Song of the Day: 'Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft' by Carpenters

The music business may have become irrevocably unfair to most artists, but it's never been better for fans. Case in point: The Carpenters. I grew up with the gatefold "The Singles: 1969–1973."

And then received a four-disc box set {"From the Top") for my 26th birthday from my best Michigan friend, Mark. (I think he only bought it for me because he knew I would die to hear a song called "Iced Tea," which sadly turned out to be one of Richard's self-indulgent jazz instrumentals!) 

But it's only since subscribing to a streaming service -- first Spotify but now YouTube Music as it features everything the former has plus you don't have to watch commercials on its videos -- that I have been able to do a deep dive into the greatest brother-singer duo in music history, with a paltry $9.99/month allowing me access to every record I could never afford as a child. 

While I am still too green to offer any wisdom into the duo's deeper catalog, I wouldn't last a day without sharing this gem I discovered from 1977's "Passage." The album was a bit of a sales disappointment, despite featuring the memorable single "All You Get From Love Is a Love Song." But their cover of "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" by the Canadian progressive rock band Klaatu --who named themselves after an alien who visits Earth in the film "The Day the Earth Stood Still" -- did somehow manage to hit the lower echelon of the Billboard Top 40. The song title appears on the Carpenters' version above the tagline "The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day" -- and its success led to a television special called "The Carpenters...Space Encounters," as well as more inquires from UFO nuts than they ever dreamed of!

BTW: Gr8er Days reminds me that today would have been Karen's 71st birthday. :-(