''Tapestry'' is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter

Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...

, released in 1971 on

Ode Records Ode Records (also known as Ode Sounds and Visuals) was an American record label, started by Lou Adler in 1967 after he sold Dunhill Records to ABC Records. It was distributed by CBS's Epic Records except between 1970 and 1976, when the label was ...

and produced by

Lou Adler Lester Louis Adler (born December 13, 1933) is an American record and film producer and the co-owner of the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California. Adler has produced and developed a number of iconic musical artists, including The Grass Ro ...

. It received four

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

s in 1972, including Album of the Year. The lead singles from the album—" It's Too Late" and "

I Feel the Earth Move I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...

"—spent five weeks at number one on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

charts. ''Tapestry'' has been certified 14× Platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

in the US, and has sold an estimated 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. In 2000, it attained number 74 in

Colin Larkin Colin Larkin (born 1949) is a British writer and entrepreneur. He founded, and was the editor-in-chief of, the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', described by ''The Times'' as "the standard against which all others must be judged". Along wit ...

's ''

All Time Top 1000 Albums ''All Time Top 1000 Albums'' is a book by Colin Larkin, creator and editor of the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music''. The book was first published by Guinness Publishing in 1994. The list presented is the result of over 200,000 votes cast by the ...

'', and in 2020, it was ranked number 25 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. ''Tapestry'' won four

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

Production

King wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on the album, two of which had already been hits for other artists such as

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

's "

(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" is a 1967 single released by American soul singer Aretha Franklin on the Atlantic label. The words were written by Gerry Goffin from an idea by Atlantic producer Jerry Wexler, and the music was compo ...

" (in 1967), and

The Shirelles The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later Doris Kenner-Jackson), Addie "Micki" Harris (later Addie Harris McFadd ...

' "

Will You Love Me Tomorrow "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", sometimes known as "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", is a song with words by Gerry Goffin and music composed by Carole King. It was recorded in 1960 by the Shirelles at Bell Sound Studios in New York City, and hit n ...

" (in 1960). King's ex-husband

Gerry Goffin Gerald Goffin (February 11, 1939 – June 19, 2014) was an American lyricist. Collaborating initially with his first wife, Carole King, he co-wrote many international pop hits of the early and mid-1960s, including the List of Billboard number-one ...

wrote the lyrics for three of the songs.

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, havi ...

, who encouraged King to sing her own songs and who also played on ''Tapestry,'' had a number one hit with "You've Got a Friend," later in 1971. Two songs were co-written with Toni Stern: " It's Too Late" and "

Where You Lead "Where You Lead" is a song written in 1970 by Carole King with lyricist Toni Stern, introduced on King's iconic 1971 album ''Tapestry''. A Top 40 hit for Barbra Streisand in both a studio and a live version — the latter in a medley entitled "S ...

". The album was recorded at A&M Recording Studios' Studio B during January 1971 with the support of

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

and James Taylor, plus various experienced session musicians. Several of the musicians worked simultaneously on Taylor's ''

Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon ''Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter James Taylor, released in April 1971 by Warner Bros. Records. The album was recorded between early January and late February of the same year. Relea ...

'' album. The cover photograph was taken by A&M staff photographer

Jim McCrary Jim McCrary (August 31, 1939 – April 29, 2012) was an American photographer known for his 1970s album covers, most notably Carole King's ''Tapestry'', The Carpenters' '' Ticket to Ride,'' and Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May ...

at King's

Laurel Canyon Laurel Canyon is a mountainous neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills region of the Santa Monica Mountains, within the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles, California. The main thoroughfare of Laurel Canyon Boulevard connects the neighb ...

home. It shows her sitting in a window frame, holding a tapestry that she had hand-stitched herself, with her cat Telemachus at her feet.

