1966 Bobby Darin – If I Were A Carpenter

If I Were A Carpenter is an album by American singer Bobby Darin, released in 1966. It was a significant change in direction for Darin considering his previous album (In a Broadway Bag) was a collection of show tunes.

Having previously built his career recording mainstream pop music, Darin’s musical output became more “folky” as the 1960s progressed. In 1966, he charted with folksinger Tim Hardin’s “If I Were a Carpenter”. It was Darin’s return to the Top 10 after a four-year absence (the single peaked at No. 8 in the US and No. 9 in the UK in 1966). The tracks leaned heavily towards songs by Hardin and John Sebastian — seven of the songs were written by these two songwriters and Darin’s next album would follow a similar process. The song “Red Balloon” had not yet been released by Hardin. It would appear on his album 1967 album Tim Hardin 2. In his Allmusic review, Richie Unterberger, stated “Hardin himself was convinced that Darin had copied his vocal style by listening to his yet-to-be-issued version and the album as a whole boasts a production similar to the orchestrated folk-rock heard on the debut (sic) album in question, though it sounds like an inferior copy.” Both Darin’s If I Were a Carpenter and Hardin’s Tim Hardin 2 were produced by Charles Koppelman and Don Rubin and Koppelman had originally signed Sebastian’s band, The Lovin’ Spoonful.

Tracks

1  If I Were A Carpenter (Tim Hardin) 02:22
2  Reason To Believe (Tim Hardin) 02:05
3  Sittin’ Here Lovin’ You (John Sebastian) 02:12
4  Misty Roses (Tim Hardin) 02:19
5  Until It’s Time For You To Go (Buffy Sainte-Marie) 02:41
6  For Baby (John Denver) 02:26
7  The Girl Who Stood Beside Me (Geoffrey Stevens) 02:27
8  Red Ballon (Tim Hardin) 02:05
9  Amy (Bobby Darin) 02:22
10  Don’t Make Promises (Tim Hardin) 02:27
11  Daydream (John Sebastian) 02:36

Musicians

Bass Bob West
Drums Hal Blaine
Drums Jim Gordon
Guitar Al Casey
Guitar David Cohen
Guitar Dennis Budimir
Guitar Don Peake
Guitar Mike Deasy
12 String Guitar Mike Deasy
Keyboards Larry Knechtel
Vibraphone Gary Coleman
Percussion Gary Coleman
Percussion Jim Gordon
Vocals Bobby Darin

Other Musicians

Strings – Harry Hyams, Leonard Malarsky, Sidney Sharp

Liner Notes

Producer – Charles Koppelman, Don Rubin
Arranged By, Conductor – Don Peake (Tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
Arranged By, Conductor – Bob Halley (Tracks 3, 11)
Engineer – Brooks Arthur, Stan Ross

Artwork – Remo Bramanti