CARPENTERS

WORLD NEWS 1969

TICKET TO RIDE

• Apollo 11 makes the first moon landing
• 100 countries sign nuclear nonproliferation treaty

YOUR WONDERFUL PARADE

• Cigarette ads are banned on U.S. television
• Scanning electron microscope developed
• Muammar al-Quaddafi deposes the King of Lybia
• Five million people attend the concert at Woodstock

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1969

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine In--Fifth Dimension
• In the Year 2525--Zager and Evans
• Get Back--The Beatles with Billy Preston

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Hair--Original Broadway Cast
• Abbey Road--The Beatles
• Blood, Sweat and Tears--Blood, Sweat and Tears
• Led Zeppelin II--Led Zeppelin

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: Little Green Apples--O. C. Smith
• Record of the Year: Mrs. Robinson--Simon and Garfunkel
• Album of the Year: By the Time I Get to Phoenix --Glen Campbell

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Midnight Cowboy

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1969

• Sign with A&M Records on April 22, 1969
• Herb Alpert chose the cover photo for Offering album taken by Jim McCrary
• A&M Records destroyed copies of Offering when it reissued the album as Ticket to Ride
• One of the earliest concerts was after the premiere of Hello, Dolly! in Los Angeles

A&M Records salutes distributor Mike Leventon for his efforts in getting radio airplay for the "Ticket to Ride" single.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1969

OFFERING/TICKET TO RIDE ALBUM

TICKET TO RIDE SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1970

CLOSE TO YOU

• IBM introduces the floppy disc
• The Swiss invent the liquid crystal display (LCD)
• The British introduce bar codes
• ABC premiers Monday Night Football

HELP

• The Beatles disband
• Four Kent State University students are slain by the National Guard

WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN

• The United States invades Cambodia
• The films M*A*S*H, Patton and Love Story begin their journey to classics
• Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1970

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon and Garfunkel
• I'll Be There--Jackson 5
• Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head--B. J. Thomas
• (They Long to Be) Close to You--Carpenters
• My Sweet Lord--George Harrison

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon and Garfunkel
• Cosmo's Factory--Credence Clearwater Revival
• Aabraxas--Santana
• Let It Be--The Beatles
• Woodstock--Soundtrack

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: Games People Play
• Record of the Year: Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine In--Fifth Dimension
• Album of the Year: Blood, Sweat and Tears--Blood, Sweat and Tears

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Patton

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1970

• Debuted the Bacharach-David Medley February 27, 1970 at the Reiss-Davis Benefit honoring the composer and lyricist
• Toured with Burt Bacharach as his opening act
• At the time it was relased, the Close to You single which ran 3:40 was one of the longest tracks ever.
• Close to You/I Kept on Loving You was released as a double A sided single for radio in case program directors felt Close to You was too slow for airplay
• A&M Records made promotional films of Close to You and Love Is Surrender
• Carpenters made their first visit to Japan
• During their Canadian tour in November, Carpenters recorded their first commercial for Morton's Potato Chips in Toronto.
• Merry Christmas Darling released on November 20, 1970 as the B side of Mr. Guder. It became a seasonal standard and charted several times. In Canada, it was the top Christmas single of 1970.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1970

CLOSE TO YOU ALBUM

(THEY LONG TO BE) CLOSE TO YOU SINGLE

WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN SINGLE

MERRY CHRISTMAS DARLING

SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN

WORLD NEWS 1971

RAINY DAYS AND MONDAYS

• Idi Amin takes over control of Uganda

LET ME BE THE ONE

• President Nixon ends the trade embargo against China
• The 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution passes lowering the voting age to 18

FOR ALL WE KNOW

• The U.S. Supreme Court orders student busing to achieve desegregation
• The Pentagon Papers are published

SUPERSTAR

• China invites the U.S. ping pong team to Beijing
• Intel introduces the microprocessor
• Jim Morrison and Duane Allman die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1971

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Joy to the World--Three Dog Night
• One Bad Apple--Osmonds
• Maggie May--Rod Stewart

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Tapestry--Carole King
• Pearl--Janis Joplin
• All Things Must Pass--George Harrison
• Santana III--Santana

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Record of the Year: Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon and Garfunkel
• Song of the Year: Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon and Garfunkel
• Album of the Year: Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon and Garfunkel

