The Carpenters discography: Difference between revisions

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Karen and Richard on their television special, Carpenters at Christmas (1977).

The discography of the American group Carpenters includes an overview of all of Carpenters' albums and how they charted on the Billboard 200 charts in America, the UK Albums Chart in the United Kingdom, and the Oricon charts in Japan. This list also includes the Carpenters' videography as well. Their monstruous musical career spawned Carpenters hit album after album. Their debut album was released on October 9, 1969, and was originally entitled Offering. However, due to its poor performance in sales, Richard Carpenter decided to re-release the album with a new cover and a new title. The original cover, which featured Richard and Karen in somber clothing and holding a sunflower, was replaced by a new cover of Richard and Karen in casual clothing out on a rented boat at Lake Tahoe.^[1] The title Offering was also replaced by Ticket to Ride in a Bauhaus font. However, the album's sales were lackluster. It failed to sell 500,000 albums, and its eponymous single failed to reach the top 40, only reaching #54 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[2]

However, in 1970, their big break came with their rendition of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "(They Long to Be) Close to You", from their album Close to You. To date, Close to You has sold over 2 million units, both in records and in CDs. Their album success would continue until 1975, when a steep decline becomes noticeable. 1975's Horizon has only gone Platinum once to date, and the following year, A Kind of Hush was only certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), meaning that it sold over 500,000 units, but not more than one million (see RIAA certification). Passage was released in September of 1977, and it failed to be certified at all, meaning that, to date, it has not sold more than 500,000 units.

This declining trend continued until 1985, with the release of their posthumous two-disc compilation Yesterday Once More. The compilation was certified twice platinum, meaning that it sold over 2 million copies (but less than 3 million). Today, their albums are not selling as well as they had in the past, but they are still being certified Gold by RIAA. Their latest two-disc compilation, Carpenters Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition, was certified Gold on December 17, 2004.^[3]

Studio albums

Title	Notes	Sales and certifications	Cover	Chart positions
Title	Notes	Sales and certifications	Cover	US	UK	JP
Ticket to Ride	Released on October 9, 1969 First released under the title Offering Carpenters' debut album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification		#150 (1971)	#20 (1972) #35 (1975)	#88
Close to You	Released on August 19, 1970 Carpenters' second album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	2,000,000 units 2× platinum^[3]		#2	#23	#53
Carpenters	Released on May 14, 1971 Carpenters' third album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	4,000,000 units 4× platinum^[3]		#2	#12	#47
A Song for You	Released on June 13, 1972 Carpenters' fourth album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	3,000,000 units 3× platinum^[3]		#4	#13	#5
Now & Then	Released on May 9, 1973 Carpenters' fifth album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	2,000,000 units 2× platinum^[3]		#2	#2	#1
Horizon	Released on June 6, 1975 Carpenters' sixth album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	1,000,000 units 1× platinum^[3]		#13	#1	#1
A Kind of Hush	Released on June 11, 1976 Carpenters' seventh album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	500,000 units Gold^[3]		#33	#3	#5
Passage	Released on September 23, 1977 Carpenters' eighth album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification		#49	#12	#7
Made in America	Released on June 16, 1981 Carpenters' ninth album Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification		#52	#12	#44
Voice of the Heart	Released on October 18, 1983 Carpenters' tenth album (Karen's first posthumous album) Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification	File:VoiceoftheHeart.jpg	#46	#6	#41
Lovelines	Released on October 31, 1989 Carpenters' eleventh album (Karen's second posthumous album) Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification		-	#73	-
As Time Goes By	Released on August 1, 2002 Carpenters' twelfth album (Karen's second posthumous album) Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	< 500,000 units No certification		-	-	#18

Solo albums

After Karen's passing on February 4, 1983, Richard started a solo career that had lukewarm responses. Karen, too, had a solo career, though posthumous. Karen's only solo album to date was her eponymous album, released in 1996. The CD, out of print, includes songs recorded by Karen in New York City in 1979 with producer Phil Ramone. None of these solo albums have charted, nor have they been certified by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Title	Notes	Cover
Time	Released in October, 1987 Richard Carpenter's debut solo album Included guest singers Dusty Springfield, Dionne Warwick, and actor Scott Grimes Out of print Label: A&M Records Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc	File:Time (RC Album).jpg
Karen Carpenter	Released on October 8, 1996 Karen's first and only posthumous solo album Outtakes of Karen's recording sessions with Phil Ramone in New York City in 1979-1980 Out of print in United States Label: A&M Records Formats: Cassette tape, compact disc, digital download	File:Karen Carpenter solo album.jpg
Pianist • Arranger • Composer • Conductor	Released on January 27, 1998 Richard's second and latest solo album Includes instrumentals of popular songs of Carpenters Dedicated to Richard's deceased mother, Agnes Carpenter^[4] Out of print Label: A&M Records Formats: Cassette tape, compact disc, digital download

Compilations

The Carpenters' best selling album to date, having sold over 7 million copies.

