Close To You: The Story of The Carpenters (2002 BBC Doc Pt3)

[fl3162]

Karen gets all the credit ... but Dick is the driving force. Reflects life perfectly.

[peteto1]

If only Karen knew how truly loved and adored she was, she would have felt a lot better about herself. She was BEAUTIFUL, inside and out!!...........

[jburtonca]

Kim Gordon is saying they seemed to be under pressure to be happy. Why on earth would they not be happy at that point! They were young, wealthy, famous, healthy and in the prime of their lives and living in southern California in the early 1970s! If that's not enough to make you happy, what the hell is!

[arfies]

@jburtonca Because that's not what makes everyone happy. Although she enjoyed fame, Karen just wanted the husband and kids and white picket fence. Sadly, their immense fame and work schedule prevented any sense of normalcy she could've had. She was happiest back in Connecticut.

[RMcGO28716]

That Blonde bith is Petula Clarke !! Bitch !@!!

[DoubleTalkingJive]

"Goodbye To Love" -- the first power ballad <3 <3

[lacymarie78]

I really hate that Karen felt she had to be so thin all the time....There was absolutely nothing wrong with her. We lost a great talent to that horrible disease! She should still be alive today and we shouldn't have to hear her voice from greatest hits compilations. RIP Karen! I hate that you had to go through this!

[firewings12]

I really hate how society would determine who we really are! I love the Carpenter when they first start, before conforming to what society thougtht they should be!

[lacymarie78]

Wow I didn't know Tony Peluso passed away. I thought his guitar solo in Goodbye to Love was outstanding. RIP Tony, I know you're up there playing music with Karen!

[FOREIGNGIRL7]

who did she write this song for?

[deemdoyle1960]

Karen and Richard Carpenter are Number 1 in my bood and they were a good group.

For my 13th birthday my mom and dad took my brother and I to Lake Tahoe to see Elvis Presley, but Elvis got sick and could not perform, The day we were leaving to go back home I saw a watch in the gift shop and my dad bought me a Watch with Karen and Richard Carpenter on it and I still have it to this day..

[ritter89]

You can tell the state of Karen's disease by looking at her hair. One of the first things that changes in anorexics is hair texture and sheen. Her hair became thinner, ashen and dry as her disease progressed. By the end, her hair was so dried out, split, flat and lifeless that she needed a perm to give it body. Such an incredibly sad and tragic story. I like Richard but I think he was far more controlling and oblivious to Karen's situation than he claims.

[wordgrrl71]

@ritter89 True. Good eye. poor thing.

[hoorano]

I loved their tv specials! I wished they had it on dvd!

[sandrasandiford1]

I miss them so much, they were some of the best in the world.

Hearing them again have been a breath of fresh air from all the pollution of music that now exsist.

[alekx77]

Can anybody please tell me what is it that John Bettis means by "goodie four shoes" at 02:27 ? I 'd appreciate if anyone could explain that to me.

[awellwisher]

@alekx77 When a person is very good they are often called "goodie two shoes." It refers to one person with two feet, therefore two shoes. "Goodie four shoes" = two very good people with four feet, therefore four shoes.

[alekx77]

@awellwisher Thank you so much for explaining. Usually we see a lot of sly comments here, it's great when someone takes the time to help out and be kind. God bless you.

[awellwisher]

@alekx77 You're welcome.

[pricefan2007]

@alekx77 He means that Richard and Karen were just squeeky clean imaged group against the background of the acid rock and the psycadellic music of the sixties.  They were just making their own kind of music at the time.

[claretea]

People would say I am big boned too just because I was tall. I am not particularly big boned, I am tall. People don't know what they're talking about lots of times.

[pjtnletsgovols9]

I am with u onyab what did her size have a thing to do with her singing,and also agree that she was healthy not over weight (that it mattered at all,nothing to do with singing)

but u sure could see her weight going down and down,and u could even see later that she was not the same Karen,and that was the shame. RIP Karen.

[angryjalapeno]

Greedy producers and executives ... they suck all the life of artists so they can maximize their own middleman fees. Disgusting parasites.

[titan57nl]

Would have loved to hear Pat Metheny playing alongside Karen.

[Rfoz51]

Every time I see the clip being played at 9:30 and Karen talks at 9:40 all I think of is Cortney Cox any any Friends episode when she is being goofy!!!

[bbagginz]

Absolutely superb guitar solo. Beautifully melodic, catching all the harmonic suspensions along the way... the outro section particularly revered among guitarists worldwide

[Stevieraylittlewing]

Wonderful comment!

Bravo!

And how courageous is Richard Carpenter! There's a documentary I saw awhile ago in which Burt Bacharach pays tribute to Richard's arrangement of Close To You; from memory saying that Richard brought out qualities in the song he'd missed completely, shaking his head in admiration. Also from memory I think it was Jerry Moss who effectively created the piano figure hook (following "eyes of blue"), a modification of the original song, suggesting this idea to Richard.

[TheFutureUnquiet]

The great songstresses: Teresa Teng, Karen Carpenter, Ella Fitzgerald, Deborah Harry.

