Now & Then (The Carpenters album)
| Now & Then | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Carpenters | ||||
| Released | May 1, 1973 | |||
| Recorded | 1972–1973 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 36:57 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Producer | Richard Carpenter, Karen Carpenter | |||
| Carpenters chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    |
| Rolling Stone | (Unfavorable) |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
Now & Then is the fifth album by the Carpenters, released on May 1, 1973. In Cash Box Year-End Charts of 1973, Now & Then appeared at number 20 and the title for the album was suggested by Karen and Richard's mother, Agnes Carpenter.
As an outgrowth of the Rick Nelson Garden Party incident, an oldies revival occurred in pop music around 1973, so Side "B" of the album featured an oldies medley. The medley starts with the Carpenters' original song "Yesterday Once More". Tony Peluso, the Carpenters' guitarist who made his debut on their 1972 album A Song For You, is heard as a radio DJ throughout the medley, which includes such songs as "The End of the World", "Dead Man's Curve", "Johnny Angel", and "One Fine Day". Peluso would also be heard as a DJ on the Carpenters' "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" recording in 1977.
The Now & Then album also featured Mark Rudolph, a cousin of the Carpenters, on the "Guess the Golden Goodies Group Contest", as the listener who calls in. This is also one of only two albums where Karen did most or all of the drumming - the other being Offering (later rereleased as Ticket to Ride) - although on this album, she plays all of the drum tracks with the exception of Jambalaya (On the Bayou), which had Los Angeles session drummer Hal Blaine on the drums.
The LP album featured a three-panel cover that folded out, showing a panoramic view of Karen and Richard Carpenter driving past the Carpenter family home on Newville Avenue in Downey, California. The car pictured on the cover was a 1973 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 ("Daytona") owned by Richard. (Richard later sold the original red Ferrari featured on the album cover, but bought another car of the same type in 1995.)
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