Critical reception

The album was met with widespread critical acclaim; ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'' critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

felt that her voice, free of "technical decorum", would liberate female singers; while

Jon Landau Jon Landau (born May 14, 1947) is an American music critic, manager, and record producer. He has worked with Bruce Springsteen in all three capacities. He is the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and recei ...

in ''

'' felt that King was one of the most creative pop music figures and had created an album of "surpassing personal-intimacy and musical accomplishment".

Awards

Along with being selected Album of the Year, it also received Grammys for

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...

(" It's Too Late"), and Song of the Year ("

You've Got a Friend "You've Got a Friend" is a 1971 song written by American singer, songwriter, and musician Carole King. It was first recorded by King and included on her second studio album, ''Tapestry'' (1971). Another well-known version is by James Taylor fr ...

"), making King the first solo female artist to win the Grammy Award for Record of the Year, and the first woman to win the Grammy Award for Song of the Year. The album remained on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' charts for 313 weeks (second only to Pink Floyd's 724 weeks with ''

The Dark Side of the Moon ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973 by Harvest Records. The album was primarily developed during live performances, and the band premiered an early version of ...

'').

Commercial performance

''Tapestry'' was a big commercial success. It spent 15 consecutive weeks at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200. To date, ''Tapestry'' still holds the record for most consecutive weeks at number one by a female solo artist. The album also spent nearly 6 years charting US Billboard 200 (318 weeks), in which she also spent 302 consecutive weeks. For more than 40 years, Tapestry held the record for the longest charting album by a female solo artist in the US until

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...

's '' 21'' broke the record in 2017. It the fifth album to spend more weeks by female artist on the ''Billboard'' 200. Tapestry was also very successful across the world. In Canada, it spent 9 weeks at number-one beginning July 3, 1971. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number thirty-two on

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

but eventually rose to its peak at number four and went on to spend 136 weeks in the Top 100. Tapestry has reportedly sold over 7 million copies in its first year, and around 25 million copies worldwide to date.

Cultural impact

Several songs from the album were recorded by other artists and became hits while the album was still on the charts:

's 1971 cover of "You've Got a Friend" hit number one in the US and number four in the UK, and

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

's 1971 studio recording of "Where You Lead" reached number 40, while a live recording of a medley in which Streisand paired the song with the

Sweet Inspirations The Sweet Inspirations were an American R&B girl group mostly known for their work as backup singers on studio recordings for other R&B and rock artists. A founding member of the group was Dionne Warwick, who was later replaced by her aunt, Ciss ...

hit "Sweet Inspiration" reached number 37 the following year. Various artists combined to re-record all the original tracks for more than one

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

. The first, released in 1995 and entitled '' Tapestry Revisited: A Tribute to Carole King'', was certified gold. The second, in 2003, was entitled ''A New Tapestry – Carole King Tribute''. In 2010 Australian recording artist

Marcia Hines Marcia Elaine Hines, AM (born July 20, 1953), is an American-Australian vocalist and TV personality. Hines made her debut, at the age of 16, in the Australian production of the stage musical ''Hair'' and followed with the role of Mary Magdalene ...

recorded a tribute album, '' Marcia Sings Tapestry''. "Her songs are like stories or sonic movies," observed

Tori Amos Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos; August 22, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She is a classically trained musician with a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Having already begun composing instrumental pieces on piano, Amos won a full ...

. "You want to walk into them. With 'I Feel the Earth Move' or 'It's Too Late', you're right there." ''Tapestry'' frequently appears on critics' lists of the best albums. In 2003, it ranked number 36 on ''Rolling Stone''s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, maintaining that rating in a 2012 revised list, but moving up to No. 25 in a 2020 update of the list. The album was also listed by VH1 at number 39 on their list of 100 Greatest Albums, and was one of 50 recordings chosen to be added to the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservati ...

