Karen Carpenter

What a tragedy! Recently I have taken to listening to the Carpenters in the car. When I was young and really into music I couldn’t listen to them, they were mainstream. Whilst not into heavy rock I had my own interests that changed with the years. As a teenager I remember posters of black soul bands especially women – that wouldn’t surprise anyone who knows my personal history. At university I got into more folksy stuff but this changed back when I started teaching and listening to some soul music again. Until now I have never listened to the Carpenters but because of the amount of time I listened to music when young I know many of the songs. None of the above matters much, it’s facebook drivel. Except for the fact that I now think Karen Carpenter’s voice is perhaps the most creative musical instrument I have ever heard. Like many people of my era there was a mental block towards this straight-laced couple, and because of that I never heard her quality – and the quality of Richard’s arrangements. This era brought about many rock tragedies, Jimi Hendrix, Grace Slick, Janis Joplin, Sandy Denny and I guess many more. And through all that I never even knew that Karen had died so tragically. Yesterday I watched this you-tube movie with tears in my eyes. I have never personally come into contact with anorexia, it must have been awful for her and her family:-

I don’t know that I can listen to her voice without a tear in my eye again, you cannot write tragedies like this – such quality.

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