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A Kind of Hush
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| Price: | $11.98 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details |
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Track Listing
- There's a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)
- You
- Sandy
- Goofus
- Can't Smile Without You
- I Need to Be in Love
- One More Time
- Boat to Sail
- I Have You
- Breaking up Is Hard to Do
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #56384 in Music
- Released on: 1998-12-08
- Number of discs: 1
- Formats: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
Customer Reviews
A Delightful Carpenter Album
"A Kind Of Hush" is a delightful soft-ballad album that has that pleasing Carpenter multi-layered sound. Briefly, this album has so many good tunes on it, I'd have to mention them all, as there are no "weak" tracks at all. You will enjoy this album from start to finish, it is personally one of my favorites, and I own all the Carpenter albums. The multi-layered Carpenter sound is Richard Carpenter's genius, and the vocal sound is the incomparible voice of his sister, Karen Carpenter. When you hear her sing one word, you know that voice is hers and hers alone. What a gift of song she had! Karen Carpenter was one of the most talented and pleasing female vocalists in the 20th century, and that is saying a lot! In my opinion, no one compares to the pure vocal talent of Karen. And she truly shines with the vocal and instrumental arrangements of brother Richard. He knew what key to produce the music in to maximize Karen's best vocal sound. It is Richard's arrangements with Karen's voice that constitutes that instantly recognizable Carpenter sound.
Some particularly good tracks on this album are the title-tune, "A Kind of Hush", the beautifully composed love ballad "You", the very pleasing and soothing "Sandy", the jaunty and funny "Goofus", "Can't Smile Without You", "I Need To Be In Love", and the tribute to Neil Sedaka, "Breakin' Up Is Hard To Do".
"A Kind of Hush", released in 1976, achieved "gold" status but failed to peak as high as previous Carpenter albums. The singles released from this album surprisingly did not track as high as previous efforts, with "There's a Kind of Hush", peaking at a very respectable #12, "I Need to Be in Love" at #25, while the novelty song "Goofus" failed to reach the Top 40 entirely - their first single to not crack the top-40 since they began recording in 1970.
This aside, the album is sure to please all Carpenter fans and I very highly recommend it!
Jim "Konedog" Koenig
The Slope
In 1976, as Karen's anorexia was taking root, the Carpenters recorded their 7th studio album. This album breaks no ground musically and seems to mellow out at times. However, Karen's voice redeems it and I still must give it 3 stars. "A Kind of Hush", the group's #12 hit is not as creative as "Please Mr. Postman", and the ending "Breaking Up is Hard to Do" is not worth hearing. "You" is lovely, and so is "Can't Smile without You," but clearly the best song is "I Need to Be in Love." Although it charted only at #25, the song is sung very heartfelt by Karen, and it carries the album. The songs on the second half all seem to sound the same, and clearly, one can see the Carpenter's slide down the charts beginning. The single "Goofus" charted at #56, making it the group's lowest charting single to date. However, the album deserves to be heard as it does have the greatest vocalist of all time.
Sing Softly and Carry a Good Song
This album by the Carpenters isn't bad- not by a long shot- yet its overall presentation fails to fully satisfy due to a lack of top-notch material. The arrangements are more restrained than usual, often featuring Karen's gorgeous alto all alone with no overdubbing or harmonies. The standout tracks, in my opinion, are the stunning "One More Time", "I Have You" and of course, the album's masterpiece, "I Need To Be In Love". The remaining tracks are mostly very nice, but nothing exceptional. By the way, the fact that the moronic track "Goofus" was ever released as a single is beyond me. Almost any other song on this disc would've been a far better choice (as a single) for a hit record, and that includes their tepid remake of the classic "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do". Sigh. We miss you Karen, but have much to savor.
