The news this three-framer is Vegas debut of the Carpenters, Karen & Richard, with their musicians, and the extraordinary age longitude and latitude the pop warblers excite sharing the bill with many-timer Don Adams, whose “Get Smart” image is still intact. […]
The turn to mellowness in pop tunes and presentation was given a tremendous boost by Karen & Richard Carpenter in their immensely successful second album, Close to You. What makes the pair even more intriguing is the exact sound re-created for bounds outside of a recording studio. Banks of electronic gear, extra speakers spaced about the room and a precise balance bring the spinning disk to life. Richard, at the electric piano, handles all the narrative well, coloring the group as “a road version of the Partridge Family.” Karen, ensconced behind a battery of drums, manages to be seen very often and heard to very good advantage, her clear voice calmly picking its graceful way among the lyrics.
A couple of doubtful inclusions are a Christmas song [“Merry Christmas, Darling”] and a rather pointless and callow break in the song action when musician Doug Strawn brings up a girl from the audience for a [pointless] five minutes or so. Otherwise the logging is very good, ranging from their very best known lacquerings to novelties such as a raucous throwback to the mid ’20s and a Mason Williams antic tune [“Cinderella Rockefella”].
Helping to achieve the Carpenter blend are sidearm Strawn on reeds and rhythm noisemakers; Bob Messenger, electric bass, tenor sax and flute; Gary Sims, electric bass and guitar; and Danny Woodhams, electric bass. […]