Simple Things

by William Ruhlmann Carole King moved to Capitol Records with this release and introduced as her lyric collaborator Rick Evers, who became her third husband. The new associations, however, did not signal an impressive new phase in her work. The rollicking "Hard Rock Cafe," which anticipated the chain of restaurants by a decade, was the only moderate hit here, with most of the music well-meaning but lacking the distinctiveness of King's previous pop classics. Similarly, Navarro, her backup band, were adequate but no more. Despite the stimulus of a new label, Simple Things became King's first album since her breakthrough with Tapestry to peak below the Top Ten.