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Biography
Refimprove|date=February 2011Infobox musical artist| name = Richard Carpenter| image = Carpenters - Nixon - Office.png| caption = Richard Carpenter with his sister, Karen.| background = solo_singer| Born = birth date and age|mf=yes|1946|10|15| http://www.richardandkarencarpenter.com/biography-1.htm Carpenters biography 2005, Richard and Karen Carpenter New Haven, Connecticut | birth_name = Richard Lynn Carpenter| origin = Los Angeles, California , United States | genre = Pop rock , soft rock | instrument = Singing|Vocals , piano , keyboard instrument|keyboards , synthesizer | years_active = 1965& ndash;1998| occupation = Musician | label = A& M Records|A& M | associated_acts = The Carpenters|Carpenters Karen Carpenter | website = http://www.richardandkarencarpenter.com/ Richard and Karen Carpenter| notable_instruments = Wurlitzer Electric Piano , Fender Rhodes Richard Lynn Carpenter (born October 15, 1946) is an United States|American Pop music|pop musician , best known as one half of the brother/sister duo The Carpenters , along with his sister Karen Carpenter . He was a producer, arranger, pianist and keyboardist, and occasional lyricist, as well as joining with Karen on harmony vocals.
Childhood
Richard Lynn Carpenter was born in New Haven, Connecticut . He was named after his father's younger brother, Richard Lynn Carpenter. Coincidentally, Carpenter and his uncle both married women named Mary.Coleman, Ray. The Carpenters: The Untold Story, 30.
He frequently played the piano while his sister, Karen, played baseball outside.Close to You: Remembering the Carpenters He and Karen also liked to listen to the children's records his father bought for him when he was young. He was introduced to Perry Como and Ella Fitzgerald, among many others, and by the age of 12, he knew he wanted to be in the music industry.
The Carpenter family moved from New Haven to Downey, California in June 1963. They wanted Richard to further his music career, and the family was fed up with the cold New England winters. At the time, Richard was 16 years old. Richard studied music at the California State University at Long Beach, California|Long Beach . There, he met Frank Pooler , a conductor and composer. Pooler wrote the lyrics to the Christmas classic " Merry Christmas Darling " in 1968. He also met good friend John Bettis , who co-wrote songs with Richard.
Carpenter created the Richard Carpenter Trio in 1965 with sister Karen and friend Wes Jacobs. Richard played the piano; Karen played the drums, and Wes played the tuba and bass.
In 1966, the Richard Carpenter Trio played "Iced Tea" and " The Girl from Ipanema " at the Hollywood Bowl Battle of the Bands . They won the competition, and shortly after recorded three songs at RCA Studios: " Every Little Thing (song)|Every Little Thing ," " Strangers in the Night ," and the Carpenter original, "Iced Tea." "Iced Tea" is the only recording that was officially released to the public.
Around 1967, Richard and Karen joined four other student musicians from California State University, Long Beach|Long Beach State to form a sextet, Spectrum , consisting of:
John Bettis
Richard Carpenter
Karen Carpenter
Leslie Johnston
Gary Sims
Danny Woodhams
Although Spectrum played frequently at LA-area nightclubs such as Whisky A Go-Go , they met with an unenthusiastic response - their broad harmonies and avoidance of rock 'n roll limited the band's commercial potential. Yet Spectrum was fruitful in another way, providing the raw material of future success: Bettis went on to become a lyricist for Richard's original compositions, and all the other members except Leslie Johnston went on to become members of the Carpenters.
Career
Richard and Karen finally signed with A& M Records on April 22, 1969. "Let's hope we have some hits," Herb Alpert told the two. According to Richard, Herb Alpert had given them carte blanche in the recording studios, and after Ticket to Ride (album)| Offering was released, and was not a big seller, people were asking Alpert to release the Carpenters from A& M, but he told his colleagues he would give them one more chance.
Alpert suggested that the Carpenters record a Burt Bacharach song called " (They Long to Be) Close to You ." Though he worked up the arrangement only after Alpert's insistence, Richard's arranging talents shone in the finished product. His arranging and musical talents, as well as Karen's vocals, helped the song go to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stay there for a month. "(They Long to Be) Close to You" gained public recognition overnight. According to Richard, even though the song became popular overnight, the Carpenters themselves did not.
Sitting at home one night, Richard was watching TV and saw a commercial for Crocker National Bank . He recognized the voices of Paul Williams (songwriter)|Paul Williams and Roger Nichols (songwriter)|Roger Nichols , two A& M songwriters. It was the song " We've Only Just Begun ." Richard confirmed their involvement and asked if there was a full version of the song, which Williams affirmed. Carpenter managed to turn a bank commercial jingle into an RIAA certified Gold Record. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 , and has become a common wedding song. The song also successfully launched the careers of Nichols and Williams with multiple hits to follow for the Carpenters and other artists.
Richard composed many of the Carpenters' hits, such as:
" Goodbye to Love " (one of the first pop ballads to have a fuzz guitar solo - #7--influenced the development of the power ballad "Popular Musicians" Steve Hochman/Mcrea Adams 1999 page 168 book)
" Top of the World (The Carpenters song)|Top of the World " (#1. Though the Carpenters originally opted to not release this song as a single, a version recorded by Lynn Anderson reached #2 on the Billboard Country charts; following the success of Anderson's version, the Carpenters decided to release their version as a single, and it reached the Billboard top ten.
