Her Own Voice – Carole King

The piano stool was too low for little Carol. Low shmow! Nothing would stop this three-year old from playing the piano. Her parents plopped two telephone books on the stool and she was on her musical way.  Carol even wrote her own songs! With Mom’s help she learned notes and chords. Her Dad liked to show off his daughter’s amazing music talents to his friends. And Carol was happy to play along!

At the age of eight Carol began performing with her friend, Loretta. They even appeared on television! No piano around? Piano shmano! Carol could play the ukulele too.

As a young teenager, Carol loved listening to popular music on the radio, the television and her new record player.  She danced to the Penguins’ “Earth Angel” and marveled at Elvis Presley, but there was one song that changed her life. It was called “Rock Around the Clock”. Bill Halley and the Rockets sang it in a movie called, “Blackboard Jungle,” and the world went wild. Rock and Roll had arrived.

“Wow,” Carol thought, “I want my songs to be on the radio too.”

At James Madison High School Carol did begin writing songs for their school show, “The Sing”. She formed a singing group called the “Cosines” with her teenage friends. They would perform at dances and events.

One of her first songs went “Leave Schkeeve, bum doo-bee doo-wop”.

One day she asked her Dad to take her into New York to meet Alan Freed, the famous radio show host. No problem. Dad was a firefighter and who could resist him in his uniform and badge? Alan suggested that she look up the telephone number of a record company and try to make an appointment to see them.

Appointment shmappointment. Why not just walk right in and try? “Someone was going to get her songs recorded,” she thought. “Why not me?”

Carol did not succeed in her first attempt, but this didn’t stop her. She tried to make an appointment to see another company, ABC-Paramount. They said no. No shmoe! Carol phoned and phoned until they agreed to see her.  Don Costa was impressed by her piano playing, her melodies and rhythms. Soon Carol Klein had a recording deal!  She changed her name to Carole King, her new show name. She was going places.

But hold on, it didn’t happen so fast. Her first recorded songs did not succeed. Perhaps it was because the words of her songs were not as good as her music. Carole needed a writing partner. But how would she ever find one?

At the age of sixteen Carole began to study at Queen’s College. One afternoon she met a student named Gerry Goffin. They shared a love for music. Gerry loved writing the words. Carole loved writing the tunes. They fell in love with each other too. Soon they were married with a baby daughter!

Carole and Gerry were now a team hoping to write songs for the most famous singers of the day. They had a new contract with a famous recording company, Aldon. They worked with other songwriters at 1650 Broadway. They had a small cubicle with a piano and desk. What else did they need? Great songs and find famous singers to sing them, that’s what.

One day Carole came home and shared her excitement with Gerry. The Shirelles were shopping for a new song. Their recent song, “Tonight’s the Night”, was a big hit and they were looking for another song to follow their success.

Carole and Gerry wrote them a beautiful song. It was similar to the Shirelles’ previous hit, and yet very special. “Will You Love Me Tomorrow?” climbed to the top of the hit parade and stayed there for ten weeks! It is still one of the most popular songs ever. Carole was only eighteen years old!

Soon Carole and Gerry were writing hit songs for the world’s most famous bands and singers –

The Cookies sang “One Fine Day”.

The Drifters sang “Up on the Roof”.

The Monkees sang “Pleasant Valley Sunday”.

Herman’s Hermits sang “I’m into Something Good”.

Aretha Franklin sang “Natural Woman”.

And even the Beatles sang their song, “Chains”.

Not all the singers were famous. Little Eva was their babysitter when they asked her to record their new song, “The Loco-motion”. When she sang, “Everybody’s doing a brand new dance, Come on baby, do the Loco-Motion,” the catchy tune became a big hit. Little Eva even invented some Loco-motion dance moves. Carole and Gerry needed to find a new babysitter!

Carole and Gerry’s marriage was not going as well as their songs, and they split up. They each moved from New York to Los Angeles. Carole began writing songs with a new friend, Toni Stern.

Another new friend was James Taylor. James wrote and sang beautiful songs that he had written himself. Carole King was happy to join his band, playing piano and singing along with him. One of James’ favorites was Carole and Gerry’s song, “Up on the Roof”.

One evening James asked Carole to sing “Up on the Roof” to their audience. Even though they were appearing at Carole’s own college she was still very nervous. For years she had been writing songs for other singers. She didn’t think she had a nice voice. She didn’t think the audience would like her. Carole was jittery but this didn’t stop her. She sang,

“When this whole world starts getting me down…”

Down shmown. The audience loved her.

Times had changed since she began writing songs for other singers. Her friends Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon and James Taylor were all singing and recording their own songs.

When James persuaded Carole to perform more and more of her songs she was nervous but that didn’t stop her. Nervous shmervous! Carole gained confidence and continued.

Recording her own songs wasn’t easy. Her first two long playing records, “City” and “Writer”, were not as successful as she had hoped.

But Carole didn’t give up. With the help of James Taylor and the their band she became more and more comfortable singing her own songs. Was she as good a singer as Aretha, the Everly Brothers, the Drifters and the Shirelles? It didn’t matter. She didn’t have to imitate anyone. Carole would sing her songs as only she could. In her own voice.

Her third record, Tapestry, had Carole singing her own songs in her own voice. Songs that she had written with Gerry, songs that she had written with Toni, and songs that she had written all by herself.

“You just call out my name and you know wherever I am, I’ll coming running to see you again…”

Listening to Tapestry was like flying on a magic carpet into Carole King’s own living room. There is Carole at her piano, smiling her smile, comfortable in her own voice. Her cat, Telemachus, perched on the window sill, is listening too. And if you feel like singing along with her, James and the band they won’t mind it one bit.

Did Tapestry succeed?

Did it ever! It was selected as the record of the year and went on to sell over twenty-five million copies. The best news? You can still buy Tapestry and fall in love with Carole and her songs. And yes, you will still love them tomorrow.