‘Close To You’ Carpenters Vocal Coach FiRST Reaction

What makes a classic 70s hit!?
1. Great song
2. Great vocal
3. Great treatment (arrangement)
4. Perfect tempo
5. At least three recognisable hooks
6. A sprinkle of magic dust
#karencarpenter #thecarpenters #vocalcoach #closetoyou #reactionvideo

[@THSeaNotes]

You never hear the young talent cover Karen Carpenter. She was a worldwide superstar.👍❤️

[@dagmar.6954]

Karen was one of a kind. There will never be another like her. She had such a pure calming voice. And she was a terrific drummer. That was her passion even more than singing. Sadly we lost her so young. Thankfully we have her legacy left in her music. The Carpenters had so many great songs such as "We've Only Just Begun", "For All We Know", "Rainy Days & Mondays", "Superstar", "Goodbye To Love", "Top Of The World", "Sing", "Yesterday Once More", "I Won't Last A Day Without You", "Please Mr. Postman", "Only Yesterday", "There's A Kind Of Hush (All Over the World)", "I Need To Be In Love" & so many more.

[@nanettetredoux7613]

What a delight - the performance and your review. You are correct: Karen didn't need to kick her voice into action. How clever of you to realise that the little impulse at the start of the phrase is in fact in tune with the accompaniment and related to her approach to music as a percussionist. That silky voice is so wonderful, and it really does seem as if low singing is underappreciated by most people these days. And can we take a moment to appreciate the brilliance of the songwriting! I feel quite nostalgic now.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

It’s utterly wonderful. Things happen too fast these days!! No patience! This song comes from the Golden Era of pop where it was an art form and a great craft too.

[@ballantynemoyes8019]

I adored the Carpenters. Thank you so much for posting this, you brought back so many lovely memories. It was a tragedy when she became ill.

[@bj320033328]

Your analysis of Karen's voice and Richard's arrangement is so analytical and beautifully done. It is so original and insightful. It is very refreshing.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Wow, thank you!

[@joyvoice8754]

Same with me.. always while hearing, I get a big SMILE in my face...😊.. Always...😊.... Thank you for the interesting new infos about it! Love from Germany

[@dixiehuston4869]

FANTASTIC SUMMARY..Incredible to listen to you.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

🙏thank you

[@fabricioalves928]

Parabens por escolher uma musica dos Carpenters. Richard é um dos maiores arranjadores da musica pop e Karen é unica. Sua voz é sempre no tom certo. Sua emicao transborda para quem.houve sem excessos e firulas, só emoção. Sua pronuncia de palavras é inigualável. Nenhuma cantora me emociona mais q ela

[@bruschmidt9943]

Excellent analysis & reaction. In fact you're correct in figuring out this is the Studio record overdubbed on their live BBC 1971 performance. I've said it before & I'll say it again. Her voice was proven to be better & more accurate live vs the Studio record & her timing was so spot-on, most live performances could synch with her Studio records. There wasn't a single reason to replace her live vocal here. Good call & thank you Sir!

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Midway through, the penny dropped!! But it was excellent mime from Karen.

[@martel732]

Very insightful. Thank you for defining that which is almost indefinable.

[@susanindy6406]

❤ My all-time favorite singer.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Gorgeous ❤️

[@lisabeaver7675]

Thank you for a great reaction. I love your choices in artist Karen's voice was so unique and beautiful. Richard's ability to make these arrangements is just mind blowing. Such a gift they both had.

[@sandrak.robbins6305]

What an amazing voice she had and she sang while playing the drums! It was very sad that she had a devastating eating disorder. Thank you for observing that bit about her singing choices and her drumming thinking. Her voice was very easy and smooth.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Thank you Sandra. There’s a sadness in this video too. She is so thin. Not something I would comment on normally but it is so sad that she is not still with us.

[@matrox]

At first she didn't want the lime light in front of the cameras, the she loved it. Richard said she loved doing the Carpenter TV show Specials that Richard wasn't crazy about so she had to talk Richard into doing them like he talked her into coming from behind the drum kit.