The Singles: 1969-1973 - 1973
The Singles: 1974-1978 - 1978
Yesterday Once More - 1985
From the Top - 1991 (4-disc box set)
Interpretations - 1995
Love Songs - 1997
Reflections - 1998
The Singles: 1969-1981 - 2000
The Essential Collection: 1965-1997 - 2002 (4-disc box set)
Carpenters Perform Carpenter - 2003
Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition - 2004
The Utimate Collection - 2006

Note that all compilations from 1985 and after include remixed versions of the original songs.

References

^ http://www.karencarpenter.com/newsletters72.html
^ Surratt, Paul and JoAnn Young (Executive Producers). Close to You: Remembering the Carpenters (Videotape, DVD). MPI Home Video. ISBN 3030672782. {{cite AV media}}: Check |isbn= value: checksum (help); Unknown parameter |date2= ignored (help)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Recording Industry Association of America - Searchable Database". Retrieved 2008-01-16.
^ Carpenter, Richard. "Richard and Karen Carpenter - Official Website". Retrieved 2008-01-17.

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 !rowspan="2"|Notes
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 * Formats: [[LP album]], [[Compact Cassette|cassette tape]], [[Compact Disc|compact disc]], [[digital download]]
 | < 500,000 units<br>No certification
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 |align="center"|#150 (1971)
 |align="center"|#20 (1972)<br>#35 (1975)
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
 | 2,000,000 units<br>2× platinum<ref name="riaa">{{cite web |url= http://www.riaa.com/|title= Recording Industry Association of America - Searchable Database|accessdate=2008-01-16}}</ref>
+| [[Image:CloseToYou.jpg|100px]]
 |align="center"|#2
 |align="center"|#23
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
 | 4,000,000 units<br>4× platinum<ref name="riaa"/>
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 |align="center"|#2
 |align="center"|#12
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
 | 3,000,000 units<br>3× platinum<ref name="riaa"/>
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 |align="center"|#4
 |align="center"|#13
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 |align="center"|#2
 |align="center"|#2
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 |align="center"|#1
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 |align="center"|#33
 |align="center"|#3
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
 | < 500,000 units<br>No certification
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 |align="center"|#49
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 |align="center"|#6
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 * Formats: LP album, cassette tape, compact disc, digital download
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 |align="center"|#73
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 |align="center"|-

v t e The Carpenters
Karen Carpenter Richard Carpenter
Studio albums	Offering (Ticket to Ride) (1969) Close to You (1970) Carpenters (1971) A Song for You (1972) Now & Then (1973) Horizon (1975) A Kind of Hush (1976) Passage (1977) Christmas Portrait (1978) Made in America (1981) Voice of the Heart (1983) An Old-Fashioned Christmas (1984) Lovelines (1989) As Time Goes By (2001)
Live albums	Live in Japan (1975) Live at the Palladium (1976)
Compilation albums	The Singles: 1969–1973 (1973) The Singles: 1974–1978 (1978) The Very Best of the Carpenters (1982) Yesterday Once More (1984) Only Yesterday (1990) From the Top (1991) Interpretations: A 25th Anniversary Celebration (1995) Love Songs (1997) Reflections (1998) The Singles: 1969–1981 (2000) The Essential Collection: 1965–1997 (2002) Carpenters Perform Carpenter (2003) Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition (2004) The Ultimate Collection (2006) 40/40 (2009) Carpenters with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (2018)
Solo albums	Time (1987) Karen Carpenter (1996) Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor (1998)
Singles	"Looking for Love" "Ticket to Ride" "(They Long to Be) Close to You" "We've Only Just Begun" "Merry Christmas, Darling" "For All We Know" "Rainy Days and Mondays" "Superstar" "Bless the Beasts and Children" "Hurting Each Other" "It's Going to Take Some Time" "Goodbye to Love" "Sing" "Yesterday Once More" "Top of the World" "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" "I Won't Last a Day Without You" "Please Mr. Postman" "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" "Only Yesterday" "Solitaire" "There's a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)" "I Need to Be in Love" "Goofus" "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song" "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" "Sweet, Sweet Smile" "I Believe You" "Touch Me When We're Dancing" "(Want You) Back in My Life Again" "Those Good Old Dreams" "Beechwood 4-5789" "Make Believe It's Your First Time" "Your Baby Doesn't Love You Anymore" "Little Altar Boy" "Honolulu City Lights" "Something in Your Eyes" "If I Had You" "Ave Maria" "The Rainbow Connection"
Other songs	"Let Me Be the One" "A Song for You" "This Masquerade" "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" "Can't Smile Without You" "I Just Fall in Love Again" "Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again" "Where Do I Go from Here"
Television series and specials	Make Your Own Kind of Music (1971) Live at the BBC (1971) Very First TV Special (1976) Space Encounters (1978) A Christmas Portrait (1978) Music, Music, Music (1980)
Music video releases	Gold: Greatest Hits (1991 VHS / 2002 DVD) Interpretations (1995 VHS / 2003 DVD)
Documentaries	Close to You: Remembering The Carpenters (1998) Only Yesterday: The Carpenters Story (2007)
Related	Discography Songs John Bettis Tony Peluso If I Were a Carpenter Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story The Karen Carpenter Story Classic Carpenters
Category

Revision as of 01:40, 17 January 2008

Studio albums

Solo albums

Compilations

References

See also