Carpenters - Horizon. Any love for this album?

I've always considered this their final great album. It was a huge #1 hit here in the UK, but was the start of their downturn in the States peaking at #13.

At 34 minutes, it's quite short but did manage a couple of big hits. Please Mr Postman and Only Yesterday were top 5 and Solitaire did reasonably well too. Probably not a smash in the UK as Andy Williams had had a top 10 hit with the song in 1974.

Their version of Desperado was the first version I heard of the song. It's still the best, IMO. My mum loved their take on the standard, I Can Dream Can't I? It was her favourite Karen vocal.

Add to that excellent deep cuts like Happy, I'm Caught Between Goodbye And I Love You and Love Me For What I Am, and you have a really solid album. I certainly think Karen never sang better than on this album.

What do you think of it?

 

One of the Carpenters better album covers too. Not as cringey as some of the others.

Who couldn't love the 'envelope' sleeve?

 

My favorite Carpenters album. It also includes my favorite Carpenters song.

 

I see it like yer mum and love the Modernaires impression with the back up vocals, she sounds like a different person.

 

I love everything by Carpenters. Everyone should own multiple copies of Horizon. "Only Yesterday" is a favorite of mine.

 

Only Yesterday is a fantastic production. Karen's vocal is a thing of dreams. Not to mention the superb backing vocals and the way the song builds.

 

I haven´t heard the album...To be honest, I have only come across compilations of their music. In other words, I can´t comment on the album itself, but only on the hist I have heard. "Only Yesterday" sounds great, but "Please Mr. Postman" is one of those songs that does´t really suit them. Their version is too soft for my taste - where´s the desperation?

BUT - hearing Karen sing "Solitaire" awakens my goosebumps. I think it´s the best version of the song out there, and I think it´s even better than Neil´s own version. (And I do like Neil Sedaka.) This is a perfect example of what Karen Carpenter could do with a great song. I am so glad this song was recorded.

Seeing "Desperado" on the track list whets my appetite... I prefer Linda Ronstadt´s version, but I´ll seek out this version and give it a spin.

 

The U.K. Record Mirror review from the album's release. It's not a rave.

 

Try I'm Caught Between Goodbye And I Love You as well.

 

Amazing record! My favourite Carpenters album! "A Song For You" & "A Kind Of Hush" are high up on my list aswell!

 

Thanks for that. I also enjoyed the Bee Gees review. "By and large, those weird, agonised vocals..."

 

A good week for albums. Note the Abba one too.

 

Yup. Saw that. It's fun to read reviews from when old albums were new. I try to then remember, "What did I think of it back then?". I was a tot in the '70s, so I thought nothing of the albums in question at the time.

 

Excellent album from beginning to end. Their last great one.

 

"Solitaire" is my favorite Karen vocal! I listen to it frequently. I didn't care for their version of "Mr. Postman..." thought it was cheesy and unnecessary.

 

I probably only like the singles comp and A Song For You better. One of my favorites.

 

The people who state this is the last great Carpenters album have no clue about their catalog. They released two Christmas albums after "Horizons" that completely blow away most every one of their non-seasonal releases. And I won't even get into the merits of later non-seasonal albums, where some of those also fall in the "great" category.

It's almost impossible for an album not to be labeled as great when you have Karen Carpenter singing on it and Richard Carpenter producing it.

 

Hitwise, I'd have to agree that "Horizon" may have been their latest, greatest album. Although lacking the big hits, "Made In America" was pretty darn good and especially showcased some of Karen's best vocal efforts.

 

Excellent album and Karen has never sounded better. I love this album from start to finish and the sound quality is stunning as well.

 

Excellent album!

 

That's a very limited qualification if you determine greatest of an album based on the success of singles. That means Jimi Hendrix never made a great album. If you go by sales, their "Christmas Portrait" album three years later has far outsold "Horizon".

The direction of popular radio changed in the mid-70's and Adult Contemporary acts like the Carpenters would never have the same singles success as they did in years past. But that does not represent a lack of greatness when it comes to their later albums.

Why can't people simply state "Horizon" is a great album and explain why, instead of degrading later releases by stating it is their last great album.

 

Although it doesn't contain my favorite song ("I Need To Be In Love"), Horizon is my favorite Carpenters album. With the exception of "Desperado" (a great performance but I don't like the song itself), I like all of the other songs on this album. For me, "Love Me For What I Am" is the outstanding track on the album, but each song is great and I still even give "Desperado" a listen every so often due to Karen's performance.

The slow building of "Only Yesterday," the big-band sound of "I Can Dream, Can't I," and the upbeat feel of "Happy" all contribute to make Horizon a great album and to me it is the pinnacle of the Carpenters. Although they released many great songs on other albums, I don't think any other of their albums contains a many good/great songs as Horizon does.

 

A very good album. Love the ethereal pieces that open and close the album.