The 1981 Listening Post - Kim Carnes - Mistaken Identity

Kim Carnes - Mistaken Identity 

#179

By Timothy Sprague

April 1981

Kim Carnes

Mistaken Identity

Genre: Bette Davis Eyes

Allen’s Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Timothy’s Rating: 2 out of 5

Highlight: 

Bette Davis Eyes

When I first heard Bette Davis Eyes I thought it was a really cool new wave tune and it excited me greatly.  Then I saw Kim Carnes on Solid Gold or Merv Griffin or Mike Douglas or one of those shows and was very disappointed that she was just normal looking.  I was expecting some kind of crazy punked out chick based on the cold synth sounds and electronic hand claps on BDE. She also looked rather old to my 13-year-old eyes.   And it kind of ruined the spell.   So, thanks to the Listening Post, I am finally giving Mistaken Identity its due.  And, ya know what?  It ain’t bad.  Not really the kind of album I would spend money on but there’s no doubt Kim has an interesting voice, although it does sound rather a lot like Rod Stewart.  I know nothing about Kim Carnes’ career but I am guessing she hung in there for a long time during the seventies until she finally got some success with this album.  One moment while I check Wikipedia… Yep, just as I thought.  “After she signed her first publishing deal with Jimmy Bowen, she released her debut album Rest on Me in 1972. Carnes' self-titled second album primarily contained self-penned songs, including her first charting single "You're a Part of Me", which reached No. 35 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in 1975.”  I don’t recall You’re a Part of Me, though.  Or any of these other songs I am seeing in her bio.  Says here she also wrote a lot of stuff for David Cassidy. Who knew?  Oh, everyone but me?  That sounds about right. 

Back to the album…. Bette Davis Eyes is the clear standout and most memorable track.  The rest all kind of blend together without a lot of originality out of the studio musicians working with Kim.  It sounds very “Music Industry” and I picture much snorting of coke at the recording sessions.  Surprisingly little cowbell, however.  But I can certainly see why her audience enjoys this record.  The gritty vocals hold up throughout and there are some nice sassy saxophone solos.  Much too Adult Contemporary for my taste, but I don’t think they made this one for tween Beatles fans.  More like people who bought all of their music at department stores.  She is also much too American for me to really flip for.  My taste in female vocalists runs more in the Siouxsie, Kate Bush, Liz Fraser, Sinead O’Connor eccentric UK-types.  Kim’s got nothing on Debbie Harry, either, for that matter.  If only there were one more memorable song on this album it might rise to 2.5 stars in my book but I will leave it at 2.

https://open.spotify.com/album/3iMwQk5yE0UDDKbLCdcxZA?si=460caaNFQ2C1IbnF6QNAqA