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: The French Connection

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1971

• In 11 months from July 1970 to June 1971 the Carpenters released four consecutive million-selling singles.
• The Carpenters album contained three hits and was certified quadruple platinum in the U.S.
• A&M Records made promotional films of Superstar and Rainy Days and Mondays
• Carpenters played 145 concerts this year including their first tour of Great Britain. On May 14, Carpenters played their first performance at Carnegie Hall. The show featured:
  • Help
  • Love Is Surrender
  • Ticket to Ride
  • Reason to Believe
  • I Fell in Love with You
  • For All We Know
  • Mr. Guder
  • Rainy Days and Mondays
  • Cinderella Rockefeller
  • Close to You
  • Bacharach-David Medley
  • We've Only Just Begun
• Billboard named Carpenters among its top artists for the year:
  • #1 Easy Listening Artists (Rainy Days and Mondays #4; Superstar #7; For All We Know #8)
  • #2 Top Singles Artists (Superstar #30; For All We Know #35; Rainy Days and Mondays #38)
  • The Close to You album was the #3 Top Album
  • #5 Top Group Close to You #3; Carpenters #39)
  • #7 Overall Album Artists (3 albums on the chart)
  • The Carpenters album was the #39 Top Album
  • Carpenters were also the #7 Top International Artist in both Canada and Mexico.
• Carpenters starred in Make Your Own Kind of Music, an eight week summer replacement television show. They also made ten guest appearances on other television shows.

1971 CONCERT SET LIST

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1971

CARPENTERS ALBUM

FOR ALL WE KNOW SINGLE

RAINY DAYS AND MONDAYS SINGLE

SUPERSTAR SINGLE

HURTING EACH OTHER SINGLE

BLESS THE BEASTS AND CHILDREN SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1972

ROAD ODE

• President Nixon visits China

HURTING EACH OTHER

• U.S. conducts Christmas bombing of North Vietnam
• Eleven Israeli athletes are killed at the Olympic Games
• Gov. George Wallace is shot while campaigning for President
• Five arrested while trying to bug the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate

TOP OF THE WORLD

• Apollo 17 makes the final moon landing
• HBO becomes the first cable network while CBS debuts the show M*A*S*H
• Atari introduces Pong as an arcade game

IT'S GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME

• The CAT scan is developed in Great Britain
• Prozac is developed
• RCA developed the compact disc
• Phillips Electronics introduces the video disc
• E-mail is introduced

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1972

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face--Roberta Flack
• Alone Again Naturally--Gilbert O'Sullivan
• American Pie--Don McLean
• I Can See Clearly Now--Johnny Nash

  #1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

  • Chicago V--Chicago
  • American Pie--Don McLean
  • America--America
  • First Take--Roberta Flack
  • Honky Chateau--Elton John
  • Seventh Sojourn--Moody Blues

  GRAMMY AWARDS

  • Record of the Year: It's Too Late--Carole King
  • Album of the Year: Tapestry--Carole King
  • Song of the Year: You've Got a Friend--Carole King

  ACADEMY AWARDS

  • Best Motion Picture: The Godfather

1972 CONCERT SET LIST

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1972

• From 1970 to 1972 the Carpenters won nine gold records and three Grammy Awards
• The album A Song for You contained six hit singles. It was triple platinum in the U.S.
• There were three different covers for the A Song for You album.
• Jerry Moss chose Superstaras a single. Karen's vocal was the first take.
• Top of the World was first released in Japan where it was a hit single.
• A&M Records made a promotional film of Hurting Each Other
• Carpenters gave 1974 concerts and introduced the Oldies Medley during their summer tour of the U.S.
• Carpenters guested on six television shows.
• Carpenters won the Best Selling Group Award from the National Association of Record Merchandisers (NARM)

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1972

A SONG FOR YOU ALBUM

IT'S GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME SINGLE

GOODBYE TO LOVE SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1973

SING

• A ceasefire ends the U.S. ground war in Vietnam
• The United States stops bombing Cambodia
• Egypt and Israel sign a cease-fire accord

END OF THE WORLD

• Nixon accepts responsibility for the Watergate break-in
• Spiro Agnew resigns as Vice President of the U.S.
• OPEC hikes oil prices in retaliation for Yom Kippur War

OUR DAY WILL COME

• Great Britain, Ireland and Denmark enter the EEC

ONE FINE DAY

• TCP/IP internet protocol is designed
• The technology behind the MRI is developed
• Skylab, the first U.S. space station, is launched

DEADMAN'S CURVE

• Lyndon Baines Johnson, Pablo Picasso, Pearl S. Buck and W. H. Auden die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1973

