This week we start in Brooklyn to chart the life & career of Carole King - from her beginnings as part of a local Doo Woo group through to the unprecedented success of Tapestry via New York’s Brill Building.
Carole King & Gerry Goffin’s big break came when they are asked to write a hit for girl group The Shirelles - the song they hand in, Will You Love Me Tomorrow shoots to number 1 & sells over a million copies.
They replicate the success with their next release The Locomotion, inspired & sang by their babysitter Eva.
They have dozens of other hits as one of the key songwriting partnerships of their era including Chains, Up On The Roof, Crying In The Rain, Some Kind of Wonderful & dozens more.
You Make Me Feel (Like a Natural Woman) becomes a huge hit for Aretha Franklin in 1967 & also features on Carole’s breakthrough solo release Tapestry.
The album initially receives a quiet reception upon release in 1971 but goes onto sell tens of millions of copies & its influence is still felt today as it is passed down through generations.
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Hosted, Produced & Edited by Simon Cardwell
Music by Andy Maxwell