A user has found a video of a very young Karen Carpenter (then aged 18) playing drums alongside her brother Richard (on ‘electric piano’) and a bassist, Bill Sissoyev.
The original post was via Instagram by an account called weedian.ds.
Carpenters can be seen playing a cover version of the Motown classic Dancing in the Streets, first recorded by Martha and the Vandellas. The song itself was so popular that many went on to put their own spin on it, including the infamous Mick Jagger/David Bowie version.
First recorded in 1964, the song was also used as a popular anthem during the civil rights movement of its heyday, although Martha Reeves had to reinstate that it was just ‘a party song.’
The video is from an old show entitled “Your All American College Show” which is apparently filmed in Long Beach, CA. Which is where Richard Carpenter went to college at California State College at Long Beach, also known as California State University, Long Beach. Not long after this video, Carpenters got more publicity and eventually a record deal was struck with A&M Records. They decided to drop the article of ‘the’ in the title of their band name because of ‘cool’ bands doing a similar thing such as Jefferson Airplane and Buffalo Springfield.
The band had huge success in the late ’60s and throughout the ’70s, especially with songs such as “I Won’t Last A Day Without You” and “(They Long To Be) Close To You”. Unfortunately due to Karen Carpenter’s passing in 1983 the band has ceased.
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