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Lovelines

For the film, see Lovelines (film).
Lovelines
Studio album by
Carpenters
ReleasedOctober 31, 1989
Recorded1978–1980
Studio
GenrePop
Length46:24
LabelA&M[1]
ProducerPhil Ramone, Richard Carpenter[2]
Carpenters chronology
An Old-Fashioned Christmas
(1984) 		Lovelines
(1989) 		As Time Goes By
(2001)
Singles from Lovelines
  1. "Honolulu City Lights"
    Released: 1986
  2. "If I Had You"
    Released: 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[1]
Rolling Stone[5]

Lovelines is the thirteenth studio album by the American music duo Carpenters released in 1989, the third Carpenters posthumous album released after the death of Karen Carpenter. The album is assembled by Richard Carpenter from unreleased Carpenters tracks along with selected solo tracks by Karen from her then-unreleased solo album.[6]

Background

[edit]

"You're the One" is an outtake from 1977 album Passage.[7]

"Honolulu City Lights", "Slow Dance" and "Where Do I Go from Here?" are from 1978 sessions.[8][9][10]

"Kiss Me the Way You Did Last Night" and "The Uninvited Guest" are outtakes from Made in America,[11][12] the studio album released in 1981 and the last completed during Karen's lifetime.

Two songs were taken from Carpenters television specials. "Little Girl Blue" is taken from 1978 Space Encounters TV special. "When I Fall in Love" was also originally recorded in 1978 for that TV special, but used later in Music, Music, Music! in 1980.[13]

The album also includes four Carpenters interpretations of songs from Karen Carpenter's solo recordings: the title track, "If I Had You", "If We Try" and "Remember When Lovin' Took All Night".

"You're the One" and "Where Do I Go from Here?" were previously used in the TV movie The Karen Carpenter Story.[7][10]

Critical reception

[edit]

Rolling Stone wrote that Karen's solo tracks were "liberating. Ramone recorded her in leaner, decidedly unsaccharine settings and, in effect, got rid of her music's otherwise characteristic bad aftertaste. As Karen's cozy contralto pulses through the come-hither "Lovelines," the hearth-warm "If We Try" (both written by Rod Temperton, whose credits also include "Rock With You" and "Thriller") and the saltier "If I Had You," her vocals come damn close to soulful. Listening to them, it becomes apparent why singers like Chrissie Hynde, Madonna and Gloria Estefan have "come out of the closet" and admitted they were Karen fans...voices like Karen Carpenter's never really go out of style; Lovelines reveals just a few of the avenues that would have been open to her. But sadly, the Seventies never really ended for Karen Carpenter; she died before she could shed the goody-two-shoes image that shrouded her immense talent. As such, Lovelines becomes her essential epitaph.[5]

In their review of the album, Billboard stated that "one listen and it's clear that no one - the closest is Gloria Estefan - has filled the void left after Karen's death in 1983. There's a good reason why some of the syrupy material was never released, but other tracks, like first single "If I Had You," the classic "When I Fall In Love," and "Where Do I Go From Here," instantly recall why the duo was one of the most successful of the '70s." [14]

Allmusic noted that "When I Fall in Love" brings a tear to the eye as it captures that indefinable and completely unique quality that Karen brought to each song she sang. While the material in this compilation is not sensational or ground-breaking, it is definitely a sentimental selection of tunes that go easy on the ear."[15]

Track listing

[edit]
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Lovelines"Rod Temperton4:28
2."Where Do I Go from Here?"Parker McGee4:24
3."The Uninvited Guest"
4:24
4."If We Try"Temperton3:42
5."When I Fall in Love"
3:08
6."Kiss Me the Way You Did Last Night"
  • Margaret Dorn
  • Lynda Lee Lawley
4:03
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Remember When Lovin' Took All Night"
3:47
8."You're the One"Steve Ferguson4:13
9."Honolulu City Lights"Keola Beamer3:19
10."Slow Dance"
3:35
11."If I Had You"
3:57
12."Little Girl Blue"
3:24

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Lovelines
Chart (1990) Peak
position
UK Albums (OCC)[16] 73

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 200.
  2. ^ "Karen Carpenter: She Had Only Just Begun : Pop: New Carpenters' album features four songs from Karen's ill-fated solo collection. The album suggests she might have had a career as a soloist". Los Angeles Times. November 7, 1989.
  3. ^ "Lovelines - Carpenters | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  4. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 204.
  5. ^ a b "Rolling Stone : The Carpenters: Lovelines : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. February 13, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-02-13.
  6. ^ The Rock Who's who - Page 92 Brock Helander - 1996 The posthumously released album Lovelines contained 10 unreleased songs, including 4 by Karen from a never-completed solo album.
  7. ^ a b "You're the One". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  8. ^ "Honolulu City Lights". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
  9. ^ "Slow Dance". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
  10. ^ a b "Where Do I Go From Here?". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  11. ^ "Kiss Me The Way You Did Last Night". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
  12. ^ "The Uninvited Guest". richardandkarencarpenter.com. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
  13. ^ Sexton, Paul (January 13, 2024). "The Carpenters' 'Lovelines': A Posthumous Tribute To Karen Carpenter". udiscovermusic.com. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  14. ^ "Album Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. No. 29 October 1983. p. 72. Retrieved August 25, 2024.
  15. ^ "Album Search for "lovelines"". AllMusic.
  16. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 10, 2021.