Carole King

Anyone who failed to follow up an album that had sold four million copies with a very
similar album would have to be either a fool or Bob Dylan. Carole King is neither, and her
new album Carole King Music, follows with gingerly tread in the footsteps of Tapestry. The
spirit of her music remains warm and strong, her lyrics still carry personal messages of
friendship and loyalty, and the same musicians are playing in back of her. Despit... More >

Initially this record sounds like a mechanical follow-up to Tapestry. Then you begin to notice the subtle musical advances and the ever more assured backup, especially from guitarists Danny Kootch and James Taylor and saxophonist Curtis Amy, and start humming "Sweet Seasons" or "Song of Long Ago." Then you realize it's really just a mechanical follow-up to Tapestry. I love Carole King, but her value is as limited as it is intense, and her lyrics are banal even when she doesn't write them. (Grade: C+)