As a drummer, Karen was a rarity. Drumming has always been a sort of glass ceiling of the rock ‘n’ roll world for women, but she banged and busted through. She liked to call herself a drummer who sings. As a kid, she loved to play sports. She loved the New York Yankees and she loved playing ball in her old New Haven neighborhood. It was Karen who was into sports while her brother was inside playing the piano or listening to music.
Karen grew up in a very conservative family. President Nixon once referred to the Carpenters as “young America at its best.” And so, she probably took her mother’s view when it came to women’s liberation. Her mom stayed home and cooked for her husband and family, and Karen approved. They had an idyllic childhood, after all.
“We’ve Only Just Begun”
In one year, the Carpenters recorded two of their biggest hits. “(They Long to Be) Close to You” and “We’ve Only Just Begun” were featured on their second studio album, Close to You. The titular breakthrough recording hit No. 1 in just six weeks! “(They Long to Be) Close to You” stayed there for four consecutive weeks. The song was written by Burt Bacharach and painstakingly arranged by Richard, who was described as a musical perfectionist. Also included on the album was “Mr. Guder,” the ode to Disney management.
Describing his influence for their album “Close to You,” Richard said, “Les Paul and Mary Ford probably had the biggest influence on me because of the overdubbed sound. Boy, did Karen and I take to the whole multi-track thing.” Karen’s magical voice captivated audiences. The song “We’ve Only Just Begun” came from an ad jingle for Crocker National Bank. Richard requested the rights to it from Paul Williams and Richard Nichols, and then he and Karen transformed the tune for a wedding-themed TV ad into a No. 2 hit on the charts.
Overshadowed by Her Big Brother
In Karen’s mother’s eyes, Richard was the musical genius. Richard was born to make it big in the music industry. It was all about Richard. Heartbreakingly, Karen did all she could to earn her domineering mother’s praise, but, after all, the family had moved from the East coast to bolster Richard’s musical career.
Even as the Carpenters had become a pop sensation with number one hit songs and a third album that went Platinum, four times, one person barely noticed Karen’s contribution to the duo. And that would be Agnes Carpenter, the siblings’ mom. For some reason, she failed to validate Karen’s achievement. Karen felt unloved.
Karen Doubles Down on Dieting
Before Karen tried the Stillman diet and hit the perfect weight, she had always been a little chubby. She did not want to go back to her childhood chubbiness again. She saw a picture of herself performing at one of their shows, she thought she looked heavy and decided to put a stop to it right away. She hired a trainer, but it didn’t work out.
The trainer helped her lose weight, but the high-carb, low-calorie diet and exercise regiment resulted in her gaining muscle. She wanted to look thin, so she took things into her own hands. She lost 20 pounds in no time and was heading toward the days when her weight would become the concern of everyone around her.
Food Gradually Became an Obsession
For Karen, eating less food was becoming an obsession.
She cut back whenever she could and then overly rationalized her behavior with comments like this one from 1973: “When you’re on the road it’s hard to eat. Period. On top of that, it’s rough to eat well. We don’t like to eat before a show because I can’t stand singing with a full stomach. . ."