CAROLE KING - YOU'VE GOT A FRIEND

YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND

CAROLE KING

SONGWRITER: CAROLE KING

COUNTRY: u. s. a.

ALBUM: TAPESTRY

LABEL: ODE

GENRE: SOFT ROCK

YEAR: 1971

Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at the Brill Building and later as a solo artist. She is the most successful female songwriter of the latter half of the 20th century in the US, having written or co-written 118 pop hits on the Billboard Hot 100. King also wrote 61 hits that charted in the UK, making her the most successful female songwriter on the UK singles charts between 1962 and 2005.

King's major success began in the 1960s when she and her first husband, Gerry Goffin, wrote more than two dozen chart hits, many of which have become standards, for numerous artists. She has continued writing for other artists since then. King's success as a performer in her own right did not come until the 1970s, when she sang her own songs, accompanying herself on the piano, in a series of albums and concerts. After experiencing commercial disappointment with her debut álbum Writer, King scored her breakthrough with the album Tapestry, which topped the U.S. album chart for 15 weeks in 1971 and remained on the charts for more than six years.

King has made 25 solo albums, the most successful being Tapestry, which held the record for most weeks at No. 1 by a female artist for more than 20 years. Her record sales were estimated at more than 75 million copies worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for her songwriting. She is the recipient of the 2013 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, the first woman to be so honored. She is also a 2015 Kennedy Center Honoree.

"You've Got a Friend" is a 1971 song written by Carole King. It was first recorded by King, and included in her álbum Tapestry. Another well-known version is by James Taylor from his album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. His was released as a single in 1971 reaching number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 4 on the UK Singles Chart. The two versions were recorded simultaneously in 1971 with shared musicians.

"You've Got a Friend" won Grammy Awards both for Taylor (Best Male Pop Vocal Performance) and King (Song of the Year). Dozens of other artists have recorded the song over the years, including Dusty Springfield, Michael Jackson, Anne Murray and Donny Hathaway.

When you're down and troubled and you need some love and care,

And nothing, nothing is going right,

Close your eyes and think of me and soon I will be there

To brighten up even your darkest night.

You just call out my name, and you know wherever I am,

I'll come running to see you again.

Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you have to do is call

And I'll be there

You've got a friend.

If the sky above you grows dark and full of clouds,

And that old north wind begins to blow,

Keep your head toget-her and call my name out loud.

Soon you'll hear me knockin' at your door.

You just call out my name, and you know wherever I am,

I'll come running to see you again.

Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you have to do is call

And I'll be there, yes, I will.

Now ain't it good to know that you've got a

Friend when people can be so cold. They'll hurt you, yes, anddesert you

And, take your soul if you let them.

Oh, but don't you let them.

You just call out my name, and you know wherever I am,

I'll come running to see you again.

Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you have to do is call

And I'll be there, yes, I will.

You've got a friend.

You've got a friend.

Ain't it good to know you've got a friend…