[@skinheadjon901]

Glad you mentioned the original Richard Chamberlain version (not that I'm a fan of his),your details has got me liked & subscribed to your channel. 🤔🎶🙌👍

[@A-whiter-shade-of-pale]

This is not the audio that was originally with this video. This was recorded on Carpenters 1971 BBC special. When she gives that little bow during the Richard introduction it was because the audience was clapping, and they clapped again before the end of the song. The original is in the last 1/4 of the full 1971 special. I do not know why the replaced the audio as Miss Carpenter did not make mistakes, but the audio is not as clear on the original. Wings of Pegasus removed the instruments and ran just her voice through pitch monitoring software side by side with the recorded version. Her voice is live, but the instruments are not they are from the master. There are places that she put a vibrato on the live and not on the recorded, and vis versa and places where she held the note longer or not as long, some place she hit the note dead on on one but was a little sharp or flat the other his conclusion was that she did a little better job on the live rather than the record. In 1971 TVs had 1 5inch speaker and TV stations did not worry too much about Audio. In 1975 a few stations did simulcast with FM radio stations which gave you great sound (depending on your FM receiver) and in 83 (the year Karen Died) they started broadcasting in stereo.

[@天鵬-z2k]

The last “blue” was lower in the live audio, which may have been considered a mistake

[@chipurBillWhite]

That’s the finest reaction I’ve ever seen. Sure, it’s Karen, but your enthusiasm, analysis, and visual aids were just great. I even learned a few things. Thank you…

[@DavidGlover-s7x]

Perfection. Thanks for that analysis.

[@carolhesterberg7526]

I believe she actually sang when she was "supposed" to be miming. Her microphone was a prop, but she wasn't really lip-synching.

[@stevenM8282]

Nice reaction. In memory of one of the best song writers ever, Gordon Lightfoot. "If You Could Read My Mind" would a good choice for a reaction. There's a live video available, performed when he was 74. In Reno, Nev. Will bring you to tears.

[@andrewclayton4181]

Brilliant. Great synopsis of the composition. This was one of the few songs I bought as a single, it's so gorgeous and rich. I'm not sure Richard gave Karen confidence, I think he was rather brutal, dragging her out to the front. But with her voice, it's really where she had to be. I was slightly surprised to see you doing an old pop classic like this. I can't object in this case though.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Oh I love this. It’s a masterpiece. I should do more from that era. Good point re Richard but he was very ambitious and having Karen drumming - with a voice like that - made no sense!

[@jackhouran8851]

He stated several times how she hated her hour glass figure and yet he forced her out in front to face the critics and maybe the anorexia. Ñot exactly "big brotherish".

[@annestep6741]

Such a lovely always recognized voice. It is so sad that she was so tormented. Her family wasn't very kind to her. Saw her as a money maker and treated her badly. She sure is nice to listen to, so many hits they made.

[@mikebowman8680]

Really great review or reaction. The more I listen the more I appreciate the genius of Richard carpenter. His arrangements were just so good. And with her voice, just amazing.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Richard was / is a man with great ideas and a fantastic ear for producing.

[@mikebowman8680]

@@BangkokVoiceCoach with your standing you may know if Richard does any signings or touring? I'm not close to California though. Thanks

[@DerGlaetze]

Richard looks so much like John Lodge of the Moody Blues.

[@SBQDawn]

1st Thank you, I loved the memories The Carpenters were a huge part of my childhood life soundtrack. 2. are you going to do the Stargazer Trilogy from Home Free the first 2 chapters are out and the third drops Friday. They are sooo Romantic and beautiful. 3. You are a great teacher, I have no musical training,(small school and music was just an elective if you took it you were considered a lazy student) and honestly we never had musical theory we barely had 1 quarter of reading music . I still find myself learning from you I Love that. So Thank you very much.

[@anguskerr1872]

So... What strikes me as a listener, about her is that more than any other singer, she sings to me in a very personal and initimate way, rather than at me. That, impeccable mic technique, and a lack of ego - it cuts straight through one's defences and rips striaight into your soul.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

I agree. She has extraordinary intimacy. Apparently she did a lot in one take. It was just a huge gift - very hard to define. But very true, she’s not projecting “me, me, me” as a lot of singers do.

