Richard Carpenter
Background information
Birth name	Richard Lynn Carpenter
Born	October 15, 1946 (1946-10-15) (age 60)
Origin	Los Angeles, California, United States
Genre(s)	Pop
Instrument(s)	Electric Piano Synthesizer
Years active	1965–present
Label(s)	A&M
Associated acts	Carpenters Karen Carpenter
Website	Richard and Karen Carpenter
Notable instrument(s)
Wurlitzer Electric Piano

Richard Lynn Carpenter (b. October 15, 1946 in New Haven, Connecticut) is a pop musician who is best known as one half of the brother/sister duo the Carpenters, along with his sister Karen Carpenter. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: , State County Settled 1781 Incorporated April 4, 1850 Government  - Type Mayor-Council  - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa  - City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo  - Governing body City Council Area  - City  498. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Pop music (disambiguation). ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... An electric piano (e-piano) is an electric musical instrument whose popularity started in the late 1960s, was at its greatest during the 1970s and still is big today. ... For other uses, see Synthesizer (disambiguation). ... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... A&M Records is an American record label, owned and operated by Universal Music Group. ... For other uses, see Carpenter (disambiguation). ... Karen Anne Carpenter (March 2, 1950 – February 4, 1983) was a successful American singer and drummer. ... One of a series of electromechanical stringless pianos manufactured and marketed by the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, Corinth, Mississippi, USA. The Wurlitzer company actually called the instrument (inaccurately in retrospect) the Electronic Piano, but musicians usually describe it correctly as an electric piano. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the city in Connecticut. ... Official language(s) English Capital Hartford Largest city Bridgeport Largest metro area Hartford Area  Ranked 48th  - Total 5,543[2] sq mi (14,356 km²)  - Width 70 miles (113 km)  - Length 110 miles (177 km)  - % water 12. ... For other uses, see Carpenter (disambiguation). ... Karen Anne Carpenter (March 2, 1950 – February 4, 1983) was a successful American singer and drummer. ...

Childhood

Richard Carpenter was born on October 15, 1946 in New Haven, Connecticut. He was named after his father's younger brother, Richard Lynn Carpenter. Ironically enough, Carpenter and his uncle married a lady by the name of Mary. ^[1] is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... “New Haven” redirects here. ...

He frequently played the piano while his sister, Karen, played baseball outside. ^[2] He and Karen also liked to listen to the children's records his father bought for him when he was young. ^[3] He was introduced to Perry Como and Ella Fitzgerald, among many others, and by the age of twelve, he knew he wanted to be in the music industry.

The Carpenter family moved from New Haven to Downey, California in June of 1963. They wanted Richard to further his music career, and the family was sick of the cold winters. At the time, Richard was sixteen years old. Richard studied music at the California State University at 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 until Karen's passing in 1983. This article is about the city in Connecticut. ... Location of Downey in Los Angeles County, California Coordinates: , Country State County Los Angeles Founded 1800s Incorporated 1956 Government  - Type Council-Manager government  - City Council David R. Gafin Mario A. Guerra Rick Trejo (Mayor) Anne Marie Bayer Kirk Cartozian Area  - City  12. ... The California State University (CSU) is one of three public higher education systems in the state of California, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College System. ... Nickname: Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: , Country State County Los Angeles County Government  - Mayor Bob Foster Area  - City  65. ... Merry Christmas Darling by The Carpenters was originally recorded in 1970. ... John Bettis is a lyricist who has co-written many famous popular songs over the years. ...

The Richard Carpenter Trio & Spectrum

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," "Strangers in the Night," and the Carpenter original, "Iced Tea." "Iced Tea" is the only recording that was officially released to the public. The Girl from Ipanema (Garota de Ipanema) is a well known bossa nova song, and was a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s. ... Hollywood Bowl in 2005. ... Battle of the Bands is a generic term for a contest in which many bands, usually rock/guitar bands but often from a range of different styles, compete for the title of best band. The winner is determined by a panel of judges, the general response of the audience, or... Every Little Thing ), is a J-pop and soft rock duo from Japan who debuted in August 1996 with the release of their first single called Feel My Heart. Their name is usually written in English, and only rarely in katakana or rōmaji. ... Strangers in the Night is a song made famous by Frank Sinatra, who recorded it in 1966. ...

Around 1967, Richard and Karen joined four other student musicians from Long Beach State to form a sextet, Spectrum, consisting of: California State University, Long Beach (also known as Long Beach State, Cal State Long Beach, CSULB, LBSU or The Beach) is the second largest campus of the California State University system and the third largest university in the state of California in terms of enrollment. ...

