From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1971 single by Carole King
“So Far Away ” is a song written by
Carole King , which appeared on her
1971 album
Tapestry . The recording features
James Taylor on
acoustic guitar . In addition to Taylor, and King on piano, instruments include
Russ Kunkel on drums,
Charles Larkey on
bass guitar and
Curtis Amy on flute.
[2]
The lyrics express longing for a lover who is far away.
[2] But
Allmusic critic Bill Janovitz notes that while the lyrics start by focusing on the physical distance between the lovers, the lyrics use that as a jumping-off point to explore emotional distance between lovers as well.
[3]
Rolling Stone stated King's "warm, earnest singing" on the song brought out the song's sadness.
[4]
Cash Box said of it that "Carole weaves a magnificent ballad spun of soft, melodic phrasing and soothing piano accompaniment topped off with the superb Lou Adler
production touch."
[5]
Record World called it a "finely crafted cut".
[6] In 2017,
Paste ranked the song number four on their list of the 12 greatest Carole King songs,
[7] and in 2022,
American Songwriter ranked the song number two on their list of the 10 greatest Carole King songs.
[8] It was performed at
Amy Winehouse 's funeral by friends and family as it was one of Winehouses's favorite songs.
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
Personnel
Additional musicians
Notable covers
Chart history
Weekly charts
Carole King original
Rod Stewart cover
Chart (1996)
Peak position
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary
[14]
4
Germany
74
U.S. Adult Contemporary
[19]
2
Year-end charts
Chart (1971)
Rank
U.S. Adult Contemporary (Billboard )
[20]
31
U.S. (
Joel Whitburn 's Pop Annual )
[21]
118
Certifications
Carole King original
References
^
Erlewine, Stephen Thomas .
"Best of Love: 16 Great Soft Rock Hits Review" .
AllMusic . Retrieved February 27, 2022 .
^
a
b Perone, J.D. (2006). The Words and Music of Carole King . Greenwood Publishing. p. 34.
ISBN
9780275990275 .
^ Janovitz, B.
"So Far Away" .
Allmusic . Retrieved 2014-04-17 .
^
"500 Greatest Albums of All Time: Tapestry" .
Rolling Stone . 31 May 2009. Archived from
the original on 2013-04-27. Retrieved 2014-04-13 .
^
"CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF) . Cash Box . August 21, 1971. p. 14. Retrieved 2021-12-10 .
^
"Picks of the Week" (PDF) . Record World . August 21, 1971. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-04-14 .
^ Logsdon, Nate (April 14, 2017).
"The 12 Best Carole King Songs" .
Paste . Retrieved April 29, 2022 .
^
"Top 10 Carole King Songs" .
American Songwriter . February 9, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022 .
^
"Amy Winehouse's favourite song of all time" . faroutmagazine.co.uk . 2023-10-14. Retrieved 2024-03-01 .
^ Bose, Lilledeshan (2011-07-27).
"Amy Winehouse's Funeral: Who Was There, What Was Said – OC Weekly" . Retrieved 2024-03-01 .
^
"Amy Winehouse: Five Facts You May Not Have Known" . ABC News . Retrieved 2024-03-01 .
^ Jonze, Tim (2012-07-23).
"Amy Winehouse anniversary: songs in the key of life" . The Guardian .
ISSN
0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-03-01 .
^
"Adult Contemporary Music Chart" . Billboard. 1996-04-20. Retrieved 2016-10-05 .
^
a
b
RPM Magazine . Adult Contemporary - Volume 63, No. 4. Adult Contemporary - Volume 63, No. 4. March 11, 1996.
^
"Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada" . Collectionscanada.gc.ca . 1971-10-09. Retrieved 2019-02-03 .
^
a
b
Billboard Singles charts for singles from Tapestry on
allmusic
^
"Cash Bow Top 100, February 11, 1982" . cashbox.com. Retrieved 1 November 2019 .
^
"Record World Singles Chart, October 16, 1971" (PDF) . Archived from
the original (PDF) on February 14, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022 .
^
"Adult Contemporary Music Chart" . Billboard. 1996-04-20. Retrieved 2016-10-05 .
^
Billboard , December 25, 1971.
^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual . Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc.
ISBN
0-89820-142-X .
^
"American single certifications – Carole King – So Far Away" .
Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved March 7, 2024 .
External links
Studio albums Compilations Live albums Other albums Singles Other songs Related articles