My Favorite Female Vocalists: 4. Karen Carpenter
Probably the first female vocalist I remember listening to regularly
Disclaimer: this countdown isn’t meant to be an all-time definitive list. These are simply my favorites.
The Carpenters were a massive part of the music of my childhood. My mom was (and still is) a big fan, and she passed that love onto me. I remember her LPs and 45s, and she even gave me a few of them.
For years, the Carpenters had become figures of ridicule for their soft-rock sound, but the public has come around to them. As I grew up and understood music more, I’ve come to appreciate their artistry — the exquisite multi-tracked vocals, Richard Carpenter’s keyboard work, their song choices.
But more than anything else, the voice of Karen Carpenter is what made them so great.
Karen’s alto conveyed the whole range of emotions, but there always seemed to be sadness underlying everything she sang.
Of course, knowing what we know now about her struggles with anorexia, it makes sense, but she could convey a weariness that fit sad songs well.
(Side note: Tony Peluso’s criminally underrated guitar solo on this one is a bonus.)
But Karen Carpenter was adept at singing about happiness, too.
And she was able to convey the wistfulness of a generation that longed for simpler times.
No matter the song, no matter the subject, Karen had a voice that was one of a kind. She was clearly gone too soon, but thankfully we can still remember that gorgeous, unique voice.
Image: Billboard Publications Inc (now owned by Eldridge Industries)(Life time: Published before 1978 without a copyright notice), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons