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Richard Carpenter releases Richard Carpenter’s Piano Songbook via Decca Records . The album features the revered musician, producer, songwriter, and arranger interpreting hits and personal favourites from the much-adored catalog of the Carpenters on solo piano. Carpenter brings his unique interpretations to some of the most beloved melodies in the entire pop canon, including such enduring hits by sister Karen and himself as “Close to You,” “Yesterday Once More,” “Top of the World,” “We’ve Only Just Begun,” and “Rainy Days and Mondays.” Says Carpenter of the new project: “I’ve not only been into music since I was a kid, but records as well, and everything to do with them. In the late forties and early fifties, the Big Three labels were: Columbia, Victor, and Decca… Bing Crosby was on Decca! When the label asked if I might be interested in recording an album of Carpenters songs on solo piano, I could only think of my Mom and Dad, and what an enormous compliment this was to their son, who never wanted to practise. “But this was a challenge. For somebody who likes to turn everything into a production, like our records, to adapt them for solo piano was a tall order, but the piano is a remarkable instrument, with a remarkable range, and I believe I’ve given the songs chosen a fairly good reading.”