.The National Recording Registry 2003
National Recording Board of the Library of Congress Recordings added to the National Recording Registry are picked to be preserved in the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

as they are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important." Based on such listings,

Acclaimed Music Acclaimed Music is a website created by Henrik Franzon, a statistician from Stockholm, Sweden in September 2001. Franzon has statistically aggregated hundreds of published lists that rank songs and albums into aggregated rankings by year, deca ...

ranks ''Tapestry'' as the 69th most acclaimed album in history. In 2015, for its sixth and final season, American TV series ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

'' paid tribute to this album, alongside

Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...

's ''

Jagged Little Pill ''Jagged Little Pill'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer Alanis Morissette, released on June 13, 1995, through Maverick. It was her first album to be released worldwide. It marked a stylistic departure from the dance-pop sound of her ...

'', in its episode " Jagged Little Tapestry" airing January 16, 2015. Five songs from this album is performed by various artists. Two of them performed on its own, "It's Too Late" and "So Far Away", while the other three are used in a mashup with one of the songs from ''Jagged Little Pill''. "I Feel the Earth Move" is mashed up with "

Hand in My Pocket "Hand in My Pocket" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette from her third studio album, ''Jagged Little Pill'' (1995). The song was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard and was released as the second single fro ...

", "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" with "

Head Over Feet "Head over Feet" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, taken from her third (and first outside Canada) studio album '' Jagged Little Pill'' (1995). Written by Alanis and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard, it was release ...

", and "You've Got a Friend" with "

You Learn "You Learn" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette from her third studio album, ''Jagged Little Pill'' (1995). It was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard, the album's producer. Maverick and Warner Bros. Records released the ...

". The episode was watched by 1.98 million viewers and received a 0.7/2 in the adult 18-49 demographic. In March 2016 it was announced that Carole King would perform the album live in its entirety for the first time at the British Summer Time Festival in Hyde Park, London on July 3, 2016. The performance was released the following year as ''Tapestry: Live at Hyde Park''.

Track listing

All songs written by Carole King except where noted. Side 1 # "

" – 3:00 # " So Far Away" – 3:55 # " It's Too Late" (lyrics by Toni Stern) – 3:54 # "Home Again" – 2:29 # "

Beautiful Beautiful, an adjective used to describe things as possessing beauty, may refer to: Film and theater * ''Beautiful'' (2000 film), an American film directed by Sally Field * ''Beautiful'' (2008 film), a South Korean film directed by Juhn Jai-h ...

" – 3:08 # "Way Over Yonder" – 4:49 Side 2 #

" – 5:09 # "

" (King, Stern) – 3:20 # "

?" (

, King) – 4:13 # "

Smackwater Jack ''Smackwater Jack'' is a 1971 studio album by Quincy Jones. Tracks include the theme music to '' Ironside'' and ''The Bill Cosby Show''. Track listing # " Smackwater Jack" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) – 3:31 # "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" (Vin ...

" (Goffin, King) – 3:42 # "Tapestry" – 3:15 # "

" (Goffin, King,

Jerry Wexler Jerry may refer to: Animals * Jerry (Grand National winner), racehorse, winner of the 1840 Grand National * Jerry (St Leger winner), racehorse, winner of 1824 St Leger Stakes Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Jerry'' (film), a 2006 Indian fil ...

) – 3:59 1999 CD reissue #

"Out in the Cold" (bonus track) – 2:44 #"Smackwater Jack" (Live in Boston, May 21, 1973) (bonus track) – 3:21 2008 "Legacy Edition" In 2008,

Sony/BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout ...

, Epic, and

Ode An ode (from grc, ᾠδή, ōdḗ) is a type of lyric poetry. Odes are elaborately structured poems praising or glorifying an event or individual, describing nature intellectually as well as emotionally. A classic ode is structured in three majo ...

released a two-disc "Legacy Edition". One disc is the original album remastered; the second disc is live performances of 11 of the 12 songs, recorded in 1973 at

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

;

Columbia, Maryland Columbia is a census-designated place in Howard County, Maryland. It is one of the principal communities of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. It is a planned community consisting of 10 self-contained villages. Columbia began with ...

