Carpenters – Carpenters With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (2018) [FLAC 24bit/192kHz]

The greatest classics from The Carpenters have resurfaced in a sublime blend of vocal harmonies and symphonic arrangements. For this project in 2018, Richard Carpenter himself went along to Abbey Road Studios. Their last album in 1981, Made in America, was a half-posthumous album (Richard’s sister Karen having died in 1983 at only 32 years of age) and invoked a certain feeling of nostalgia, showing that this legendary pop group shifting more towards easy-listening could still be deep. However, it is still very rooted in the American culture of the seventies, particularly through the classics Close To You, Rainy Days and Mondays and We’ve Only Just Begun.

With this album, the legacy of The Carpenters lives on in an unconventional way. The producers have kept the voices of the original recordings and some instrumental parts, surrounding them with the brand-new sounds of the violins from the London Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Thanks to their classy arrangements, these strings tastefully accentuate the romanticism of this timeless pop. – Clotilde Maréchal

Tracklist:
01. Overture 01:29
02. Yesterday Once More 03:56
03. Hurting Each Other 03:58
04. I Need To Be In Love 04:30
05. For All We Know 02:56
06. Touch Me When We’re Dancing 03:15
07. I Believe You 03:53
08. I Just Fall In Love Again 05:01
09. Merry Christmas, Darling 03:01
10. Baby It’s You 03:11
11. (They Long To Be) Close To You 03:40
12. Superstar 03:51
13. Rainy Days And Mondays 03:36
14. This Masquerade 04:50
15. Ticket To Ride 04:10
16. Goodbye To Love 03:58
17. Top Of The World 02:59
18. We’ve Only Just Begun 03:57