[No1KCfan6]

@TheFutureUnquiet deborah harry? well, whatever.

[LoveLotusHa]

I've been watching a few BBC documentaries of years gone by and I just Love them and thank them so much. Hardly get to watch them in HK.

[douchebag79]

talent is a funny thing, its a blessing to have it but people want to exploit it......such is the struggle that to prevail a balance had to be sought!

[beowulven]

Some frighteningly bad ideas were realized during the Carpenters' career, but nothing could sully Karen's perfect voice.

[HeroNoah]

i didnt know they sang the postman song...dang man there awesome! so sad tho or Karen...she is AMAZING and so talented...I have so much more respect for THE CARPENTERS after watching this thanx!

[MrSteveUtah]

Where have you been

[PlaidLaiden]

Motif? I think he meant motive....

[sockenekel]

motif ( ) n. A recurrent thematic element in an artistic or literary work. A dominant theme or central idea.

I think he meant motif.

[shoponline831]

Do you guys think that a lot of singers get more famous after they're dead?

[kthao05]

Some do, eg Selena, but even during their lifetimes, they had enough hits and popularity that part of the reason they become more famous is because of their passing away. Compare that to all the celebrities you hear about and then nothing else after that 1 week or so.

[worcesterwombat]

Kim Gordon - miserable bitch!!

[riktok]

great guitar sound and solo ...

[onyab]

how can that blonde bitch say 'she was a fairly big boned girl'...comments like that are what provoked Karen's anorexia. I honestly thought she looked healthy before all the hardcore fame, and after...well, that was sad. She was truly a legend.

[Angelgurl2203]

@onyab That "Blonde bitch" as you referred her to is Petula Clark.

[wordgrrl71]

@onyab Agreed. She was absolutely perfect before she gave any thought to it. Healthy and attractive with healthy nice hips and a flush of health to her skin. People in entertainment are shitty. And she was so young when they hit it big. Sigh. So sad.

[KarenSuperstar1975]

Interesting Story

[brian8793]

R.I.P. Karen Carpenter......what a shame.

[77Walker77]

It most certaily was, and I take my hat off 2 her. She had such a gorgeous voice, and it's awful that they criticised on her figure they call her like "chubby" or "chunky", I say that a chubby face looked adorable. Sadly, that's what triggered her to diet continuously, and it took a fatal toll on her in 1983. Rest In Peace KAREN ANNE CARPENTER

3/2/50 - 2/8/83.

Purchase CARPENTERS GOLD 2 CD SET.

[kboyzrock]

Man 200 days on the road a year, I can see why they were at their breaking point, yet they still performed flawlessly. A tribute to their tremendous amount of talent.

[sgtang]

Karen, you are number 1 in the world, FOREVER!!!!

[Plasvi]

I miss her so much!

[ClarenceFisher]

RE: Goodbye to Love - I'd never noticed any of that at the time - to me, it was just a nice song I took at face value, but in retrospect, Richard had some guts, and a great sense of humor. He very sneakily and subtlely shoved it right in the face of the EZ listening crowd. I loved it when he said it alienated some fans, but he still thought it was a pretty good record.

[winterpeger]

HARD CORE; She had a great gift and she blew it. Sorry, I love her music but I work 8 hours a day at a crappy job with no special talents.

[Mark9309]

? What was that comment for?

[skot66]

and you are blaming her for your failure?

[Marsena]

IDIOT! JERK! She had an eating disorder, you creton.

[mka800]

There's nothing wrong with this comment. He's not blaming her, he's just saying that it's sad that somebody who is the entire world of talent would destroy herself when some people wish they could have it but can't. I love Karen more than anything, so don't everbody freak out.

[moonshark21]

Most people who claim to have no special talents actually do have one. Bitching and moaning.

[shoponline831]

It wasn't her fault she had anorexia.

[MrSteveUtah]

Whose was it then,the guy next door

[beowulven]

I disagree.

[padude64]

Karen has the best voice of all time!

[bunnerabb]

Tony Peluso was a mutha. Richard had more #1 singles in a row than -anybody- and Karen.. God, what a set of pipes.

[NYCBG]

I remember, years ago - sometime in the seventies - I played a Carpenter's tape for a friend of mine. Then I confided in her that I found Karen's voice to have incredible sex appeal.

Like milk and honey.

So smooth, so low-maintenance and yet so perfect!

[DRSA5702]

i surely loved the songs from them. Timeless, harmonic...simplemente! wonderful!

[royramoskuatro]

i miss them

[choosesarah]

Thank you, Karen, for living. In your death, every time I hear your voice, I die a little bit.

[1JAG136]

She was and will always be, the best singer in my life time....

[choosesarah]

I seriously doubt any of us will live to see a better vocalist -- female or male. Like it was said in the last segment (I think by Petula): Karen's voice was perfect, and Richard wanted everything around her perfect. And her voice was truly perfect, flawless.

[jdlaw001]

Thanks for this

[julianhughes]

the carpenters rule