Writer | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 1970 | |||
Recorded | March–April 1970 | |||
Studio | Crystal Sound, Hollywood [1] | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 44:11 | |||
Label | Ode / A&M (Original Issue) Ode / Epic (Re-issue) | |||
Producer | John Fischbach [2] | |||
Carole King chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Christgau's Record Guide | B [4] |
Writer is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in May 1970. King already had a successful career as a songwriter, and been a part of The City, a short-lived group she formed after moving to Los Angeles in 1968. Tracks on the album include "Up on the Roof" which was a number 4 hit for the Drifters in 1962, and "Child of Mine", which has been recorded by Billy Joe Royal, [5] among others. The album did not receive much attention upon its release, though it entered the chart following the success of King's next album, Tapestry , in 1971. It was produced by John Fischbach, the co-founder of Crystal Sound studio, [6] in Hollywood, California, where the album was recorded.
The album received positive reviews from critics, with AllMusic noting that it was the "most underrated of all [her] original albums". [3] In a review that also covered Tapestry in Rolling Stone , Jon Landau wrote, "Writer was a blessing despite its faults" and that though the "production was poor", King herself made the album "very worthwhile". [7]
All songs written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King; lyrics for "Raspberry Jam" and "What Have You Got to Lose" by Toni Stern.
Chart (1971) | Position |
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Canadian RPM Albums Chart [8] | 62 |
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart [9] | 67 |
US Billboard Top LPs [10] | 84 |
Carole King Klein is an American singer-songwriter and musician who has been active since 1958. One of the most successful female songwriters of the latter half of the 20th century in the US, she wrote or co-wrote 118 pop hits on the Billboard Hot 100. She also wrote 61 hits that charted in the UK, making her the most successful female songwriter on the UK singles charts between 1962 and 2005.
Tapestry is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1971 on Ode Records and produced by Lou Adler. The lead singles from the album—"It's Too Late" and "I Feel the Earth Move"—spent five weeks at number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts.
Flag is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter James Taylor released on May 1, 1979. The album included songs from Taylor's music score to Stephen Schwartz's Broadway musical, Working, based on the book by Studs Terkel.
Live is the first live album by singer-songwriter James Taylor released on August 10, 1993, by Columbia Records. The double album presents selections from 14 shows during a November 1992 tour. In the US, Live peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200 chart and has sold more than one million copies, being certified 2× platinum by the RIAA.
Christmas and the Beads of Sweat is the fourth album by New York-born singer, songwriter, and pianist Laura Nyro. The album was released on the Columbia Records label in November 1970 after Nyro had recorded it in the early summer with producers Felix Cavaliere and Arif Mardin. Whilst Nyro had handed over production reins, she was still in control of the project and co-arranged her compositions.
Music is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Carole King. The album was released in December 1971.
Nils Lofgren is a 1975 album by Nils Lofgren, also known as the "Fat Man Album". It was his first solo album, following the breakup of his group, Grin.
Love Makes the World is the 16th studio album by Carole King, released in 2001. Distributed by Koch Records, it was her first release on her Rockingale Records label. As of 2021, it is her most recent album of new material.
"Will You Love Me Tomorrow", sometimes known as "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", is a song with words by Gerry Goffin and music composed by Carole King. It was recorded in 1960 by the Shirelles at Bell Sound Studios in New York City, and hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song was the first by an African-American all-girl group to reach number one in the United States. It has since been recorded by many other artists including a 1971 version by co-writer Carole King.
Rhymes & Reasons is the fourth album by American singer-songwriter Carole King. Released in 1972, the album features a single "Been to Canaan", which topped the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and peaked at number 24 on the Pop chart. The album itself also became a hit, reaching number two on the Billboard 200 chart.
Wrap Around Joy is the sixth album by American singer and songwriter Carole King, released in 1974. The album peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart in late 1974 and spun off successful singles with "Jazzman", reaching number two on the Pop chart and earning Carole King a nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female in the 17th Grammy Awards. Another song from the album, "Nightingale", reached number nine on the Pop chart and number six on the adult contemporary chart.
Colour of Your Dreams is the 15th studio album by singer-songwriter Carole King, released in March 1993. The album includes "Now and Forever", a Grammy-nominated song which was featured in the film A League of Their Own.
Simple Dreams is the eighth studio album by the American singer Linda Ronstadt, released in 1977 by Asylum Records. It includes several of her best-known songs, including her cover of the Rolling Stones song "Tumbling Dice" and her version of the Roy Orbison song "Blue Bayou", which earned her a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. The album also contains covers of the Buddy Holly song "It's So Easy!" and the Warren Zevon songs "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" and "Carmelita". The album was the best-selling studio album of her career, and at the time was the second best-selling album by a female artist. It was her first album since Don't Cry Now without long-time musical collaborator Andrew Gold, though it features several of the other Laurel Canyon-based session musicians who appeared on her prior albums, including guitarists Dan Dugmore and Waddy Wachtel, bassist Kenny Edwards, and producer and multi-instrumentalist Peter Asher.
City Streets is the 14th album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1989. It was her first album after six-year hiatus from her recording career, co-produced by Rudy Guess who supported her as a backing guitarist in later years.
Thoroughbred is the seventh album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1976. Her final release on Ode Records, it was produced by Lou Adler, who had been her collaborator since Tapestry (1971). After Carole King self produced for a number of years on Capitol and Atlantic Records, Lou Adler later rejoined King to produce her 1984 album Speeding Time.
Pearls: Songs of Goffin and King is an album by the American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1980. It produced her last hit to date, "One Fine Day", which reached #12 on the charts.
"Where You Lead" is a song written in 1970 by Carole King with lyricist Toni Stern, introduced on King's iconic 1971 album Tapestry. A Top 40 hit for Barbra Streisand in both a studio and a live version — the latter in a medley entitled "Sweet Inspiration/ Where You Lead'" — the song has also served as the main theme song for The WB dramedy series Gilmore Girls in a lyrically revised version recorded by King and Louise Goffin.
L.E.X. is the third studio album by Liverpool Express, released in March 1979, in Europe only. Popular song's from this album are: "I Want Nobody But You"; "Games People Play"; and "Take It Easy With My Heart".
"Smackwater Jack" is a song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. It was first released on King's 1971 album Tapestry and then on the second single from that album, along with "So Far Away", charting at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was subsequently covered by many artists, most famously by Quincy Jones as the title song of his 1971 album Smackwater Jack.
Greatest Hits Volume III is the second greatest hits album from American singer songwriter Billy Joel. The volume follows Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II and includes hits from 1983 to 1997. Two previously unreleased studio tracks are included, Dylan's "To Make You Feel My Love" and Goffin/King's "Hey Girl", while the third new track, "Light as the Breeze", was originally recorded for a Leonard Cohen tribute album known as Tower of Song in 1995. Cover songs are a rare occurrence in Joel's catalogue.