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Tapestry: Remastered by: Carole King

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Rating: - Classic album from 1971.

Carole King's 'Tapestry' album has to be a true 'classic' - and I think I'm right in saying that this album's never been out of print since it was originally released back in 1971!

Features the hit single from 1971: 'It's Too Late' (though from what I recall, the single version was not as long and of a slightly different arrangement) which will forever remind me of that year. Despite only being nine years old at the time (and unlike the kids of today - we did not have the kind of money that could buy records back then) I waited eight years before I was able to buy it by special order in my teens.

Also features the classic 'You've Got A Friend', and opens with the song 'I Feel The Earth Move' which was later to be recorded by 'Martika' who had a hit with it eighteen years on in 1989.

Rating: - Classic album from 1971.

Carole King's 'Tapestry' album has to be a true 'classic' - and I think I'm right in saying that this album's never been out of print since it was originally released back in 1971!

Features the hit single from 1971: 'It's Too Late' (though from what I recall, the single version was not as long and of a slightly different arrangement) which will forever remind me of that year. Despite only being nine years old at the time (and unlike the kids of today - we did not have the kind of money that could buy records back then) I waited eight years before I was able to buy it by special order in my teens.

Also features the classic 'You've Got A Friend', and opens with the song 'I Feel The Earth Move' which was later to be recorded by 'Martika' who had a hit with it eighteen years on in 1989.

Rating: - Sublime

This is the product of an artist at the apex of their artistic trajectory. Already a prolific song writer, King indulges her instincts on this album and, with one exception (Smackwater Jack), delivers in spades. Donald Fagen said "God is in the details, but there are no details anymore". Listen to this album, compare it to a modern release, and discover what the he was talking about. Production is basic by modern standards, talent shines through the limitations of the technology.

"Where You Lead", "You've Got A Friend" & "Will You (Still) Love Me Tomorrow" aren't even the best tracks on the album! "I Feel The Earth Move" is pared down to basics, driven along by vocals and piano. Gospel in its intensity, the dynamics quash the cover versions. Come to that, the best songs on the album aren't even hits, "Way Over Yonder" evokes a conflict still resonant today. On paper, "Tapestry" is cod mysticism; in King's hands it is a numinous fable, alchemy no less. Convinced?

Rating: - A Classic By Anyone's Standards

Of all the introspective styled singer-songwriters of the early seventies Carole King would perhaps seem a most unlikely candidate to adopt that genre - after all her success was at its peak a decade earlier when she was predominantly a songwriter alongside her husband Gerry Goffin penning a great many fondly remembered classics aimed at the teen market. Fortunately, her forte had always been strong melodies and 'Tapestry', her second album is no exception although its style is more intimate than the style of her early career.
Actually, it's not unrealistic to regard 'Tapestry' as one of only a handful of truly great albums because there are very few albums that are so consistently great from start to finish without the odd filler. 'Tapestry' certainly isn't amongst those groundbreaking albums often touted for in the best album polls but it really doesn't need to be because it's the album's simplicity that is its biggest asset.
Carole mixes a couple of her old songs with her newer efforts - 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow' and 'Natural Woman' and although these versions are never going to eclipse the well known originals in terms of profile they are nevertheless both highly effective at interpreting the songs differently but also successfully. A number of the newer songs have also acquired classic status - especially 'It's Too Late' and 'You've Got A Friend' - best known through James Taylor's cover but it's really hard to imagine these original versions ever being bettered whoever decided to record them.
'Intimate', 'Sincere', 'Direct' are all words that have been used to describe 'Tapestry' over the years and they are all accurate. 'Classic' has also been used on occasions, too, and this term (despite being overused generally in popular music) is equally applicable in this case.
'Tapestry' is definitely a strong contender for the best album ever made.

Rating: - A tapestry made of fine durable fabric

This is a classic album that sounds as honest and sincere now as it did way back in 1971. Imagine an album staying in the number one spot for fifteen weeks and on the charts for over SIX YEARS.

With four Grammy awards under its belt, and songs like “I Feel The Earth Move”; “It's Too Late”; “You've Got A Friend”; “Will You Love Me Tomorrow?”; “Tapestry” and “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, this album belongs in any serious collection of ‘70s music.

See also the tribute album “Tapestry Revisited” where folk like Rod Stewart, Aretha Franklin, Amy Grant, Richard Marx, Celine Dion, the Bee Gees and Bebe and Cece Winans, among others, pay homage to this singer/songwriter extraordinaire.

A must-have album for your collection.

Amanda Richards

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