# 1 American Female Singer of All Time - Karen Carpenter

[protectionist]

We all have our favourites and KC deserves to be, and surely is, high in any list , if only because of her tone and pitch . And I am a huge fan . But compared to great singers like Ella Fitzgerald , Etta James , Janis Joplin , Sarah Vaughan, she gets splendid billing but she is not quite in that top drawer of "all time best "league . For sheer voice, listen to Yma Sumac --with an almost unheard of five octave range.

Not many people agree with you on that. Years ago, there was a poll about who was the greatest female singer. Karen Carpenter was # 1 with more than 3 times the votes of the second place lady, and the pack.

It reminded me of the 1973 Belmont Stakes race when Secretariat won by a huge margin, the pack of horses at halfway the track behind him, and this huge open space between them.

 

[Montrovant]

Not many people agree with you on that. Years ago, there was a poll about who was the greatest female singer. Karen Carpenter was # 1 with more than 3 times the votes of the second place lady, and the pack.

It reminded me of the 1973 Belmont Stakes race when Secretariat won by a huge margin, the pack of horses at halfway the track behind him, and this huge open space between them.

Yet when I do a search for best female vocalist of all time, I don’t see Karen Carpenter topping the lists. Most often in the ones I’ve looked at it’s been Aretha Franklin or Whitney Houston. An appeal to authority might not be your best argument here.

 

[protectionist]

Yet when I do a search for best female vocalist of all time, I don’t see Karen Carpenter topping the lists. Most often in the ones I’ve looked at it’s been Aretha Franklin or Whitney Houston. An appeal to authority might not be your best argument here.

Sounds like a bit of Affirmative Action going on there. Maybe the ones you looked at, were done by the same people setting up TV commercials nowadays.

PS - Whitney Houston was a screamer. I'm talking about SINGERS, with beautiful voices, perfect pitch, and overall perfection.

 

[Montrovant]

Sounds like a bit of Affirmative Action going on there. Maybe the ones you looked at, were done by the same people setting up TV commercials nowadays.

PS - Whitney Houston was a screamer. I'm talking about SINGERS, with beautiful voices, perfect pitch, and overall perfection.

Or maybe they are just considered 2 of the top female singers by a lot of people (or at least a lot of Western people). Maybe your opinion that Karen Carpenter is so beyond other singers isn’t as widely held as you seem to think.

Then again, considering your Affirmative Action comment and description of Whitney Houston as a screamer rather than a singer, you may be unwilling or unable to accept the possibility that others honestly see Houston or Franklin as the best.

 

[protectionist]

Or maybe they are just considered 2 of the top female singers by a lot of people (or at least a lot of Western people). Maybe your opinion that Karen Carpenter is so beyond other singers isn’t as widely held as you seem to think.

Then again, considering your Affirmative Action comment and description of Whitney Houston as a screamer rather than a singer, you may be unwilling or unable to accept the possibility that others honestly see Houston or Franklin as the best.

Some people actually "see"Joe Biden as the best person to be POTUS. Gag!

Considering my Affirmative Action comment, maybe Affirmative Action is what got them where they were, just like many other lesser qualified people.

 

[bluzman61]

Linda Ronstadt was a favorite of fine. Clear, strong voice. But I'll agree that Karen Carpenter had the better overall voice. She had a better range and strength to her voice.

 

[Montrovant]

Some people actually "see"Joe Biden as the best person to be POTUS. Gag!

Considering my Affirmative Action comment, maybe Affirmative Action is what got them where they were, just like many other lesser qualified people.

Yeah, Aretha Franklin’s popularity was based on Affirmative Action

 

[protectionist]

Yeah, Aretha Franklin’s popularity was based on Affirmative Action

If you woukd like to start a thread about Aretha Franklin, I think that would be a fine idea. This thread is about Karen Carpenter.

 

[WinterBorn]

As for range, no one beats Minnie Ripperton.



And as far as best vocalist, Streisand is far better than Karen Carpenter. Carpenter sang pop music at a time when pop was king.

 

[WinterBorn]

Sounds like a bit of Affirmative Action going on there. Maybe the ones you looked at, were done by the same people setting up TV commercials nowadays.

PS - Whitney Houston was a screamer. I'm talking about SINGERS, with beautiful voices, perfect pitch, and overall perfection.

Aretha did not rise to the top because of affirmative action. Her talent is amazing and she excelled in several genres of music (R&B, Rock, Pop, Soul etc).

the fact that you claim affirmative action is the reason why Whitney and Aretha made it big shows your own bigotry.

 

[WinterBorn]

If you woukd like to start a thread about Aretha Franklin, I think that would be a fine idea. This thread is about Karen Carpenter.

This thread is about your claim that Karen Carpenter is the #1 female singer of all time. I am sure you'd rather have it be about Karen Carpenter.

By the way, Whitney was a screamer?



Whitney could be soft and sweet or she could push with the power if her voice.

 

[WinterBorn]

protectionist, you should start this sort of thread out with "I think Karen Carpenter was the best vocalist". That is your opinion, and you are welcome to it.

But you go one step farther and claim that who YOU think is the best is automatically the best, regardless of what other people think.

The Best Female Vocalists Ever

Who are the greatest female vocalists ever? This list of the best female singers of all time, ranked by music fans and casual critics like you, includes all the famous female singers from Aretha Franklin and Stevie Nicks to Celine Dion and Mariah Carey (all great women in music who have topped...

www.ranker.com

That list has Karen Carpenter at #4. Behind Whitney, Aretha, and Ella Fitzgerald.