织锦画 (1971)

Tapestry is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Carole King. Produced by Lou Adler, it was released on February 10, 1971, through Ode Records. The album's lead single, "It's Too Late" / "I Feel the Earth Move", spent five weeks at number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts.

The album has received critical acclaim since its release and is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time. It won four Grammy Awards at the 14th Annual Grammy Awards in 1972, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year. Tapestry has been certified 14× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 and into the National Recording Registry in 2003.

Production

King began her career as a songwriter in the early 1960s, often in collaboration with her first husband Gerry Goffin. She wrote and co-wrote a string of hit songs performed mostly by other artists—a notable exception being her 1962 hit "It Might as Well Rain Until September"—before deciding to sing her own material professionally.

King wrote or co-wrote all the songs on the album. Two songs were co-written with Toni Stern: "It's Too Late" and "Where You Lead"; King wrote the music and Stern the lyrics. King's ex-husband Gerry Goffin co-wrote the lyrics for three of the songs, two of which had already been hits for other artists: Aretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (in 1967), and The Shirelles' "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (in 1960).

James Taylor, 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.

The album was recorded at A&M Studios' Studio B in January 1971 with the support of Taylor, Joni Mitchell, and various experienced session musicians. Several of the musicians worked simultaneously on Taylor's album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. The Carpenters were recording their self-titled third album in Studio A, while Mitchell was recording her album Blue in Studio C.

A&M staff photographer Jim McCrary took the cover photograph in the living room of King's home at 8815 Appian Way, Laurel Canyon, California. It shows her sitting barefoot on a cushion on a bench beside a window, holding a tapestry that she had hand-stitched, with her cat Telemachus, named after the mythological son of Odysseus, near her foot.

Critical reception

Released on February 10, 1971, through Ode Records, Tapestry was met with widespread critical acclaim. Jon Landau of Rolling Stone wrote that King was one of the most creative pop music figures and had made an album of "surpassing personal intimacy and musical accomplishment". The Village Voice critic Robert Christgau wrote that her voice, free of "technical decorum", would liberate female singers; in the publication's annual Pazz & Jop poll, Tapestry ranked as the year's 10th best album.