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack
• Tie a Yellow Ribbon--Tony Orlando and Dawn
• My Love--Paul McCartney and Wings
• You're So Vain--Carly Simon
• Crocodile Rock--Elton John

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Goodbye Yellow Brick Road--Elton John
• No Secrets--Carly Simon
• Living in the Material World--George Harrison
• Chicago VI--Chicago
• Brothers & Sisters--Allman Brothers

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Record of the Year: The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face--Roberta Flack
• Song of the Year: The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face--Roberta Flack
• Album of the Year: The Concert for Bangladesh--George Harrison

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: The Sting

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1973

• Richard remixes Top of the World for the third time. This version became the U.S. single version. It sold over one million copies.
• The Yesterday Once More single sold over 700,000 copies in Japan. From its release on July 10 through November 1973, it sold over 500,000 copies.
• The Yesterday Once More single sold more than one million copies in the U.S.
• Now & Then was certified double platinum in the U.S.
• Between October 1969 and July 1973, Carpenters sold 18.5 million records.
• Carpenters were the top international artist in Japan.
• Great Britain issued the first box set of the three Carpenters albums.
• The Yesterday Once More single sold more than 354,000 copies in Britain. The Now & Then album sold over 111,000 copies during the year.
• WDBQ radio in New Haven, Connecticut played the Oldies Medley as a complete radio show.
• On May 1, 1973, Carpenters performed at The White House. They performed their hits songs:
  • Close to You
  • Love Is Surrender
  • Top of the World
  • For All We Know
  • Rainy Days and Mondays
  • We've Only Just Begun
• One of the full concert set lists (Valley Forge Music Fair, Pennsylvania) included:
  • Superstar/Rainy Days and Mondays/Goodbye to Love
  • Help
  • Top of the World
  • For All We Know
  • Mr. Guder
  • Close to You
  • Jambalaya
  • Yesterday Once More
  • Oldies Medley: Little Honda/End of the World/Runaway/Da Doo Ron Ron/Leader of the Pack/Johnny Angel/Book of Love/Shu-Boom/Daddy's Home/Johnny B. Goode
  • Sing
  • We've Only Just Begun
• Carpenters gave 173 concerts including their first tour of Europe, Australia and Japan, and their American summer series.
• Carpenters appeared as guests on three television shows.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1973

NOW & THEN ALBUM

SING SINGLE

YESTERDAY ONCE MORE SINGLE

TOP OF THE WORLD SINGLE

JAMBALAYA SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1974

WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN

• Nixon and Breshnev discuss arms limitations
• The U.S. House Judiciary Committee adopts three articles of impeachment against Nixon. He resigns the next day.

TOP OF THE WORLD

• India becomes the world's sixth nuclear power
• OPEC ends its oil embargo

SUPERSTAR

• Mao Zedung encourages cultural revolution in China
• Patricia Hearst is kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army
• Bud Abbott, Duke Ellington and Charles Lindbergh die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1974

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• The Way We Were--Barbra Streisand
• You're Having My Baby--Paul Anka
• Seasons in the Sun--Terry Jacks
• The Streak--Ray Stevens

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Greatest Hits--Elton John
• You Don't Mess Around with Jim--Jim Croce
• The Sting--Motion Picture Soundtrack
• Band on the Run--Paul McCartney and Wings
• 461 Ocean Boulevard--Eric Clapton
• Planet Waves--Bob Dylan

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack
• Record of the Year: Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack
• Album of the Year: Innervisions--Stevie Wonder

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: The Godfather II

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1974

• Carpenters toured Germany, Scandanavia and Great Britain while giving 203 concerts during the year.
• Carpenters set an industry standard by selling out 18 consecutive concerts that were seen by 85,000 fans.
• Tickets for the concerts in Japan sold out within the first hour of sale.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1974

THE SINGLES 1969-1973 ALBUM

I WON'T LAST A DAY WITHOUT YOU SINGLE

MERRY CHRISTMAS DARLING SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1975

DESPERADO

• Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge take over Cambodia
• President Gerald Ford escapes two assassination attempts
• Three of Nixon's aides are found guilty of the Watergate cover-up

AURORA

• U.S. Apollo and Soviet Soyuz spacecraft link up

ONLY YESTERDAY

• Saturday Night Live debuts on NBC television
• Altair develops the first home computer kit
• Sony develops Betamax while Matsushita pioneers VHS video tape formats
• Aristotle Onasis, Casey Stengel and Hailie Selassie die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1975

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Love Will Keep Us Together--Captain & Tennille
• He Don't Love You (Like I Love You)--Tony Orlando
• Island Girl--Elton John
• Fly, Robin,Fly--Silver Connection