[@mgagne1999]

You get it. Thanks

[@mikemclenison8200]

Wonderful review!

[@mgagne1999]

You’re right about her lead in 🙂

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Meaning ….? Her upbeats?

[@randymichaels1947]

Yes I agree and thank you for that understanding of her rhythm of singing that song. Same was true also of the word close (to you). Unlike Richard Chamberlins version of the word close.

[@maxc3470]

Besides your professional critique, I especially love your enthusiasm. Just discovered you with your coverage of Amira, which I am still reeling from. Thanks so much.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Oh thank your Max. 🙏

[@jamessumita5193]

The instrument in the solo was a electric clarinet.... it can sound like brass instrument like a trumpet

[@dougramsey1012]

This is the studio version layered over the BBC 1971 live performance. Video with the actual sound is available on KZbin. In the actual sound, Doug Strawn's electric clarinet approximates the tone of a flugelhorn.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

I’ve never heard of an electric clarinet. Sounds dangerous !!! 😂

[@dougramsey1012]

@@BangkokVoiceCoach I had never heard of one either! Apparently, an electric pickup is installed into the clarinet. I've seen other footage in which you can see the cable leading to the amplifier; in fact, it might be visible in Doug's closeup in this video.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

But he is miming here, right?

[@dougramsey1012]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJrRqK2FpNSLiLc this is the footage with the true audio.

[@cd72]

It was not Burt who said that to seep in those riffs....it was Herb Alpert who said to Richard to keep those in the song....

[@Susan-pq5rx]

William, thank you for your respectful expert analysis of Karen Carpenter and the Carpenters. I must correct you though. Karen's performance was not lip-synced. Check out the intricate, high tech analysis by “Wings of Pegasus,” Fil, the British guitarist who hosts a popular You Tube channel. He actually shows the computer graphics as they register her voice in a studio version versus the live performance version. It's fascinating. I suspect that Karen never resorted to lip syncing. Her integrity and work ethic precluded it.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Hello Susan, I’ve heard that this is a lip-syched performance but I don’t believe it. Only the vocal is live. The flugelhorn is the wrong instrument. I’ll have a look back at my video to see what I said.

[@Coowallsky]

Richard Chamberlain recorded it in 1963.

[@jbs256]

You are killing it William, on the evaluation. I can fill in a few things. Karen’s mike was hot, she’s live. The rest is a sync, including the background vocals. That’s what Charismatic Voice caught, Karen moved the mike and the background still was clear. Good catch on Dumler and the clarinet, it drives me nuts. I believe it was a trumpet as Richard wanted Herb to do the solo but his schedule was full and it was the trumpet but not sure who played it. Oh, Fil caught that Karen had the hot mike in his video. Also he proved that Karen hit notes here that she missed in the original recording. Also that opening piano hook, Richard wrote it not Burt. When asked how he came up with it he went 🤷🏻‍♂️. I hope you do more Carpenters dissections you got something good going. Let the Carpenter Mafia find you and welcome you to the rabbit hole. Here’s a fairly rare one. 1970 Karen is 20, C2Y is the hit. They do this live to tape for The Ed Sullivan Show. Karen is in great form the boys are amazing and this rocks. It’s the Bacharach/David Medley. At Walter Reed Hospital, in front of Viet Nam War veterans and patients. kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6PWpn95e555qqs

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Hi Joseph, so Karen’s vocal was live but she also sang to herself on the track later on in the song. A live vocal to instrumental playback is still fairly normal for tv, even these days. Television engineers are notoriously bad at sound and the director only cares abut his camera angles!!!! Thanks for the tip. Can’t wait to see it.

[@jbs256]

@@BangkokVoiceCoach she and Richard did all the backing harmonies on the recorded tracks. So that was going when she moved the microphone. The only time Richard had to use other vocals was when he finished some songs for an album after her passing. There are explanations about how early on he experimented with how many overdubs was too many. I think 8 was the sweet spot he settled on. Multitrack recorders were coming of age in the early 70’s so Richard had new toys to play with back then. Chris May documented a lot of this tech stuff.

