(editor’s note – no ex post facto proof for George Gobel)
Carpenters not so sweet, but production is lavish
by Alan Jay Alpern, The Knickerbocker News, August 11, 1976
The Carpenters still have smiles that would make Jimmy Carter green with envy, but the saccharine wholesomeness which was their trademark may be gone forever.
The brother-sister duo put on a lavish stage production at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center Tuesday, which enthralled a sellout crowd of more than 5,700.
The Carpenters, despite some excellent musicianship, will never be in the avant garde of progressive music, but they have created an exciting act which should put them in the forefront of that rare breed known as “entertainers.” There is something for just about everyone to enjoy, from the most innocent teeny bopper to the heavy rock ‘n’ roller to grandma.
Karen Carpenter, who has been hailed as the Dionne Warwick of the ’70s, has really let her hair down. She saunters through five, and sometimes six, dress changes—each outfit perfectly matched to the changing moods of the show.
From the soft opening, which features the latest hits, through a raucous ’50s parody which was adapted from the Broadway musical “Grease,” to the sentimental closing of “We’ve Only Just Begun,” the two performers are in total control of their act and their audience. They have developed into thoroughly professional entertainers who understand their work and do it well.
The show is a marked contrast to the old days of just climbing on stage, singing the favorites, taking their bows, and off we go.
The grand production, which highlights the piano mastery of Richard Carpenter and the quality musicianship of the backup band, is well executed throughout. It is perfectly timed with each mood change coming crisply and effortlessly; perhaps the only real flaw is a lack of spontaneity.
Much to their credit, the group even makes the effort to showcase Richard’s classical piano training with a beautiful rendition of the “Warsaw Concerto.” Several members of the band, who also have had classical training—most notably the clarinetist and flutist—also performed admirably.
Despite the changes—Richard and Karen said after the show act even they were tired of the old and had wanted to liven it up for several years—the old image may be hard to break.
Asked if their fans have accepted the new image yet, Richard said, “I don’t think so.”
And will they ever?
“I wonder sometimes,” he mused. “But this is the way we’ve always been. Some of the things they had us do at the beginning made us look too squeaky clean. Now we’ve just brought it down to what we actually are.
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