Fantasy (Carole King album)

Fantasy is the fifth album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1973. At the time of its release, it climbed to number six on the US Billboard 200 album chart, and has remained highly regarded by her fans over the ensuing decades. Presented as a sort of song cycle, the album opens and closes with two versions of the title song and the songs on each side segue directly into one another.

The Spanish language track "Corazón" (the Spanish word for "heart", also used as a term of endearment, as in this song's lyrics) was a moderate hit single from the album, as was "Believe in Humanity". The flip side of the latter single, "You Light Up My Life" (not the Debby Boone hit), charted separately from its A-side.

Record World described "Corazón" as being "mostly instrumental and highly Latin flavored" and with an "outstanding rhythm track." Allmusic critic Jason Elias said that "'Corazón' has Latin intonations and King certainly doesn't embarrass herself."

Record World said of the single "Believe in Humanity"/"You Light Up My Life" that "'Believe' is a fine rocking tune with great orchestrations, while 'Light Up My Life' is a gently wistful ballad." Elias regarded "Believe" as being the best song on the album, saying that "all of the elements coalesce and might make listeners wish they took the harder sound and well-meaning messages even further, even for the hell of it."

Track listing

Personnel

Carole King - vocals, piano, backing vocals, string and horn arrangements
David T. Walker - guitar
Charles Larkey - bass guitar, double bass
Susan Ranney - double bass
Harvey Mason - drums, vibraphone
Ms. Bobbye Hall - congas, bongas
Eddie Kendricks - backing vocals
Tom Scott, Curtis Amy, Ernie Watts, Mike Altschul - saxophone
Chuck Findley, Ollie Mitchell, Al Aarons - trumpet, flugelhorn
George Bohanon - trombone, euphonium, trombone arrangements
Charles Loper, Dick "Slyde" Hyde - trombone
Ken Yerke, Barry Socher, Sheldon Sanov, Haim Shtrum, Kathleen Lenski, Miwako Watanabe, Glenn Dicterow, Polly Sweeney, Robert Lipsett, Gordon Marron - violin
Denyse Buffum, David Campbell, Alan DeVeritch, Paul Polivnick - viola
Jeffrey Solow, Judy Perett, Denis Brott, Dennis Karmazyn - cello