; and

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

, New York; and in 1976 at the

San Francisco Opera House The War Memorial Opera House is an opera house in San Francisco, California, located on the western side of Van Ness Avenue across from the west side/rear facade of the San Francisco City Hall. It is part of the San Francisco War Memorial and P ...

. "

" is the song not included on the live disc. Live disc track listing # "I Feel the Earth Move" – 4:17 # "So Far Away" – 4:44 # "It's Too Late" – 5:06 # "Home Again" – 3:33 # "Beautiful" – 3:39 # "Way Over Yonder" – 5:35 # "You've Got a Friend" – 6:00 # "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" – 4:31 # "Smackwater Jack" – 4:18 # "Tapestry" – 4:13 # "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" – 5:11

Personnel

*Carole King – piano, keyboards, vocals,

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

Ralph Schuckett Ralph Schuckett (March 2, 1948 – April 4, 2021) was an American keyboardist, composer and songwriter known as one of the founding members of Todd Rundgren's band Utopia. He composed for film and television, including Pokémon, Sonic X, and A ...

–

electric piano An electric piano is a musical instrument which produces sounds when a performer presses the keys of a piano-style musical keyboard. Pressing keys causes mechanical hammers to strike metal strings, metal reeds or wire tines, leading to vibrations ...

– acoustic guitar, backing vocals * Danny "Kootch" Kortchmar – acoustic and electric guitars,

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest) ...

, vocals *Perry Steinberg – bass guitar, violin, string bass, tenor saxophone, *Charles "Charlie" Larkey – bass guitar,

string bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...

, string quartet *Barry Socher – violin, viola, string quartet, tenor saxophone, * David Campbell – cello,

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

*Terry King – cello, tenor saxophone, string quartet *

Curtis Amy Curtis Amy (October 11, 1929 – June 5, 2002) was an American jazz saxophonist. Biography Amy was born in Houston, Texas, United States. He learned how to play clarinet before joining the Army, and during his time in service, picked up the ten ...

– flute;

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

and

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

;

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

Merry Clayton Merry Clayton (born December 25, 1948) is an American soul and gospel singer. She provided a number of backing vocal tracks for major performing artists in the 1960s, most notably in her duet with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones song "Gimme Sh ...

– backing vocals *Julia Tillman – backing vocals *

– backing vocals on "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" *

Russ Kunkel Russell Kunkel (born September 27, 1948) is an American drummer who has worked as a session musician with many popular artists, including Jackson Browne, Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Buffett, Harry Chapin, Rita Coolidge, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Da ...

– drums *Joel O'Brien – drums ;Technical *

– Record producer *Vic Anesini – mastering *Chuck Beeson – design *

Hank Cicalo Hank Cicalo (born June 25, 1932) is an American recording engineer whose career has spanned over fifty years. Among the artists recorded by Cicalo are The Monkees, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, and George Harrison. Early career In 1957, Cical ...

–

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

Bob Irwin Robert Eric Irwin (born 8 June 1939) is an Australian naturalist, animal conservationist, former zookeeper, and a herpetologist known for his conservation and husbandry work with apex predators and reptiles. He is the founder of the Queenslan ...

– production on 1999 re-release *Jessica Killorin – packaging manager *

– photography *

Michael Putland Michael Putland (27 May 1947 – 18 November 2019) was a 1970s English music photographer. Biography Born in 1947 just outside London, Putland took up photography at the age of 9. He is a portrait photographer and photojournalist most noted fo ...

– artwork *Smay Vision – design *Roland Young –

art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Original release

Year-end charts

Sales and certifications

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1971 albums Carole King albums Albums produced by Lou Adler Albums recorded at A&M Studios Grammy Award for Album of the Year Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance United States National Recording Registry recordings United States National Recording Registry albums Ode Records albums