Search - Carpenters :: Carpenters Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition

Better than 40/40

Mister Poster | Dublin, OH USA | 06/05/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm bit late (5 years maybe) to the game of reviewing the "Carpenters Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition" but after listening to the new Carpenters "40/40" 40th anniversary release I dug this one back out for another listen. I'm always critical of repackaged product and, unfortunately in some cases, Karen and Richard Carpenter have been repackaged more than most. This 35th anniversary collection however, seems to do a better job of rounding up the right material, tweaking just a bit here and there, sequencing the tracks as to transition smoothly from one song to another. I can't explain exactly why but for me this 2 disc set of 40 songs is a better overall listening experience than the new 40th anniversary edition. I could never imagine giving a Carpenter recording anything less than five stars if for no other reason than the beautiful expressiveness of Karen's voice but what I would truly love to see would be a collection consisting of nothing but the original non-remastered recordings. This material, as originally recorded and released, was wonderful enough to have taken the Carpenters to the top of the charts many times over and now, forty years later, people are continuing to purchase their material so the originals should (and do) certainly hold enough musical magic to be released once again in their original form. I collect the Carpenters music and believe I own most everything (domestic and international releases) but if I had to choose between the 35th anniversary and 40th anniversary sets I think I'd have to go with this, the 35th. 40/40."