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy--Elton John
• Physical Graffiti--Led Zeppelin
• One of These Nights--Eagles
• Chicago IX (Greatest Hits)--Chicago

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: The Way We Were--Barbra Streisand
• Record of the Year: I Honestly Love You--Olivia Newton-John
• Album of the Year: Fulfillingness' First Finale--Stevie Wonder

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1975

• Carpenters sold more than 25 million albums and singles in five years
• By 1975, Carpenters earned 15 gold album and single awards in the U.S.
• The Horizon album shipped gold. It eventually went platinum.
• A&M Records made promotional films of Please Mr. Postman and Only Yesterday
• Carpeners played 118 concerts and canceled 28 dates in Japan and 51 dates in Europe. Their show at Disneyland in February was filmed by Chuck Braverman for A&M Records.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1975

HORIZON ALBUM

PLEASE MR. POSTMAN SINGLE

ONLY YESTERDAY SINGLE

SOLITAIRE SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1976

BOAT TO SAIL

• Viking I lands on Mars
• Air France and British Airways begin cross-Atlantic flights with the Concorde
• The U.S. celebrates its Bicentennial as tall ships sail into New York Harbor

YOU

• Richard Leaky discovers a 1.5 million-year-old skull in Kenya
• The U.S. Supreme Court rules that minorities are entitled to retroactive job seniority
• Israeli commandos free 103 hostages held by Palestinian hijackers on an Air France plane

THERE'S A KIND OF HUSH

• Legionnaire's Disease strikes in Philadelphia at an American Legion meeting
• The U.S. Supreme Cour rules that the death penalty is an acceptable punishment
• Agatha Christie dies

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1976

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Tonight's the Night--Rod Stewart
• Silly Love Songs--Paul McCartney and Wings
• Disco Lady--Johnny Taylor
• Don't Go Breaking My Heart--Elton John & Kiki Dee

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Songs in the Key of Life--Stevie Wonder
• Frampton Comes Alive!--Peter Frampton
• Wings at the Speed of Sound--Paul McCartney and Wings

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: Send in the Clowns
• Record of the Year: Love Will Keep Us Together--Captain & Tennille
• Album of the Year: Still Crazy After All These Years--Paul Simon

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Rocky

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1976

• Carpenters tour of Japan was the largest grossing in Japanese history. Their appearance in Osaka featured
  1. We've Only Just Begun
  2. Only Yesterday
  3. Top of the World
  4. Superstar
  5. Rainy Days and Mondays
  6. Goodbye to Love
  7. Strike Up the Band/S'Wonderful/Fascinatin' Rhythm
  8. Flat Baroque
  9. I Dig Me (Doug Strawn solo)
  10. Yesterday Once More
  11. Little Honda
  12. End of the World
  13. Please Mr. Postman
  14. Da Doo Ron Ron
  15. Leader of the Pack
  16. Johnny Angel
  17. Book of Love
  18. Johnny B. Goode
  19. Sing (with childrens choir and performed in Japanese and English)
  20. There's a Kind of Hush
  21. Close to You
  22. We've Only Just Begun
• Carpenters toured Great Britain and Europe in November with their new show. It included an updated Oldies Medley with costumes and a motorcycle that Richard rode onto the stage. On November 16, Carpenters played at Jaap Eden Hall. The show included:
  1. There's a Kind of Hush
  2. Jambalaya
  3. I Need to Be in Love
  4. Close to You (in Spike Jones style)
  5. Yesterday Once More
  6. Piano Picker
  7. Strike Up the Band/S'Wonderful/Fascinatin' Rhythm
  8. Warsaw Concerto
  9. From This Moment On
  10. Close to You
  11. For All We Know
  12. Top of the World
  13. Ticket to Ride
  14. Only Yesterday
  15. I Won't Last a Day Without You
  16. Hurting Each Other
  17. Please Mr. Postman
  18. Superstar
  19. Rainy Days and Mondays
  20. Goodbye to Love
  21. We've Only Just Begun
• By 1976, Carpenters sold over 30 million albums and singles.
• A&M Records made promotional films of I Need to Be in Love and There's a Kind of Hush
• Carpenters were named Billboard Top Artists in these categories:
  • #10 Single--There's a Kind of Hush
  • #43 Single--I Need to Be in Love
  • #65 Singles Artists with three singles on the Billboard charts.
• Carpenters' first television special aired on December 8, 1976 on ABC.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1976

A KIND OF HUSH ALBUM

THERE'S A KIND OF HUSH SINGLE

I NEED TO BE IN LOVE SINGLE

GOOFUS SINGLE

CARPENTERS CONCERT SET LISTS 1976

WORLD NEWS 1977

CALLING OCCUPANTS...

