Can it really be twenty-five years since Karen Carpenter died?
Masters of the middle-of-the-road pop genre, Karen and brother Richard always looked a bit creepy and extremely wholesome/sickly, but behind the mask they were supremely successful in putting together some of the best produced standards of the 70s, and indeed have gone down in history of one of the biggest selling acts of all time.
Following on the heels of the softer musical styles of Neil Sedaka, Bacharach & David and Herb Alpert (who first signed them up as a recording act), Richard's arrangements and Karen's sublime voice proved to be an all-conquering phenomenon in an era that is more remembered for the rock music of Hendrix, Led Zep and the Rolling Stones, hitting the top of the single and album charts across the world for almost an entire decade.
Unfortunately even this squeaky-clean duo hit the rocks when Richard went into rehab for drug addiction, and Karen's attempts at both marriage and a solo recording career (even with the help of Phil Ramone) went sour. In February 1983 Karen died of complications brought on by anorexia, and now all we have are the memories of their sweet but brilliant music.
Carpenters website
Carpenters discography on Wikipedia
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