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Tapestry (Carole King album)

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For the Don McLean album, see Tapestry (Don McLean album).
Untitled

Tapestry is a pop album by singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1971. It features minimal production by Lou Adler. Tapestry was ranked US number 1 for 15 consecutive weeks, which is the longest time for an album by a female to occupy that position,[2] and has remained on the Billboard 200 for 303 weeks, the most recent week being the Billboard magazine issue dated June 26, 2010.[3] In terms of time on the charts, it ranks fifth overall and in terms of length on the charts for solo musical acts it ranks second. It remains the longest charting album by a female solo artist. Tapestry has sold over 25 million copies worldwide[4] and on July 17, 1995 was certified diamond in the United States by the RIAA for 10 million copies sold in the US.[1] In 1972 the album also garnered four Grammy Awards including Album of the Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Record of the Year ("It's Too Late"), and Song of the Year ("You've Got a Friend").

Critic Robert Christgau wrote in Christgau's Record Guide (1981):

King has done for the female voice what countless singer-composers achieved years ago for the male: liberated it from technical decorum. She insists on being heard as she is—not raunchy and hot-to-trot or sweeet and be-yoo-ti-ful, just human, with all the cracks and imperfections that implies.

King wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on the album, several of which had already been hits for other artists such as Aretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" and The Shirelles' "Will You Love Me Tomorrow". Three songs were co-written with King's ex-husband Gerry Goffin. James Taylor, who encouraged King to sing her own songs, and who also played on Tapestry, would have a #1 hit with "You've Got a Friend." Two songs were co-written with Toni Stern: "It's Too Late" and "Where You Lead".

In 2003, the album was ranked number 36 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[5] In 2001, the VH1 TV network named Tapestry the 39th greatest album ever. In 2003, it was one of 50 recordings chosen by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry.[6]

Various artists combined to re-record all the original tracks for more than one tribute album; the first, released in 1995, entitled Tapestry Revisited: A Tribute to Carole King, which was certified gold, and the second, released in 2003, entitled A New Tapestry — Carole King Tribute.

Tapestry is currently #161 on the Billboard 200, charting for 304 weeks.[7]

Track listing

All songs by Carole King except where noted.

Original vinyl release

  1. "I Feel the Earth Move" – 2:58
  2. "So Far Away" – 3:55
  3. "It's Too Late" (lyrics by Toni Stern) – 3:53
  4. "Home Again" – 2:29
  5. "Beautiful" – 3:08
  6. "Way Over Yonder" – 4:44
  7. "You've Got a Friend" – 5:09
  8. "Where You Lead" (lyrics by Toni Stern) – 3:20
  9. "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" (Gerry Goffin, King) – 4:12
  10. "Smackwater Jack" (Goffin, King) – 3:41
  11. "Tapestry" – 3:13
  12. "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (Goffin, King, Jerry Wexler) – 3:49

1980 Half-Speed Audiophile release

Released on the CBS Mastersound label, cut at half-speed and pressed on virgin vinyl; the track listing was identical to that of the original release. Epic 82308

CD reissue

The album was reissued in 1999 onto CD, with two previously unreleased bonus tracks.

  1. "I Feel the Earth Move" – 2:58
  2. "So Far Away" – 3:55
  3. "It's Too Late" – 3:53
  4. "Home Again" – 2:29
  5. "Beautiful" – 3:08
  6. "Way Over Yonder" – 4:44
  7. "You've Got a Friend" – 5:09
  8. "Where You Lead" – 3:20
  9. "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" – 4:12
  10. "Smackwater Jack" – 3:41
  11. "Tapestry" – 3:13
  12. "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" – 3:49
  13. "Out in the Cold" (bonus track) – 2:44
  14. "Smackwater Jack" (Live) (bonus track) – 3:21

Note

Certain copies of the original CD issue list track 12 as "(You Make Me Feel) Like A Natural Woman" with the parentheses putting a different emphasis on the title. However, the inside liner notes of these CDs still use the standard form of the track title as listed above.

Hits from Tapestry

In total, eight of the twelve songs from Tapestry were or became hits, four of which became hits by Carole King.