[@bernardmalonzo5948]

Good day sir William please react to the Franz rythm family band from the Philippines rendition of CLOSE TO YOU sang by KAREN CARPENTERS pls check this out SIR this family band are composed of 2 young teens a 17/15 YRS girls and akid age 11 yrs old drummer boy more power to Ur channel sir William and welcome to the Franz rythm family band community 👍👍👍🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Wow, thanks I will search that now.

[@darrinlindsey]

The first time I've noticed this. Is the guitar player, to Karen's right, Glen Campbell from the Wrecking Crew days?

[@A-whiter-shade-of-pale]

Chamberlains version could make your ears bleed. It would be imposable for me to say which Carpenter's songs is my favorite. I belonged to record clubs when they were performing and have every record, they put out only played once when I copied them onto reel to reel. That having been said I do like their version of Reason to Believe. They did it live on The 5th Dimension Traveling Sunshine TV show. But there are three versions of that performance too in one she keeps changing clothes from a black outfit kzbin.info/www/bejne/oYW6lnubgpugkKs (which is correct) to an orange outfit she wore on NBC-TV series "Make Your Own Kind of Music" on September 7, kzbin.info/www/bejne/ip6spnqQZ6l1apI

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Yes Earl, it is so UN-musical !!

[@matrox]

It could be a lipsync. Back then as well as today some TV shows won't allow artists to play live. Why? Because the studios don't want to look bad if their is a major eff up. I think it all started with the Ed Sullivan show in the late 60s when he didn't like some of his guests changing the lyrics during live performances.

[@Tune-O-matic]

Yep...That clarinet always makes musicians do a double take..

[@Coowallsky]

The solo was a fugelhorn doubled with a trumpet. The strings are another tell that this was a lip-synced video.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Really!? Two instruments? That's not a solo then but a very tight duet. I've just had a listen to it. There's a tiny bit of phasing here and there when they aren't quite together. Interesting!

[@Coowallsky]

@@BangkokVoiceCoach It's a solo that they wanted to fatten up so they got the same guy to cover it with a different instrument.

[@carolhesterberg7526]

Could that electric clarinet just sound like a flugelhorn? I'd heard that it could be made to sound like an oboe.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

It’s definitely playback, especially from what avid Carpenters fans have told me.

[@carolhesterberg7526]

@@BangkokVoiceCoach Oh, that's right. It WAS the group performing to its recorded track. I had heard, though, that the electric clarinet was used in songs where you thought you were hearing an oboe.

[@johnsimon2988]

Gave her confidence or was she bullied? I recall reading years ago (I can't find the article today so take this with a grain of salt) that Richard was Moms fav child. And Karen died at 32 from anorexia which does not speak of a high level of self confidence to me. Sure, anorexia was not recognized for the killer it is back in the 70's but I lived in the 70's and it was a different time in every manner measurable. Including racially, equality of the sexes, bigotry and any cultural metric one can name. Another words it sucked and was dangerous if you were not identified as a straight white male. Those not in that demographic had a rough road to hew. I was 28 when she died and felt devastated. She had given me so much pleasure with her voice when I was younger and the radio was all I had for entertainment. And the 5th Dimension, they were the first group I remember and I had a mad crush on Mz McCoo at 15 years of age. That's neither here nor there. What might be more interesting to you is that I am a 68 year old white dude with blue eyes that grew up in the South. And I've been married to the same lovely lady since 1980. Although I fit the demographic I mentioned I despise bigotry, racism, misogamy, antisemitism and I've not overly fond of misanthropes. So whoever that offends, sue me! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@krazyj1957]

I hate it when so called experts cut in every ten seconds.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

🤣🤣🤣

[@jackteppo9633]

This is 72

[@sandrak.robbins6305]

Hi William, could you speak to k.d.lang's vocals? kzbin.info/www/bejne/qqeahGusaNeAY7c

[@nanettetredoux7613]

Oh yes! Another fabulous low female voice.

[@BangkokVoiceCoach]

Glorious !!!!

[@jimnorlem6802]

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