| Ticket to Ride/Offering | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cover photo by Jim McCrary | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 9, 1969 (Offering) November 10, 1970 (Ticket to Ride) | |||
| Studio | A&M Studios (Los Angeles) | |||
| Genre | Pop, soft rock | |||
| Length | 36:52 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Producer | Jack Daugherty | |||
| Carpenters chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Original cover | ||||
 | ||||
| Singles from Offering | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [2] |
Ticket to Ride is the debut studio album by the American music duo Carpenters.
The album is far more self-contained than subsequent Carpenters albums;excluding the orchestrations,bass by Joe Osborn and occasional guitar from Gary Sims,most of the instruments were played by Karen and Richard Carpenter themselves—drums and keyboards respectively—and 10 of the 13 songs were written by Richard and his lyricist John Bettis.
It also stands out from subsequent Carpenters albums in that the lead vocals are evenly split between the two band members;on later albums,Karen would perform most of the lead vocals and this is one of two albums where Karen provided virtually all of the drumming,the other being Now &Then ,released in 1973.
At the time of the album's initial release in 1969,it was issued under the title Offering,with a different cover photo. It was a commercial failure and produced only one minor hit single,a ballad version of the Lennon-McCartney song "Ticket to Ride".
After the Carpenters' subsequent breakthrough,however,the album was reissued internationally under the name Ticket to Ride and sold moderately.
In their review, Billboard noted that "brother and sister Richard and Karen Carpenter have come up with fresh and original concepts of music and singing in this debut LP on A&M. Richard's songs and arrangements,especially the overdubbing of his and Karen's voices,combine the best elements of pop,folk-rock,and jazz,and their version of the now classic "Get Together" makes it sound very new. With radio programming support,Carpenters should have a big hit on their hands." [3]
In a retrospective review, Allmusic stated that "Karen and Richard Carpenter issued a finely crafted record that moved effortlessly between Spanky &Our Gang-style pop/rock ("Your Wonderful Parade") and art-song. In some ways,Ticket to Ride is the Carpenters' most interesting album,for it contains a range of interests and sounds that were modified or abandoned on subsequent albums. The lushly orchestrated "Someday" is a brilliant showcase for Richard's arranging skills and the most dramatic side of Karen's voice - it points the way toward songs like "Crescent Noon" on the next album,and although that highly dramatic sound proved a blind alley,it did result in some ravishing performances by the duo." [4]
All tracks written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis,except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Invocation" | Karen and Richard Carpenter | 1:04 | |
| 2. | "Your Wonderful Parade" | Richard Carpenter | 2:54 | |
| 3. | "Someday" | Karen Carpenter | 5:19 | |
| 4. | "Get Together" | Chet Powers | Richard Carpenter | 2:37 |
| 5. | "All of My Life" | Richard Carpenter | Karen Carpenter | 3:07 |
| 6. | "Turn Away" | Richard Carpenter | 3:12 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Ticket to Ride" | Lennon–McCartney | Karen Carpenter | 4:13 |
| 8. | "Don't Be Afraid" | Richard Carpenter | Karen Carpenter | 2:07 |
| 9. | "What's the Use" | Richard Carpenter | 2:43 | |
| 10. | "All I Can Do" | Karen Carpenter | 1:41 | |
| 11. | "Eve" | Karen Carpenter | 2:53 | |
| 12. | "Nowadays Clancy Can't Even Sing" | Neil Young | Richard Carpenter | 4:21 |
| 13. | "Benediction" | Karen and Richard Carpenter | 0:41 |
| Chart (1971–1972) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [6] | 19 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) [7] | 88 |
| UK Albums (OCC) [8] | 20 |
| US Billboard 200 [9] | 150 |
Close to You is the second studio album by the American music duo the Carpenters, released on August 19, 1970. In 2003, the album was ranked No. 175 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list. The album contains the hit singles "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and "We've Only Just Begun". The success of the title track earned Carpenters an international reputation. The album topped the Canadian Albums Chart and peaked at #2 on the U.S. Billboard albums chart. It was also successful in the United Kingdom, entering the top 50 of the official chart for 76 weeks during the first half of the 1970s.
The Singles: 1969–1973 is an compilation album by the pop duo the Carpenters. It topped the charts in the United States and the United Kingdom and became one of the best-selling albums of the 1970s.
