Karen Carpenter's calm, often somber voice was the most distinctive element of their music, settling in perfectly amidst the precise, lush arrangements provided by her brother Richard. The duo's sound drew more from pre-rock pop than rock & roll, but that didn't prevent the Carpenters from appealing to a variety of audiences, particularly Top 40, easy listening, and adult contemporary. While their popularity declined during the latter half of the '70s, they remained one of the most distinctive and recognizable acts the decade produced.
The Carpenters formed in the late '60s in Downey, CA, after their family moved from their native New Haven, CT. Richard had played piano with a cocktail jazz trio in a handful of local Connecticut nightclubs. Once the family had moved to California, he began to study piano while he supported Karen in a trio that featured Wes Jacobs (tuba/bass). With Jacobs and Richard forming her backup band, Karen was signed to the local Californian record label Magic Lamp, who released two unsuccessful singles by the singer. The trio won a Battle of the Bands contest at the Hollywood Bowl in 1966, which led to a record contract with RCA. Signing under the name The Richard Carpenter Trio, the group cut four songs that were never released. Jacobs left the band at the beginning of 1968.
Following Jacobs' departure, the siblings formed Spectrum with Richard's college friend John Bettis. Spectrum fell apart by the end of the year, but the Carpenters continued performing as a duo. The pair recorded some demos at the house of Los Angeles session musician Joe Osborn; the tape was directed toward Herb Alpert, the head of A&M Records, who signed the duo to his record label in early 1969.
Offering, the Carpenters' first album, was released in November 1969. Neither Offering or the accompanying single, a cover of the Beatles' "Ticket to Ride," made a big impression. However, the Carpenters' fortunes changed with their second single, a version of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "(They Long to Be) Close to You." Taken from the album Close to You, the single became the group's first number one, spending four weeks on the top of the U.S. charts. "Close to You" became an international hit, beginning a five-year period where the duo was one of the most popular recording acts in the world. During that period the Carpenters won two Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist of 1970, and had an impressive string of Top Ten hits, including "Rainy Days and Mondays," "Superstar," "Hurting Each Other," "Goodbye to Love," "Yesterday Once More," and "Top of the World."
After 1975's number-four hit "Only Yesterday," the group's popularity began to decline. For the latter half of the '70s, the duo were plagued by personal problems. Richard had become addicted to prescription drugs; in 1978, he entered a recovery clinic, kicking his habit. Karen, meanwhile, became afflicted with anorexia nervosa, a disease she suffered from for the rest of her life. On top of their health problems, the group's singles had stopped reaching the Top Ten and by 1978, they weren't even reaching the Top 40. Consequently, Karen decided to pursue a solo career, recording a solo album in 1979 with Phil Ramone. The record was not completed at that time (though it would be released in 1996), and she returned to the Carpenters later that year. The reunited duo released their last album of new material, Made in America, in 1981. The album marked a commercial comeback, as "Touch Me When We're Dancing" made it to number 16 on the charts. However, Karen's health continued to decline, forcing the duo out of the spotlight. On February 4, 1983, Karen was found unconscious at her parents' home in Downey; she died in the hospital shortly after due to cardiac arrest, which was later due to the strain on her heart caused by years of crash dieting caused by anorexia nervosa.
After Karen's death, Richard Carpenter concentrated on production work and assembling various compilations of the Carpenters' recorded work. In 1987, he released a solo album called Time, which featured guest appearances by Dusty Springfield and Dionne Warwick. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
from http://music.msn.com/artist/?artist=1607403&contenttype=artistsongs
Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again
Carpenters Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But he won't find me behind it
'Cause the feeling is gone and just won't come back any more
I worked so hard to find it
I've been up, down, tryin' to get the feeling again
All around tryin' to get the feeling again
That one that made me shiver
I've look high, low, everywhere I possibly can
But there's just no tryin' to get the feeling again
It seemed to disappear as fast at it came
[Chorus]
Read every book, looked, for every meditation and poem
Just to bring home that old sweet sensation
But it ain't no use to me to try to get the feeling again
When did it leave me
How did I come to miss use such a beautiful bonnet
But baby believe me, I've done everything I can do
But somehow it's no returnin'
I've been up, down, tryin' to get the feeling again
Like a bloodhound searching for a long lost friend
Could you help me rediscover
The way to re-be his lover once again
[Chorus]
I want to get that feeling again
The song "Trying to Get the Feeling Again" by the Carpenters is a poignant tune about a woman who is trying to rekindle a lost passion in her relationship. She sings about waiting for her partner to come home, but knowing that no matter how hard she tries, she can't seem to bring back the feeling that they once shared. The lyrics speak to the difficulty of losing something so precious and trying to find a way to revive it. She recounts all the efforts she's put in, reading books, trying to meditate and searching everywhere, but it all seems to be in vain. The once beautiful feeling is nowhere to be found, and she can't seem to get it back.
The chorus shifts to her asking for help in recapturing the lost feelings, pleading for assistance in rediscovering how to be his lover once again. The song has a wistful, melancholic tone that captures the sadness of losing something valuable and the struggle to get it back. The song uses gentle, soothing melodies and Karen Carpenter's soulful voice to convey the deep emotions of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
At any moment he'll be walking through that door
I am waiting for him to come, but he will not find me because the feeling between us no longer exists.
