Biography
Who is Carole King?
Early life and real name
Carole King was born Carol Joan Klein on February 9, 1942, in Manhattan, United States. Her parents were Eugenia and Sidney N. Klein. She grew up in Brooklyn, where her mother taught her basic piano skills starting at the age of three after discovering her absolute pitch.
She attended James Madison High School and later enrolled at Queens College. During her high school years, she formed a band called the Co-Sines and recorded demos with Paul Simon before changing her professional name to Carole King.
How Carole became famous
Carole King began her professional songwriting career at Aldon Music alongside her first husband, Gerry Goffin. The duo wrote numerous hit songs for various artists during the 1960s, establishing themselves as prominent figures in the music industry.
Their major breakthrough came when they wrote the Shirelles hit Will You Love Me Tomorrow. This success allowed them to leave their day jobs and focus entirely on songwriting, creating classics like The Loco-Motion and Natural Woman.
Career highlights
Transitioning to a solo career in the 1970s, Carole King released her debut album Writer in 1970. She followed this with the critically acclaimed album mix in 1971, which topped the U.S. Album chart for fifteen weeks and sold millions of copies worldwide.
Her extensive list of accolades includes multiple Grammy Awards, inductions into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Gershwin Prize, and the Kennedy Center Honors for her contributions to music.
Family and relationships
Carole King married Gerry Goffin in August 1959, and they had a daughter named Louise Goffin before divorcing by 1968. Following her divorce, she moved to Laurel Canyon in Los Angeles with her children.
She later formed a music trio called The City with bassist Charles Larkey, who became her husband, and guitarist Danny Kortchmar. The group released one album before disbanding at the end of the decade.
Birthday and age
Carole King was born on February 9, 1942, which makes Carole 84 years old today. That birthday falls under the Aquarius sign. Carole shares the date with 40 other famous people.
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