• The space shuttle Enterprise makes its first test glide
• The motion picture Star Wars debuts

MAN SMART...

• Lasers create the first nuclear fusion
• The neutron bomb is developed
• Fifteen countries sign a nuclear nonproliferation pact

SWEET, SWEET SMILE

• Saturday Night Fever is big at the box office and in record stores
• The television miniseries Roots draws 130 million viewers

DON'T CRY FOR ME...

• Elvis Presley, Charlie Chaplin, Bing Crosby and Groucho Marx die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1977

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• You Light Up My Life--Debby Boone
• Best of My Love--Emotions
• How Deep Is Your Love--BeeGees
• Sir Duke--Stevie Wonder
• Evergreen--Barbra Streisand

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Rumours--Fleetwood Mac
• Hotel California--Eagles
• A Star Is Born--Soundtrack
• Simple Dreams--Linda Ronstadt

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: I Write the Songs
• Record of the Year: This Masquerade--George Benson
• Album of the Year: Songs in the Key of Life--Stevie Wonder

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Annie Hall

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1977

• By 1977, Carpenters were awarded 11 gold records
• The Sweet Sweet Smile single was the first song by Carpenters to chart on Billboard's Country Chart.
• In Japan, initial orders for Passage were over 150,000 copies.
• A&M Records made promotional films of Calling Occupants from Interplanetary Craft and All You Get From Love Is a Love Song

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1977

PASSAGE ALBUM

ALL YOU GET FROM LOVE IS A LOVE SONG SINGLE

CALLING OCCUPANTS OF INTERPLANETARY CRAFT SINGLE

SWEET, SWEET SMILE SINGLE

I BELIEVE YOU SINGLE

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS

• On September 4, 1978, Carpenters played their last concert in Las Vegas.
• In December, Karen and Richard appeared at the Cal State Long Beach Christmas Concert. The short set featured:
  • It's Christmas Time/Sleep Well, Little Children
  • Merry Christmas Darling
  • Silent Night
  • Close Encounters/Star Wars
  • Ave Maria
• Carpenters were named the best selling artist of the 1970s
• In May 1980, Karen Carpenter shelved her solo album

CHRISTMAS PORTRAIT HIGHLIGHTS

• In 1977, it peaked at #27 on the Billboard rock album best-sellers.
• In 1994, the album peaked at #43 on the Billboard catalog album chart.
• In 2000, it peaked at #29 on the Billboard catalog album chart.
• In 2001, it peaked at #27 on the Billboard catalog album chart.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS

CHRISTMAS PORTRAIT ALBUM

MERRY CHRISTMAS DARLING SINGLE

THE CHRISTMAS SONG SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1981

WHEN YOU'VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES

• Sandra Day O'Connor is the first woman nominated as a justice to the U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S.-Iran agreement frees 52 Americans held hostage since 1979
• MTV goes on the air

WHEN IT'S GONE

• Ronald Reagan is wounded by would-be assassin John Hinckley
• Pope John Paul II survives an assassination attempt
• Ronald Reagan fires air traffic controllers who went on strike
• AIDS is first identified
• Egyptian President Sadat is assassinated
• Bill Haley and Joe Lewis die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1981

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Physical--Olivia Newton-John
• Endless Love--Diana Ross and Lionel Ritchie
• Bette Davis Eyes--Kim Carnes
• Arthur's Theme--Christopher Cross
• Kiss on My Lips--Hall and Oates

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Hi Infidelity--REO Speedwagon
• 4--Foreigner
• Tattoo You--Rolling Stones
• Mistaken Identity--Kim Carnes

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Song of the Year: Sailing--Christopher Cross
• Record of the Year: Sailing--Christopher Cross
• Album of the Year: Christopher Cross--Christopher Cross

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Chariots of Fire

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1981

• By 1981, Carpenters sold over 55 million records
• In 1981, Carpenters were the artists who had the most top singles by a duo according to Billboard.
• Carpenters toured Brazil.
• A&M Records made promotional films of Touch Me When We're Dancing, Those Good Old Dreams and Beechwood 4-5789

