For the first time, all of the Carpenters most significant singles hits have been gathered together on a single disc collection. Carpenters: Singles 1969-1981 (A&M/UME), released May 23, 2000, features all 12 of the enormously popular brother-sister duos Top 10 pop hits, including all 10 of Karen and Richards gold singles. For any fan of the Carpenters or of 70s pop, the 21-song lineup of Carpenters: Singles 1969-1981 comprises the groups definitive hits collection.
One of the biggest musical acts of the 70s, their list of hits reads like a soundtrack for the boomer generation: (They Long To Be) Close To You (1969, their first #1), Weve Only Just Begun (#2), For All We Know (#3), Sing (#3), Hurting Each Other (#2), Rainy Days And Mondays (#2), Superstar (#2), Top Of The World (#1) and Yesterday Once More (#2), all gold, all timeless pop treasures.
Expanding on their previous hits collection, Singles 1969-1973, released in 1974 and certified seven times platinum, Singles 1969-1981 adds their 1975 gold #1 cover of Please Mr. Postman, as well as 1972s Top 20 I Wont Last A Day Without You, 1975s #4 hit Only Yesterday and the most recent selection, 1981s Touch Me When Im Dancing, their final Top 20 hit. As a special treat for fans, a reprise version of For All We Know from a British television special also is included.
The other tracks on Singles 1969-1981 range from the Carpenters first single, their 1969 cover of the Beatles Ticket To Ride and the Top 20 hit Its Going To Take Some Time to I Believe You, Those Good Old Dreams, All You Get From Love Is A Love Song and I Need To Be In Love.