The Carpenters’ 1973 feel-good song wasn’t alone at the top; a country cover by a hugely popular female star gave the tune a run for its money.
Karen and Richard Carpenter released "Top of the World" in 1972 as a track on their LP A Song For You. However, the tune, written by Richard and frequent collaborator John Bettis, wasn't released as a standalone single.
The album contained hits such as "Superstar," "Hurting Each Other," and "Goodbye to Love." But its biggest single wasn't released until a year later, after country superstar Lynn Anderson ("Rose Garden") successfully covered the tune.
Anderson's version hit number two on the Billboard charts in the summer of 1973. She reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Tracks chart with the tune, according to the website Early 70s Radio.
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The tune's success caused The Carpenters to rethink releasing "Top of the World" as a single. The siblings rerecorded the song one year after the original was released, and the new version appeared on the duo's first compilation album, The Singles: 1969-1973.
"Top of the World" would become The Carpenters' second No. 1 single, three years after they topped the charts with "Close to You" as reported by Billboard in December 1973. Their third chart-topper came in January of 1975 with a cover of The Marvelettes' "Please Mr. Postman."
Just like the Carpenters, Anderson covered other songwriters, including Richard Carpenter, and pop standards. She told Billboard, “I did a lot of songs that weren’t written by Nashville songwriters, like ‘Top of the World,’ which was written by Richard Carpenter,” Anderson reflected. “I did [Johnnie Ray's] ‘Cry’ and [The Drifters] ‘Under the Boardwalk,’ which were old pop hits."
Anderson continued, "My music came from left field. I was sincere about singing country. I came by the boots and the cowboy hat, honestly. But I can see how my music might have been a little off-center for a traditional country fan. We did use a lot of strings in those days.”
Richard said in an interview for Grammy.com that "Top of the World" was one of the songs that gave Karen some trouble while recording it. "A lot of times, [Karen] got it right on the first take," he explained.
"Occasionally, she would have trouble with a particular phrase — the melody, or the words. There’s a moment in "Top of the World" where she sings "there is only one wish on my mind," and she was having a hell of a time with that."
Karen Carpenter died at the age of 32 in 1983. Lynn Anderson died in July 2015 at 67. Richard Carpenter continues to keep the Carpenters' legacy alive.
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