Lovelines Explained

Lovelines
Type:studio
Artist:Carpenters
Cover:Lovelines (Carpenters album).jpg
Released:October 31, 1989
Recorded:1978–1980
Genre:Pop
Length:46:24
Label:A&M
Producer:Phil Ramone, Richard Carpenter[1]
Prev Title:An Old-Fashioned Christmas
Prev Year:1984
Next Title:As Time Goes By
Next Year:2004

Lovelines is the posthumous thirteenth studio album by the American music duo Carpenters, the third Carpenters album released after the death of Karen Carpenter. It was released in 1989 and is a compilation album assembled by Richard Carpenter from unreleased Carpenters tracks along with selected solo tracks by Karen from her then-unreleased solo album.[2]

Background

The songs on Lovelines were primarily gleaned from Carpenters television specials. "When I Fall in Love" was originally recorded in 1978 for their TV special, Space Encounters. However, they chose "Little Girl Blue" for that special instead, and later used "When I Fall in Love" in their Music, Music, Music! TV special in 1980. Other outtakes included "Kiss Me the Way You Did Last Night" and "The Uninvited Guest" from Made in America, the studio album released in 1981 and the last completed during Karen's lifetime.

Between 1989 and 2019, Lovelines was also the last Carpenters album to be issued in the vinyl LP format; in 2019 Carpenters with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra was released on LP.

Critical reception

Rolling Stone wrote that "as Karen's cozy contralto pulses through the come-hither 'Lovelines', the hearth-warm 'If We Try' ... and the saltier 'If I Had You', her vocals come damn close to soulful."

Singles

"Honolulu City Lights"

  1. "Honolulu City Lights"
  2. "I Just Fall in Love Again"

"Honolulu City Lights"

  1. "Honolulu City Lights"
  2. "Slow Dance"

"If I Had You" (issued as a Karen Carpenter solo)

  1. "If I Had You"
  2. "The Uninvited Guest"
  1. ”If I Had You” (no B-side)
  1. "If I Had You"
  2. "Lovelines"

"When I Fall in Love"

  1. "When I Fall in Love"
  2. "Remember When Lovin' Took All Night"

EPs

Four selections from Carpenters: The 12 Compact Disc Collection

  1. "You're the One"
  2. "(They Long to Be) Close to You"
  3. "Goodbye to Love"
  4. "Merry Christmas Darling"

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Karen Carpenter: She Had Only Just Begun : Pop: New Carpenters' album features four songs from Karen's ill-fated solo collection. The album suggests she might have had a career as a soloist.. November 7, 1989. Los Angeles Times.
  2. The Rock Who's who - Page 92Brock Helander - 1996 The posthumously released album Lovelines contained 10 unreleased songs, including 4 by Karen from a never-completed solo album.