The Carpenters Music - Karen And Richard Carpenter
"We've Only Just Begun To Live..."

The Carpenters music, performed by brother-sister duo Karen and Richard Carpenter, was first heard in the early 1970s. Music of The Carpenters remains popular today, especially around Christmas when their classic sound is still heard on the radio waves.

The Carpenters signed their first record deal with A&M Records in the spring of 1969, and within a week they began recording.

A&M allowed their artists a certain amount of creative freedom, so Richard Carpenter more or less produced the sessions, although he was not the official Producer for the album.

One the first songs to be recorded was Richard's ballad-like rendition of the Lennon and McCartney tune, Ticket To Ride, which was featured on the album titled, "Offering".

Although it wasn't a smash hit at first, it did get the snowball rolling and they began to develop a following. The record company also stuck with them, and soon everyone around the world would instantly recognize The Carpenters music.

The Carpenters Music - "Close To You"

The second recording was The Carpenters' Close To You, which debuted in the summer of 1970, and climbed up the charts to number 3. It's probably one of the most notable signature songs of their career.

They became the opening act for several popular singers of the time, and ended up making television appearances on many popular shows, such as The Johnny Carson Show and the debut of The Don Knotts Show.

Close To You quickly broke into the top spot in the Hot 100, where it stayed for a least a month and sold more than two million copies - which was a huge number back then.

Music Of The Carpenters - "We've Only Just Begun"

If you know The Carpenters songs at all, you're no doubt familiar with the tune, We've Only Just Begun.

Written by Roger Nichols and Paul Williams, it was released in late summer 1970, right on the heels of Close To You.

We've Only Just Begun made it to number two on the charts within eight weeks. It was never able to break into that number one position, but it stayed "second best" for four weeks.

It became a song of choice for brides everywhere for practically a whole decade -- and it was The Carpenters' insurance policy that they were not going to be one-hit wonders.

As The Carpenters music popularity grew, record sales from the previous album also picked up. In fact, in the fall of 1970, A&M Records re-released the "Close To You" album with a new cover photo and new title -- "Ticket To Ride".

The rest, as they say -- is history.

The Carpenters Music - Discography 1969 - 1981

The following list of The Carpenters music features only the names of the original studio albums. It does not include compilation albums, or any Karen Carpenter songs from her own solo project.

• Offering - (1969)
• Close To You - (1970)
• Carpenters - (1971)
• A Song For You - (1972)
• Now & Then - (1973)
• Horizon - (1975)
• A Kind Of Hush - (1976)
• Passage - (1977)
• Christmas Portrait - (1978)
• Made In America - (1981)

Read more about how it all began for Richard Carpenter

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