Sal’s Boutique

When Carole King recorded this album, she had nothing to prove. Not to herself, her fans or her accountants. She’d already co-written a dozen hit singles and Tapestry had been on the charts for two years (with four more to come). She was a bonafide superstar singer and performer and a multi-millionaire. What better time to leave behind spare arrangements and three-minute pop songs for something more experimental? None.

We are forewarned: less than a minute into Fantasy Beginning, CK says: “I may step outside myself and speak as if I were someone else”. Indeed she does, launching into a 20 minute side of “pazz and jop” that evokes Show Biz Kids, Papa Was A Rolling Stone and Here My Dear vintage Marvin Gaye. Floating strings, flugelhorn solos, songs mixed together without any breaks in between.

Her effort is admirable; it is not Tapestry revisited. Unfortunately, that which was her experiment is also her undoing. The first full cut after her introduction, entitled You’ve Been Around Too Long, with its loping strings and horn solo is a pleasant mix that evokes the Temptations mixed with Laura Nyro. Unfortunately, the next two songs sound just like the first and it soon becomes tedious. Not until That’s How Things Go Down, with its gospel vibe and organ solo does the album bring your ears back to life.

The second side suffers from the same story. Nice enough music but it takes fifteen minutes — when she kicks into You Light Up My Life — to feel anything but a smooth jazz vibe (before smooth jazz was even created).

When the basis of a review is the inherent lack of financial investment required for entry, it’s hard to be too critical without sounding like a wonk. At the same time, the very fact that nothing is lost — the album didn’t cost me $20 — allows for a purer point of view. The final determination: God Bless Carole King, for not having taken the easy road by trying to produce Tapestry II. But, when it comes time to make an investment, I once again encourage you to pick the best songs and leave the rest behind.

Carole King - Haywood/A Quiet Place To Live

BUY-O-METER

LP (1.50 at the Salvation Army) Knowing what I know now, probably not
CD (7.85 at CD Universe) It’s Your DOugh, Baby
DOWNLOAD (.99 each on Amazon) BUY You’ve Been Around Too Long, That’s How Things Go Down, You Light Up My Life, Corazon and Believe In Humanity.

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