Carole King (born February 9, 1942) is an American composer and singer-songwriter.
King’s career began in the 1960s when she, along with her then husband Gerry Goffin, wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists, many of which have become standards. She has continued writing for other artists since then.
King’s success as a performer in her own right did not come until the 1970s, when she sang her own songs, accompanying herself on the piano, in a series of albums and concerts. After experiencing commercial disappointment with her debut album Writer, King scored her breakthrough with the album Tapestry, which topped the U.S. album chart for 15 weeks in 1971 and remained on the charts for more than six years.
In 2000 Billboard pop music researcher Joel Whitburn named King the most successful female songwriter of 1955–99 because she wrote or co-wrote 118 pop hits on the Billboard Hot 100. King wrote 61 hits that charted in the UK. In 2005 music historian Stuart Devoy found her the most successful female songwriter on the UK singles charts 1952–2005.
King has made 25 solo albums, the most successful being Tapestry, which held the record for most weeks at No. 1 by a female artist for more than 20 years. Her most recent non-compilation album was Live at the Troubadour in 2010, a collaboration with James Taylor that reached number 4 on the charts in its first week and has sold over 600,000 copies.
She has won four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for her songwriting. She is the recipient of the 2013 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, the first woman to be so honored. She is also a 2015 Kennedy Center Honoree.
Read more about Carole King at the official website.
Selected Discography
One To One
Atlantic Records 1982
Tracks: One To One, It's A War, Lookin' Out For Number One, Life Without Love, Golden Man, Read Between The Lines, (Love Is Like A) Boomerang, Goat Annie, Someone You Never Met Before 10 - Little Prince.
Musicians on the One To One album: Carole King, Mark Hallman, Eric Johnson, Danny Kortchmar, Robert McEntee, Charles Larkey, Reese Wynans, Steve Meador, Christopher Dennis, Richard Hardy, John Mills, Raymond Crisara, Donald Knaub, Scott McIntosh, Michael Mordecai, Louise Goffin, Sherry Goffin, Mark Hallman, Debbie James & Robert McEntee.
Pearls - Songs Of Goffin & King
Capitol Records 1980
Tracks: Dancin' With Tears In My Eyes, The Loco-Motion, One Fine Day, Hey Girl, Snow Queen, Chains, Oh No Not My Baby, Hi-De-Ho (That Old Sweet Roll), Wasn't Born To Follow & Goin' Back.
Musicians on the Pearls - Songs Of Goffin & King album: Carole King, Christopher Cross, Eric Johnson, Mark Hallman, Mark Maniscalco, Charles Larkey, Reese Wynans, Steve Meador, Miguel Rivara, Richard Hardy, Tomas Ramirez, Ray Crisara, Don Knaub, Bobby Meyers, Michael Munday, Bill Gin, Oscar Ford Jr., Mark Hallman, Gloria Himes, Deborah North & Lydia North.
Touch The Sky
Capitol Records 1979
Tracks: Time Gone By, Move Lightly, Dreamlike I Wander, Walk With Me (I'll Be Your Companion), Good Mountain People, You Still Want Her, Passing Of The Days, Crazy, Eagle & Seeing Red.
Musicians on the Touch The Sky album: Carole King, Mark Hallman, Leo LeBlanc, Dave Perkins, Bobby Rambo, Ron Cobb, Reese Wynans, Fred Krc, Miguel Rivera, Richard Hardy & Tomas Ramirez.
Simple Things
Capitol Records 1977
Tracks: Simple Things, Hold On, In The Name Of Love, Labyrinth, You're The One Who Knows, Hard Rock Café, Time Alone, God Only Knows, To Know That I Love You & One.
Musicians on the Simple Things album: Carole King, Rick Evers, Mark Hallman, Robert McEntee, Rob Galloway, Michael Wooten, Miguel Rivera, Richard Hardy, Ernie Watts, George Bohannon, Oscar Brashear, Louise Goffin, Sherry Goffin, Mark Hallman & Robert McEntee.
Thoroughbred
Ode Records 1976
Tracks: So Many Ways, Daughter Of Light, High Out Of Time, Only Love Is Real, There's A Space Between Us, I'd Like To Know You Better, We All Have To Be Alone, Ambrosia, Still Here Thinking Of You & It's Gonna Work Out Fine.
Musicians on the Thoroughbred album: Carole King, Danny Kortchmar, Waddy Wachtel, Lee Sklar, Russ Kunkel, Ralph MacDonald, Tom Scott, David Crosby, Graham Nash, John David Souther & James Taylor.
Tapestry
Ode Records 1971
Tracks: I Feel The Earth Move, So Far Away, It´s Too Late, Home Again, Beautiful, Way Over Yonder, You´ve Got A Friend, Where You Lead, Will You Love Me Tomorrow?, Smackwater Jack, Tapestry & (You Make Me Feel) A Natural Woman.
Musicians on the Tapestry album: Carole King, Joel O'Brien, Russ Kunkel, Danny Kortchmar, James Taylor, Charles Larkey, Ralph Schuckett, Curtis Amy, Merry Clayton, Julia Tillman & The Mitchell/Taylor Boy and Girl Choir.