I briefly mentioned The Carpenters in my A Song You Hate By an Artist You Love post. Now, I get to rectify their good name by talking about my favorite song of their's, "Only Yesterday".
The Carpenters song choices were a bit bipolar. On one side, you had blissfully, upbeat songs like "Close to You", "We've Only Just Begun", and "Top of the World" all about finding love and those groovy feelings that come with it. Then on the other hand you had "Superstar", "Rainy Days and Mondays", and "Goodbye to Love", all songs about loneliness, depression, and isolation.
"Only Yesterday" is my favorite Carpenters song because it starts in a dark place -- "nobody knew the pain I was going through and waiting was all my heart could do" -- but then lightens up with the arrival of this new dude -- "hope was all I had until you came" -- and just keeps getting better...
"Only yesterday when I was sad
and I was lonely,
You showed me the way to lead the past
and all its tears behind me
Tomorrow may be even brighter than today
Since I threw my sadness away,
Only yesterday..."
Karen Carpenter could pull off both the happy and the sad with her sweet, pitch perfect, velvet voice. As we know now, she was a complex individual dealing with the pain of a deadly disease and the anxiety of her unluckiness in love. However, she slapped on a smile and positive attitude. Knowing how much she suffered in her private life makes these songs all the more haunting.
This is how you know I'm serious...Youtube clip!
This is how you know I'm serious...Youtube clip!
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