175 - The Carpenters - Close To You
I have never listened to more than a three Carpenters songs in a row...other than their Christmas album. I think my annual enjoyment of the Christmas album will remain my only exposure to a string of songs from The Carpenters.
This is pure, simple, pretty, modern (1970) pop standards. There isn't anything groundbreaking to my ears. This is very precious music with a softness that wouldn't offend any elderly ears. There are moments of country (“Reason to Believe”) and jazz (“Another Song”), but even those songs are like the rest of the album with the songs refined to high-grade pop music for your parents.
What does stand out is the quality of the performances. Karen's vocals are very beautiful and the music is wonderfully recorded. I can only imagine that the reason why Close to You is on the Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums list is the quality of the performances, but I am clueless on how it ended up this high on the list.
Songs I Knew I Liked: “Close to You,” “I'll Never Fall in Love Again,” and “We've Only Just Begun”
Songs I Now Like: “Another Song” (especially the jazzy section on the latter portion of the song)
Songs I Don't Want to Ever Hear Again: “Love is Surrender,” “Help!” and “I Kept on Loving You”