The Carpenters were a famous pop-rock brother-sister duo in the 1970s who sold millions of hit records, with 12 Top Ten hits, and three number one singles.  Richard Carpenter was born on October 15, 1946 and showed a musical interest from a very young age.  He listened to records by artists such as Perry Como and Nat King Cole.  He started playing the accordion, but quickly switched to the piano.  By the age of 15, Richard was studying piano at Yale. His sister Karen was born on March 2, 1950, and did not show any musical inclination when she was a young child.  However, in 1964, her parents bought her a drum set and she demonstrated a natural talent for playing the drums and also developed her vocals.

In 1965, Richard, Karen and a classmate named Wes Jacobs (tuba/bass), created a jazz-pop instrumental band.  Initially, Karen was designated the lead vocalist, and the other two members did backup.  Karen had a record contract with Magic Lamp, but the two singles released under that label were unsuccessful.  In 1966, the trio won a Hollywood Bowl Battle of the Bands competition and landed a record deal with RCA.  They were named the Richard Carpenter Trio and they cut several tracks that were never released.  The trio terminated their contract with RCA and they disbanded.  Richard and Karen then formed the band Spectrum with three classmates.  The band played at big venues, but did not captivate audiences and dissolved soon after. 

The brother and sister duo continued playing together and sent demo tapes to co-founder of A&M Records, Herb Alpert.  He found that the duo had a remarkable multi-harmony sound and he offered them a deal with the record label.  The Carpenters released their debut record in 1969.  It was originally titled Offering and went virtually unnoticed.  The LP was then re-released under the name Ticket to Ride.  Although, it did not become a smash, it did get a lot of buzz. 

The Carpenter’s breakthrough came with their second single, Close to You, from the album Close to You.  It sold more than one million copies, went to number one and stayed at the top of the charts for four weeks in the U.S.  It then gained international success and made the Carpenters one of the most important recording acts in the world.  The record had another smash entitled We’ve Only Just Begun, which peaked in at number two on the charts.  In 1971, the Carpenters won two Grammys for Best Contemporary Vocal Performance By a Duo, Group or Chorus, and Best New Artist of 1970.  The album received six Grammy nominations.  In 1971, the Carpenters did their first European tour, and also toured the U.S. and Japan.

The duo’s good fortune continued with a string of hits that followed from the third album, Carpenters in 1971.  The single For All We Know went to number 2 and won an Oscar for Best Film Song of 1970.  The album also featured Superstar and Rainy Days and Mondays, which were chart-toppers.  The band’s fourth album, Song for You was released in 1972, and had smash tracks such as the title song, It’s Going to Take Some Time, Hurting Each Other, and Goodbye to Love. 

In 1973, the Carpenters were invited by Richard Nixon to perform at the White House.  The same year the duo released The Singles 1969-1973 which had commercial and critical triumph.  The record Now & Then also came out in 1973.    It spawned hits such as Sing, Jambalaya, and Yesterday Once More.  The duo had another hit album in 1975.  The disc Horizon produced the hits Please Mr. Postman, which became the duo’s biggest selling single worldwide, Love Me for What I Am, and Only Yesterday. 

Problems began for the Carpenters in the mid 1970s.  Karen battled anorexia nervosa, and Richard was fighting an addiction to prescription drugs.  In 1975, several concert dates were cancelled around the world due to the duo’s personal struggles.  Fans were greatly disappointed, but the schedule was too strenuous for Karen.  In 1976, the brother-sister duo released their seventh album A Kind of Hush.  The record had two hits, There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over The World), and I Need to Be in Love.  Between 1976 and 1980, Karen and Richard were still able to hold onto their momentum by hosting several ABC television specials.

In 1977, the album Passage was released which was certified gold.  It featured the single Sweet, Sweet Smile which was a Top Ten on the American country charts.  This was a first for the duo.  All You Get From Love Is a Love Song was another smash on the album.

Richard went into a rehabilitation facility in 1978.  Karen decided to go solo and recorded an album with producer Phil Ramone in 1979.  The album was not released until 1996.  The Carpenters were back in the studio in 1980 and released the LP Made in America, in 1981.  It was a triumphant comeback for the duo after a two-year hiatus.  It had the pop single Touch Me When We’re Dancing, which was the Carpenters’ last song to be in the American Top 20. 

On February 4, 1983, Karen Carpenter died of a heart attack.  Her death did not mean the end of the band.  A television movie was made about her life, which aired in 1988, entitled The Karen Carpenter Story.  Following her death many albums continued to be released such as Voice of the Heart, Yesterday Once More, An Old Fashioned Christmas, and Lovelines.  In 1990, the greatest hits compilation, Only Yesterday, was released in Britain and sat at number one for nine weeks. Richard released a solo album featuring a collaboration with Dionne Warwick.  It was a commercial disappointment and did not make it on the charts. 

In 1994, the record label A&M celebrated 25 years since Richard and Karen had signed with the company.  They released the disc Interpretations, as well as a tribute album done by fourteen artists entitled If I Were a Carpenter.