Passage (The Carpenters album)
Encyclopedia
Passage is the eighth album by American popular music duo Carpenters
. Released in 1977, it produced the hit singles "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song
", "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft
" and "Sweet, Sweet Smile
".
This album was a considerable departure for the siblings and contained experimental material such as the Klaatu
cover "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" single - which reached #32 in the US but was a top ten hit in much of the world. Nonetheless, it was their first album to fall short of gold standard in the US.
The Carpenters' version of "Sweet Sweet Smile" (written by an up-and-coming singer/songwriter named Juice Newton
) was picked up by Country radio and put the duo in the top ten of Billboard
s Country chart in the spring of 1978.
Side Two
Don’t Cry For Me Argentina - This song was submitted to us by the publisher, and I immediately felt it was perfect for Karen, though now I feel differently, as I believe the song doesn’t linger long enough in a lower register, a great area for Karen's voice. We contacted England's late, great Peter Knight to orchestrate the song, and two others on “Passage.” Peter flew to Los Angeles to conduct the L.A. Philharmonic for the recording. (Due to a contractual agreement their name was not allowed in the credits, hence the credit of the “Overbudget Philharmonic”). Between the 100-plus member “Phil” and the 50-voice Gregg Smith Singers, the recording session had to take place on the A&M Sound Stage, and was wired into Studio D. It was an experience I’ll never forget.
"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day)
" - I heard this song on Canadian group Klaatu's debut album and couldn't resist recording it. (Lyrics such as these don't come along every day!) Peter Knight penned the creative orchestration to my arrangement. In addition to the guitar work, Tony Peluso
reprises his role as a befuddled DJ! This performance must be fairly convincing for following its release, we received numerous letters wanting to know when in fact, World Contact Day was scheduled!"
The Carpenters
Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo, consisting of sister Karen and brother Richard Carpenter. The Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to by the public as "The Carpenters", the duo's official name on authorized recordings and...
. Released in 1977, it produced the hit singles "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song
All You Get from Love Is a Love Song
"All You Get from Love Is a Love Song" is a song composed by Steve Eaton. It was popularized by the Carpenters in 1977. It was released to the public on May 2, 1977. Its B-side was "I Have You", a song released on the A Kind of Hush album in 1976...
", "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft
Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft
"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft " is a song by Klaatu, originally released in 1976 on their first album 3:47 EST. The following year, The Carpenters covered the song, using a crew of 160 musicians...
" and "Sweet, Sweet Smile
Sweet, Sweet Smile
"Sweet, Sweet Smile" is a C&W song composed by Otha Young and Juice Newton introduced by the Carpenters on their 1977 album Passage. The track features drummer Ronnie Tutt who regularly backed Elvis Presley....
".
This album was a considerable departure for the siblings and contained experimental material such as the Klaatu
Klaatu
Klaatu was a Canadian progressive rock group formed in 1973 by the duo of John Woloschuk and Dee Long. They named themselves after the extraterrestrial Klaatu portrayed by Michael Rennie in the film The Day the Earth Stood Still...
cover "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" single - which reached #32 in the US but was a top ten hit in much of the world. Nonetheless, it was their first album to fall short of gold standard in the US.
The Carpenters' version of "Sweet Sweet Smile" (written by an up-and-coming singer/songwriter named Juice Newton
Juice Newton
Judith Kay "Juice" Newton is an American Pop music and Country singer, songwriter and guitarist...
) was picked up by Country radio and put the duo in the top ten of Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Country chart in the spring of 1978.
Track listing
Side One- "B'wana She No Home" (Michael Franks) (5:36)
- "All You Get from Love Is a Love SongAll You Get from Love Is a Love Song"All You Get from Love Is a Love Song" is a song composed by Steve Eaton. It was popularized by the Carpenters in 1977. It was released to the public on May 2, 1977. Its B-side was "I Have You", a song released on the A Kind of Hush album in 1976...
" (Steve Eaton) (3:47) - "I Just Fall in Love AgainI Just Fall in Love Again"I Just Fall in Love Again" is a song written by Larry Herbstritt, with co-writers Steve Dorff, Harry Lloyd, and Gloria Sklerov. Herbstritt had composed the melody and chords for the chorus and a chord progression for the verse, which he took to his friend Steve Dorff. Harry Lloyd and Gloria...