Year Artist Song Chart Position Notes
1961 The Shirelles

"Will You Love Me Tomorrow"

1
1967 Aretha Franklin "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" 8
1971 Carole King "It's Too Late" 1
1971 Carole King "I Feel the Earth Move" 1 With "It's Too Late"
1971 Carole King "So Far Away" 14
1971 Carole King "Smackwater Jack" 14 With "So Far Away"
1971 James Taylor "You've Got a Friend" 1
1971 Barbra Streisand "Where You Lead" 40
1972 Barbra Streisand "Where You Lead" 37 Barbra Streisand released a live version of the song in 1972 along with "Sweet Inspiration"

Legacy Edition

On April 22, 2008, Sony/BMG, Epic, and Ode released the 2-disc Legacy Edition of Tapestry, featuring the original album fully remastered, and a bonus disc of live vocal/piano renditions of 11 of the 12 songs on the album recorded between 1973 (in Boston, Massachusetts; Columbia, Maryland; and Central Park, New York City, New York) and in 1976 (at the San Francisco Opera House, San Francisco, California). This deluxe edition also comes with an expansive booklet featuring extended liner notes and photos.

The Legacy Edition of Tapestry does not contain a live version of "Where You Lead." King smilingly stated on her Welcome to My Living Room DVD that during the time she wrote the song with Toni Stern (in 1970), "we women didn't need to follow our men anymore" and therefore did not feel comfortable performing the song live. However, when the television series Gilmore Girls used the song as the show's theme song, the song "got a new lease on life" and that she [Carole King] no longer minded doing live performances of the song. Hank Cicalo recorded the live concerts that make up this album, and he remixed the performances for this release.

Bonus disc track listing

  1. "I Feel the Earth Move" (Live) - 3:07
  2. "So Far Away" (Live) - 3:34
  3. "It's Too Late" (Live) - 3:56
  4. "Home Again" (Live) - 2:23
  5. "Beautiful" (Live) - 2:29
  6. "Way Over Yonder" (Live) - 4:25
  7. "You've Got a Friend" (Live) - 4:50
  8. "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" (Live) - 3:21
  9. "Smackwater Jack" (Live) - 3:08
  10. "Tapestry" (Live) - 3:03
  11. "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (Live) - 4:01

Personnel

Production

  • Producer: Lou Adler
  • Engineer: Hank Cicalo; 1971 LP was recorded in Studio B @ A&M Records
  • A&R: Steven Berkowitz
  • Mixing: Hank Cicalo
  • Mastering: 1971 LP: Bernie Grundman @ A&M Mastering; Vic Anesini, Steve Hall
  • Surround mix: Paul Klingberg
  • Product manager: Jessica Sowin
  • Project manager: Jessica Sowin
  • Project director: Howard Frank
  • Preparation: Bob Irwin
  • Art direction: Roland Young
  • Design: Chuck Beeson
  • Reissue design: Smay Vision
  • Photography: Jim McCrary
  • Liner notes: James Taylor

Charts

Album charts

Year Country/Chart Position[8]
1971 US Pop albums 1
1971 Australia Goset 1
1971 United Kingdom 3
1971 Norway 8
1971 Japan 29
1971 New Zealand 13
2000 US Top Internet albums 13

Singles charts

Singles - Billboard (U.S.)
Year Single Chart Position
1971 "I Feel the Earth Move" Pop Singles 1
1971 "It's Too Late" Adult Contemporary 1
1971 "It's Too Late" Pop Singles 1
1971 "Smackwater Jack" Pop Singles 14
1971 "So Far Away" Adult Contemporary 3
1971 "So Far Away" Pop Singles 14

Sales

Country Sales/Shipments
United States 11,000,000+
United Kingdom 1,000,000+
Japan 400,000+
Spain 300,000+

Awards and honors

Awards

Grammy Awards
Year Winner Category
1971 "It's Too Late" Record Of The Year
1971 Tapestry Album Of The Year
1971 Tapestry Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
1971 "You've Got a Friend" Song Of The Year

Honors

List rankings

Rankings
Organization awarded by List Rank
Rolling Stone Magazine The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 36
VH1 100 Greatest Albums of Rock & Roll 39

Other honors

  • In 2003 Tapestry was one of 50 recordings chosen to be added to the National Recording Registry. Recordings added to the National Recording Registry are picked to be preserved in the Library of Congress, the largest library in the world, as they are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important."

See also

References

  1. ^ a b RIAA Gold and Platinum Accessed 27-02-2010
  2. ^ Billboard Accessed 27-02-2010
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference bill was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ http://caroleking.com/media/13/CAROLE%20KING%20FACT%20SHEET%202005.pdf
  5. ^ The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone.com Posted Nov 18, 2003
  6. ^ The National Recording Registry 2003 National Recording Board of the Library of Congress
  7. ^ http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200?tag=chscr1#/charts/billboard-200?begin=161&order=position
  8. ^ http://tsort.info/music/xt25xp.htm
Preceded by Billboard 200 number-one album
June 19 - October 1, 1971 		Succeeded by
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