" Yesterday Once More (song)|Yesterday Once More " (#2)
" Only Yesterday (song)|Only Yesterday " (#4)
Quaalude addiction and treatment
While Karen was suffering from the anorexia nervosa that would ultimately claim her life in 1983, Richard suffered from an addiction to methaqualone|quaaludes . They had been prescribed for him by his doctor as sleep aids, but his usage got out of hand. He eventually sought treatment for his addiction at the Menninger Foundation|Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas , checking into the clinic in 1979 for an eight-week treatment program, which proved successful.
Post-Carpenters
Three days before his 37th birthday, the Carpenter family celebrated the unveiling of the Carpenters' new Hollywood Walk of Fame Star. He said in his speech 'this is a sad day, but at the same time a very special and beautiful day to my family and I, My only regret is that Karen is not physically here to share it with us, but I know that she is very much alive in our minds, and in our hearts'.
He started recording a solo album on June 26, 1985 and finished the album on July 5, 1987.Time, Richard Carpenter. "Recording for this album commenced on June 26, 1985, with the final session in mix-down occurring on July 5, 1987. The album was called Time (Richard Carpenter album)|Time . It featured Dusty Springfield and Dionne Warwick . Springfield sang "Something in Your Eyes," and Warwick sang "In Love Alone." Richard created a song dedicated to Karen called "When Time Was All We Had." It starts off as an a cappella , but then Richard's piano fades in, as well as Herb Alpert's flugelhorn . Lyrics included:
: Our hearts were filled with music and laughter, :''Your voice will be the sweetest sound I'll ever hear and yet, : We knew somehow the song would never end, : When time was all we had to spend.
In 1996, at the suggestion of music writer Daniel Levitin , Carpenter recorded and released "Richard Carpenter: Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor", which included reworkings of many Carpenters favorites, including hits and album tracks, and ends with "Karen's Theme", which Carpenter composed for the 1989 made for TV movie, "The Karen Carpenter Story".
In 1984, Richard married his first cousin Mary Rudolph (daughter of his mother's sister Bernice). Her brother, Mark Rudolph, was the Carpenters' road manager, as well as the radio call-in "contestant" in the Oldies "Medley" on the 1973 album, Now & Then (The Carpenters album)|Now & Then . The couple had been dating since the late 1970s. A young Mary made a cameo appearance in the Carpenters promotional video for the song "I Need to be in Love." It should be noted that when Karen learned of the relationship she was completely mortified and shared her feelings with her brother on a number of occasions, leading to a final argument where Richard told his sister "We have had the tests done there will be no problem if we have children in the future. So let it drop!". Richard and Mary have five children: Kristi Lynn, Traci Tatum, Mindi Karen (named after his late sister), Colin Paul and Taylor Mary. The children and Richard sometimes perform music together at various Carpenter-related events. The family today resides in Thousand Oaks, California . He also funds an annual scholarship/talent show for people with artistic abilities that is held at the Thousand Oaks Civic Center.
Recently, Richard helped in the productions of the documentaries " Close to You: Remembering the Carpenters " (1997) and " Only Yesterday: The Carpenters Story " (2007). He released the DVDs " Gold: Greatest Hits (DVD)|Gold: Greatest Hits " and " Interpretations (Carpenters DVD)|Interpretations ." Carpenter is also mastering a new Christmas album.
Discography
The Carpenters
Main|The Carpenters discographyMain|List of songs by The Carpenters
Albums
Year
Title
Notes
1987
Time (Richard Carpenter album)
Released in October 1987
Richard Carpenter's debut solo album
Included guest singers Dusty Springfield , Dionne Warwick , and actor Scott Grimes
Includes instrumentals of popular songs of Carpenters
Dedicated to Richard's deceased mother, Agnes Carpentercite web |url= http://www.richardandkarencarpenter.com/|title= Richard and Karen Carpenter - Official website|accessdate=2008-01-17 |author= Carpenter, Richard
Label: A& M Records
Formats: Cassette tape (out of print), compact disc (out of print), digital download
" Something in Your Eyes " (featuring Dusty Springfield )
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"Time"
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Time
" Calling Your Name Again "
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"When Time Was All We Had"
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1998
" Karen's Theme "
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Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor
Medley "
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References
Reflist
External links
http://www.richardandkarencarpenter.com/ Richard and Karen Carpenter - Official site
http://www.myokom.info/ Make Your Own Kind of Music - 1971 Summer Television Series
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0139443 Richard Carpenter at the Internet Movie Database
The Carpenters albums Portal| Biography Persondata | NAME =Carpenter, Richard | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH =October 15, 1946 | PLACE OF BIRTH = | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Richard Category:1946 births Category:Living people Category:People from New Haven, Connecticut Category:American male singers Category:American pianists Category:American pop pianists Category:American pop singers Category:American soft rock musicians Category:People from Downey, California Category:Musicians from Connecticut Category:The Carpenters members Category:California State University, Long Beach alumni
