Carole King
Carole King
Background information
Birth name
Carole Klein
Born
February 9, 1942
(1942-02-09)
Origin
New York City, New York,
U.S.
Genre(s)
Folk rock
pop
Jazz
Occupation(s)
Singer-songwriter
Instrument(s)
Piano
Vocals
Guitar
Years active
1958–present
Label(s)
Rockingale
Ode/Epic/CBS Records
Priority/EMI Records
Associated
acts
James Taylor
The City
Danny Kortchmar
Website
CaroleKing.com
Carole King (born February 9, 1942) is an
American singer, songwriter, and pianist.
She was most active as a singer during the
first half of the 1970s, though she was a suc-
cessful songwriter for considerably longer
both before and after this period.[1]
King has won four Grammy Awards and
was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall
of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
for her songwriting, along with long-time
partner Gerry Goffin.
Biography
Born Carole Klein in 1942 in Brooklyn, New
York to a Jewish household, King started out
playing the piano then moved on to singing,
forming a vocal quartet called the Co-Sines at
James Madison High School.
She attended Queens College, where she
was a classmate of Neil Sedaka and inspired
Sedaka’s first big hit, "Oh! Carol." She wrote
"Oh! Neil" in return. While attending Queens
College, King befriended Paul Simon and
Gerry Goffin.
Partnership with Gerry Goffin
Goffin and King soon formed a songwriting
partnership. Working for Aldon Music in the
Brill Building, where chart-topping hits were
churned out during the 1960s, the Goffin-
King partnership first hit it big with "Will You
Love Me Tomorrow". Recorded by The
Shirelles, the song topped the charts in 1961;
it was later recorded by Ben E King, Dusty
Springfield, Laura Branigan, Little Eva,
Roberta Flack, The Four Seasons, Bryan
Ferry and King herself. As with many of
King’s compositions, the song has been re-
corded by too many artists to enumerate and
continues to be recorded to this day.
Goffin and King married in September
1960 and had two daughters, Louise Goffin
and Sherry Goffin Kondor, both of whom also
became musici