killer version of the song. She seems too detached, as if the the song has nothing to do with her. It´s also far too theatrical with the long, spoken intro that adds nothing to the actual song. What I liked about Julie Covington´s vocal was the simplicity of it. Not melodramatic at all. Whereas The Carpenters... Well, it´s one of the few tracks I always skip.

 

I have that SACD, and the 5.1, is stunning.

 

I don't like the arrangement of the Carpenters version either. It's like they're in a hurry to get through it.