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1981

MADE IN AMERICA ALBUM

TOUCH ME WHEN WE'RE DANCING SINGLE

(WANT YOU)BACK IN MY LIFE AGAIN SINGLE

THOSE GOOD OLD DREAMS SINGLE

BEECHWOOD 4-5789 SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1983

LOOK TO YOUR DREAMS

• Motorola begins testing cellular telephone service
• Sally Ride becomes the first woman astronaut to go into space

YOUR BABY DOESN'T LOVE YOU

• The United States invades Grenada
• 237 U.S. Marines are killed in an explosion in Beirut, Lebanon
• Soviets shoot down a South Korean jet killing all aboard

NOW

• The compact disc is introduced
• Crack cocaine is developed

PRIME TIME LOVE

• 125 million television viewers tune in for the final episode of M*A*S*H

AT THE END OF A SONG

• Tennessee Williams, Joan Miro, Buckminster Fuller and Jack Dempsey die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1983

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Every Breath You Take--The Police
• Billie Jean--Michael Jackson
• Flashdance...What a Feeling--Irene Cara
• Say Say Say--Paul McCartney
• All Night Long--Lionel Ritchie

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Thriller--Michael Jackson
• Synchronicity--The Police
• Business As Usual--Men At Work
• Can't Slow Down--Lionel Ritchie

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Record of the Year: Rosanna--Toto
• Album of the Year: Toto IV--Toto
• Song of the Year: Always on My Mind

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Gandhi

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1983

• Karen's last recording session was in April 1982. The last track she recorded was the song Now.
• Karen passed away on February 4, 1983.
• Voice of the Heart was released on October 17, 1983.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1983

VOICE OF THE HEART ALBUM

MAKE BELIEVE IT'S YOUR FIRST TIME SINGLE

WORLD NEWS 1989

THE UNINVITED GUEST

• Ayatollah Khomeini declares the book The Satanic Verses offensive and sentences author Salmon Rushdie to death.
• Chinese students take over Tiananmen Square in Beijing as they rally for democracy. Thousands of students are killed.
• Deng Xiaoping resigns as China's leader and P. W. Botha quits as President of South Africa.

WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE

• The Berlin Wall is opened after 28 years.
• Romania and Czechoslovakia end Communist government.
• The first World Wide Web server, browser and internet indexing system are developed.
• Voyager 2 sends information about the planet Neptune and its moons back to Earth.
• The Exxon Valdez spills 11 million gallons of oil into Alaska's Prince William Sound.

YOU'RE THE ONE

• Oliver North is convicted in Iran-Contra affair.
• Gen. Colin Powell becomes the first African-American Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

LITTLE GIRL BLUE

• Lucille Ball, Salvador Dali, Billy Martin, Sugar Ray Robinson and Andrei Sakharov die

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS 1989

#1 SINGLES WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• Another Day in Paradise--Phil Collins
• Miss You Much--Janet Jackson
• Straight Up--Paula Abdul
• Right Here Waiting--Richard Marx
• Lost In Your Eyes--Debbie Gibson

#1 ALBUMS WITH THE LONGEST RUN ON BILLBOARD:

• The Raw & the Cooked--Fine Young Cannibals
• Like a Prayer--Madonna
• Batman--Prince/Soundtrack
• Electric Youth--Debbie Gibson
• Rhythm Nation 1814--Janet Jackson

GRAMMY AWARDS

• Record of the Year: Don't Worry Be Happy--Bobby McFerrin
• Album of the Year: Faith--George Michael
• Song of the Year: Don't Worry Be Happy

ACADEMY AWARDS

• Best Motion Picture: Rain Man

CARPENTERS HIGHLIGHTS 1989

• In 1997, Billboard reported Carpenters were the artists who had the most #1 singles (15) on the Adult Contemporary chart.

CARPENTERS ON WORLD MUSIC CHARTS 1989

LOVELINES ALBUM

COMPILATIONS

The Carpenters catalog leads all A&M Records artists for the number of compilation albums created from original material. It is also the catalog that has been reissued most often.

The compilations show how beloved the Carpenters were around the world. Richard Carpenter chose to include different mixes in each--his acknowledgements to the fans and also his trademark care to continue to get the songs as close to the sound that he wanted. The cover and liner art often changes with the country of release lending uniqueness and generating interest among collectors.

The compilations were often best-sellers. In its first three months of release in late 1995, Polydor K.K.'s single with "Top of the World/I Need to Be in Love" sold over 450,000 copies. In Japan, the CD Twenty-Two Hits of the Carpenters sold nearly one million copies in its first four months of availability. It went on to sell over two million copies and recieved a special gold disc award in Japan.