'Cause the feeling is gone and just won't come back any more
The sensation between us is gone, and it will not be possible to bring it back again.
I worked so hard to find it
I made many attempts to find that feeling, but they were not successful.
I've been up, down, tryin' to get the feeling again
I have gone through many ups and downs while attempting to get that feeling back.
All around tryin' to get the feeling again
I have searched everywhere, trying to restore that feeling that we once had.
That one that made me shiver
The feeling that I am searching for is the one that made me shiver with pleasure in the past.
Make my knees start to quiver every time he walks in
That feeling was so strong, it made my knees quiver whenever I saw him.
I've look high, low, everywhere I possibly can
I have searched every possible place that I could think of to try to find that feeling.
But there's just no tryin' to get the feeling again
Despite all of my efforts and searching, the feeling cannot be brought back again.
It seemed to disappear as fast at it came
That feeling that was so strong and powerful disappeared just as quickly as it came.
Read every book, looked, for every meditation and poem
I have tried to find that feeling by reading books and searching for inspiration in various forms of art.
Just to bring home that old sweet sensation
I have tried everything possible to bring back that sweet sensation and longing feeling that I once had.
But it ain't no use to me to try to get the feeling again
Despite all of my attempts, it is useless for me to try to regain that feeling again.
When did it leave me
I am not sure when that feeling disappeared or when I lost it.
How did I come to miss use such a beautiful bonnet
I am wondering how I could have misused something as beautiful as that feeling that we once shared.
But baby believe me, I've done everything I can do
I want him to believe me that I have tried everything possible to bring back that feeling, but it is just not possible.
But somehow it's no returnin'
Despite all my attempts, that feeling is just not coming back.
Like a bloodhound searching for a long lost friend
I am searching for that feeling like a bloodhound searches for a long lost friend.
Could you help me rediscover
I am asking for help to rediscover that feeling that we once shared.
The way to re-be his lover once again
I want to learn how to be his lover again, just like we used to be.
I want to get that feeling again
I am longing to regain that feeling that we once shared, but it seems impossible to do so.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: David Hyman Pomeranz
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Claudio Penha
At any moment he'll be walking through that door
But he won't find me behind it
'Cause the feeling is gone and just won't come back any more
I worked so hard to find it
I've been up, down, tryin' to get the feeling again
All around tryin' to get the feeling again
That one that made me shiver
Make my knees start to quiver every time he walks in
I've look high, low, everywhere I possibly can
But there's just no tryin' to get the feeling again
It seemed to disappear as fast at it came
Read every book, looked, for every meditation and poem
Just to bring home that old sweet sensation
But it ain't no use to me to try to get the feeling again
When did it leave me
How did I come to miss use such a beautiful bonnet
But baby believe me, I've done everything I can do
But somehow it's no returnin'
I've been up, down, tryin' to get the feeling again
Like a bloodhound searching for a long lost friend
Could you help me rediscover
The way to re-be his lover once again
Read every book, looked, for every meditation and poem
Just to bring home that old sweet sensation
But it ain't no use to me to try to get the feeling again
I want to get that feeling again
Solitaire001
I agree this is an outstanding performance, and it quickly became one of my favorite tracks. What makes it more amazing is that (per the Interpretations CD booklet) Karen's vocal was a work lead, it would only have been used by the musicians and would not have been released (it would have been re-recorded for the actual release). Despite this, Karen gives a powerful, emotional performance that ranks among her best. For me, this song shows why Karen is one of the best vocalists.
T.S. T.
Ms. Carpenter was a beautiful singer who influenced so much of the seventies/early eighties. U.S. misses her madly.
Vincent Ruvo
@Solitaire001 Sounds like a demo or a B-side not a catchy Carpenters' song.
Solitaire001
@Vincent Ruvo This was the initial version of the song, which was written for the Carpenters. Barry Manilow had a hit with a significantly rewritten version of the song. According to Manilow (in his box set "The Complete Collection...and Then Some") the song was still being worked on even after it was in his stage show.
Vincent Ruvo
There's something off about this song. The chorus is not strong enough. This song has a lot of potential though.
Claudio Penha
Really, you noticed. I realized it too, but I thought it was the conductor. However, when I read her comment, I realized that I was not the conductor, since she was in a recording studio. Hugs, friend, from São Luís - MA - Brasil.🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷
Bobby Sy Go
Wow, sight-reading the music and singing it off the cuff and it sounds like a final cut version. Beyond impressive.
ChrisOtheBigC
At approximately 1:52 you can hear Karen turn her music sheet over. This was indeed a work lead, recorded and forgotten: one take on the vocal!!! Brilliant. I would have liked to have had this on "Horizon" also, not to mention "Sailing On The Tide", which was recorded around the same time. Both tracks were finished after Karen's passing. Richard did an amazing and beautiful job. Please don't forget his enormous talent.
1asset
you got that from the album notes
Claudio Penha
Really, you noticed. I realized it too, but I thought it was the conductor. However, when I read her comment, I realized that I was not the conductor, since she was in a recording studio. Hugs, friend, from São Luís - MA - Brasil.🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