• 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. John Bettis is a lyricist who has co-written many famous popular songs over the years. ... Karen Anne Carpenter (March 2, 1950 – February 4, 1983) was a successful American singer and drummer. ... The Whisky A Go-Go is a nightclub in West Hollywood, California, at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. ...

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 "Offering" was released, and was not a big seller, people were asking Alpert to release the Carpenters from A&M, but he let them stay. is the 112th day of the year (113th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Herbert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935 in Los Angeles, California) is an American musician most associated with the group variously known as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass or as Herb Alperts Tijuana Brass or just TJB for short - a now-defunct brass band of which he was the... Offering is the first album by American music duo The Carpenters. ...

Alpert suggested that the Carpenters record a Burt Bacharach song called "(They Long to Be) Close to You." Richard's arranging talents shined in the finished product. His arranging and musical talents, as well as Karen's amazing 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. It wasn't until a bank commercial jingle was released by the Carpenters that they became popular overnight. Close to You track listing Side one Weve Only Just Begun Love is Surrender Maybe Its You Reason to Believe Help! (They Long to Be) Close to You Side two Baby Its You Ill Never Fall in Love Again Crescent Noon Mr. ... “Hot 100” redirects here. ...

Sitting at home one night, Richard was watching TV and saw a commercial for Crocker National Bank. He recognized the voices of Paul Williams and Roger Nichols, two A&M songwriters. It was the song "We've Only Just Begun." Richard had 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. Crocker National Bank was a United States bank headquartered in San Francisco, California. ... Weve Only Just Begun is a song first recorded by Carpenters, and still much in demand as a wedding anthem. ... “Hot 100” redirects here. ...

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 ^[4])
• "Top of the World" (their only Top 10 country song - #1)
• "Yesterday Once More" (#2)
• "Only Yesterday" (#4)

Goodbye to Love is a song composed by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis. ... To emphasize the emotional aspect of a power ballad, crowds customarily hold up lit lighters. ... A Song for You track listing Side one A Song for You Top of the World Hurting Each Other Its Going to Take Some Time Goodbye to Love Intermission Side two Bless the Beasts and Children Flat Baroque Piano Picker I Wont Last a Day Without You Crystal... Yesterday Once More, written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, was a hit song by The Carpenters from their 1973 album Now & Then. ... Only Yesterday is a song recorded by the Carpenters in 1975. ...

Quaaludes

While Karen was suffering from anorexia nervosa, Richard suffered from an addiction with quaaludes. It was prescribed to him from his doctor as a sleeping pill, but it got out of hand. He eventually recovered from the addiction. For the symphonic black metal band, see Anorexia Nervosa (band) For other uses, see Anorexia Anorexia nervosa is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes an eating disorder characterized by low body weight and body image distortion with an obsessive fear of gaining weight. ... Methaqualone1 is an addictive, sedative drug. ...

Post-Carpenters

Carpenters' star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame

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 that it was a bittersweet experience because Karen's passing was tragic, yet they were able to celebrate a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star.^[5] Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2580 × 1932 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2580 × 1932 pixel, file size: 1. ...

He started recording a solo album on June 26, 1985 and finished the album on July 5, 1987.^[6] The album was called "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. is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Time is the first solo album by American musician Richard Carpenter. ... Dusty Springfield OBE (16 April 1939–2 March 1999) was a popular English singer whose career spanned four decades. ... Marie Dionne Warrick (born December 12, 1940), known professionally as Dionne Warwick, is an acclaimed five-time Grammy Award-winning African American singer best known for her work with Hal David and Burt Bacharach as songwriters and producers. ... A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ... A standard 3-valved Bb flugelhorn. ...

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 1984, Richard married Mary Rudolf, (Mark Rudolf is mentioned in "the radio call-in" leading to the song "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft"). Richard and Mary have five children: Colin, Kristi, Mindi, Taylor, and Traci. The children and Richard sometimes perform music together at various Carpenter-related events.

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" and "Interpretations." Carpenter is also mastering a new Christmas album to be released either this year or next year. The Carpenters DVD Interpretations was originally released as a VHS cassette tape in 1995 until 1997, with the debut of the DVD. The DVD contains footage mainly from their 5 TV specials and TV series from 1971-1980. ...

External links

• Richard and Karen Carpenter - Official site
• Make Your Own Kind of Music - 1971 Summer Television Series

References