"Sing" is a 1971 song written by Joe Raposo for the children's television show Sesame Street as its signature song. In 1973, it gained popularity when performed by the Carpenters, a number 3 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Top of the World" is a 1972 song written and composed by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis and first recorded by American pop duo Carpenters. It was a Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit for the duo for two consecutive weeks in 1973. It also became Carpenters' second number one and tenth top-ten single in the Billboard Hot 100.
A Song for You is the fourth studio album by the American music duo the Carpenters, released on June 22, 1972. According to Richard Carpenter, A Song for You was intended to be a concept album with the title tune opening and closing the set and the bookended selections comprising the 'song'. "A Song for You" was written by songwriter Leon Russell.
"Yesterday Once More", written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, is a hit song by the Carpenters from their 1973 album Now & Then. Thematically the song concerns reminiscing about songs of a generation gone by. It segues into a long medley, consisting of eight covers of 1960s tunes incorporated into a faux oldies radio program. The work takes up the entire B-side of the album.
"Rainy Days and Mondays" is a song by the Carpenters from their self-titled third album, with instrumental backing by the Wrecking Crew. It was written by Paul Williams (lyrics) and Roger Nichols (music), who had previously written "We've Only Just Begun," another hit for the duo. The B-side on the single is "Saturday," a song written and sung by Richard Carpenter.
Now & Then is the fifth studio album by the American music duo the Carpenters, released on May 1, 1973. It reached No. 2 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart on July 21, 1973, and ranked No. 20 on the Cash Box year-end pop albums chart. The title, suggested by Karen and Richard's mother Agnes, was taken from a leftover song that did not appear on the album.
Made in America is the tenth studio album by the American music duo The Carpenters, released in June 1981. Karen Carpenter died less than two years later, making it their final album released in her lifetime. It reached number 52 in the US and number 12 in the UK.
Horizon is the sixth studio album by the American musical duo the Carpenters. It was recorded at A&M Studios. The Carpenters spent many hours experimenting with different sounds, techniques and effects.
A Kind of Hush is the seventh studio album by the American music duo Carpenters. It was released on June 11, 1976.
Passage is the eighth studio album by the American music duo the Carpenters. Released in 1977, it produced the hit singles "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song", "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" and "Sweet, Sweet Smile". The Carpenters' "Sweet, Sweet Smile" was picked up by Country radio and put the duo in the top ten of Billboard's Country chart in the spring of 1978.
Time is the first solo album by American musician Richard Carpenter.
"Goodbye to Love" is a song composed by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis. It was released by the Carpenters in 1972. On the Close to You: Remembering The Carpenters documentary, Tony Peluso stated that this was one of the first power ballads, if not the first, to have a fuzz guitar solo. "Goodbye to Love" was the first Carpenters hit written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis.
"Only Yesterday" is a song recorded by the Carpenters. Released on March 14, 1975, the song was composed by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis. "Only Yesterday" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Adult Contemporary (AC) charts, The Carpenters' eleventh number one on that chart.
"I Need to Be in Love" is a song written by Richard Carpenter, Albert Hammond and John Bettis. It was released as a single on May 21, 1976. It was featured on the A Kind of Hush album, which was released on June 11 of the same year.
"All You Get from Love Is a Love Song" is a song composed by Steve Eaton. Previously recorded by The Righteous Brothers in 1975, it was popularized by the Carpenters in 1977. It was released to the public on May 21, 1977. Its B-side was "I Have You", a song released on the A Kind of Hush album in 1976. The song was also included on their 1977 album, Passage.
"Touch Me When We're Dancing" is a song written by Terry Skinner, J. L. Wallace and Ken Bell. Skinner and Wallace headed the Muscle Shoals, Alabama session group Bama, who first recorded this song and released it as a single in 1979 reaching number 42 on the Billboard Easy Listening chart and number 86 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song was later recorded by The Carpenters in 1981 for their Made in America album. In 1984, it was recorded by country music artists Mickey Gilley and Charly McClain for their 1984 duet album It Takes Believers and in 1986 by the country music group Alabama.
The Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo consisting of siblings Karen (1950–1983) and Richard Carpenter. They produced a distinctive soft musical style, combining Karen's contralto vocals with Richard's harmonizing, arranging, and composition. During their 14-year career, the Carpenters recorded 10 albums along with many singles and several television specials.
Carpenters is the third studio album by American music duo the Carpenters. Released on May 14, 1971, it was their most successful studio album, reaching number two on the Billboard 200 chart and number 12 in the UK, as well as being certified 4× Platinum by the RIAA. The album contained the hit songs "For All We Know", "Rainy Days and Mondays" and "Superstar".
