About the duo: The Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo consisting of siblings Karen (1950–1983) and Richard Carpenter 1946). They produced a distinct soft musical style, combining Karen's contralto vocals with Richard's harmonizing, arranging and composition skills. During their 14-year career, the Carpenters recorded ten albums, along with numerous singles and several television specials. The Carpenters currently have two songs in my list of about 200 best pop/rock songs of all time.
About the song: by the time they released their 1976 album A kind of hush, the Carpenters were well established as the world's leading soft pop duo. It provided them with USA top40 singles #16 and 17 in the (almost) title song and I need to be in love. The latter, co-written by Albert Hammond, was Karen's favourite song, and is for me their second-best effort ever. A beautiful love song, which gives Karen the chance to show off her gorgeous voice. Sadly, it turned out to be the beginning of the end - medicine addiction (Richard) and Anorexia Nervosa (Karen) started to take a too large tool on the siblings. Run time 3:49.