" (Stephen Dorff, Larry Herbstritt, Harry Lloyd, Gloria Sklerov) (4:05) - "On the Balcony of the Casa Rosada/Don't Cry for Me Argentina" (Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice) (8:13)
Side Two
- "Sweet, Sweet SmileSweet, Sweet Smile"Sweet, Sweet Smile" is a C&W song composed by Otha Young and Juice Newton introduced by the Carpenters on their 1977 album Passage. The track features drummer Ronnie Tutt who regularly backed Elvis Presley....
" (Juice Newton, Otha Young) (3:02) - "Two Sides" (Scott E. Davis) (3:28)
- "Man Smart, Woman Smarter" (Norman Span) (4:22)
- "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary CraftCalling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft " is a song by Klaatu, originally released in 1976 on their first album 3:47 EST. The following year, The Carpenters covered the song, using a crew of 160 musicians...
" (Terry Draper, John Woloschuk) (7:06)
Singles
- All You Get from Love Is a Love Song (US Hot 100 #35, US Adult Contemporary #4) US 7" single (1977) A&M 1940
- "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song"
- "I Have You"
- Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day) (US Hot 100 #32, US Adult Contemporary #18) US 7" single (1977) A&M 1978
- "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day)
- "Can't Smile without You"
- Sweet, Sweet, Smile (US Hot 100 #44, US Adult Contemporary #7, US Country #6) US 7" single (1978) A&M 2008
- "Sweet Sweet Smile"
- "I Have You"
- Don't Cry for Me Argentina CA 7" single (1978) A&M 8629
- "Don't Cry for Me Argentina"
- "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day)
Richard Carpenter's review
"As a result of both “Horizon” and “A Kind Of Hush” not containing a “sell-through” single ("Postman" had been released approximately seven months prior to “Horizon's” arrival in June of 1975), neither album fared as well, sales or chart-wise, as their predecessors; (“Horizon” peaked at #13 and “A Kind Of Hush” topped off at #33.) I was hardly surprised then, when I heard from Jerry Moss, relating his concern about relatively lackluster sales by A&M's biggest worldwide record sellers... us! As an owner's eyes fall on the manager when a fine baseball team doesn't perform as expected, so the eyes of the record company fall on the producer when a successful artist's record sales falter. This, by the way, is the way it should be, so I was perfectly willing to let someone else take over my role; it would be a lot less work for me and, as previously mentioned, I was not 100% myself. The problem was, not one major producer would sign on; radio was not quite as friendly at that time to our type of sound and to be honest, my track record on the whole was a tough act to follow. Accordingly, I remained producer, but I did try to approach this new project from a different angle, hence my selection of songs for this album made “Passage” a bit of a departure from our previous recordings. I am still fond of every song on this album, but will mention the history of two:Don’t Cry For Me Argentina - This song was submitted to us by the publisher, and I immediately felt it was perfect for Karen, though now I feel differently, as I believe the song doesn’t linger long enough in a lower register, a great area for Karen's voice. We contacted England's late, great Peter Knight to orchestrate the song, and two others on “Passage.” Peter flew to Los Angeles to conduct the L.A. Philharmonic for the recording. (Due to a contractual agreement their name was not allowed in the credits, hence the credit of the “Overbudget Philharmonic”). Between the 100-plus member “Phil” and the 50-voice Gregg Smith Singers, the recording session had to take place on the A&M Sound Stage, and was wired into Studio D. It was an experience I’ll never forget.
"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day)
Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft
"Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft " is a song by Klaatu, originally released in 1976 on their first album 3:47 EST. The following year, The Carpenters covered the song, using a crew of 160 musicians...
" - I heard this song on Canadian group Klaatu's debut album and couldn't resist recording it. (Lyrics such as these don't come along every day!) Peter Knight penned the creative orchestration to my arrangement. In addition to the guitar work, Tony Peluso
Tony Peluso
Tony Peluso was an American guitarist and record producer. He was lead guitarist for pop duo Carpenters from 1972 to 1983....
reprises his role as a befuddled DJ! This performance must be fairly convincing for following its release, we received numerous letters wanting to know when in fact, World Contact Day was scheduled!"