REAL SONGCRAFT

In “Trust Us, This Is for Real” (by Paul Grein, Sept. 11), you quote Herb Alpert as saying that the resurgence of the Carpenters is linked to the dearth of classic pop songwriting.

There is no dearth of classic songwriting--there is a dearth of record producers and artists who have a feeling for or an interest in such songs.

Naturally, the old-line writers of famous song standards have a plethora of good songs lying on their pianos. But I have also heard many songs of great quality written by people in their teens and 20s that have all the musical and lyrical attributes of the finest classic pop songs.

They cannot get their songs recorded. Apparently nobody is interested.

JAY LIVINGSTON

Los Angeles

Songwriter Livingston is a three-time Oscar winner (“Buttons and Bows,” “Mona Lisa,” “Que Sera, Sera”).

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As a longtime fan of Karen Carpenter, I couldn’t care less what “star rating” Rolling Stone gave her or what rock bands are trying to profit from her talents.

An enormous talent was lost, and that is the bottom line. My heart grieved for the direction pop music took after her departure. These bands scare me!

CHERYL BEHUNIN

Manhattan Beach

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Tell Nicholas Granger (Letters, Sept. 18) to have another listen to his beloved Streisand. Bombast has never equaled emotion!

I’d trade 100 years of the Babs’ hype and hypocritical multimillion-dollar tour just to hear Karen Carpenter sing “Make Believe It’s Your First Time” again.

Now that’s emotion Streisand can’t even act .

B. DIRK YARBOROUGH

Huntington Beach