Carole King
moved to
Capitol Records
with this release and introduced as her lyric collaborator
Rick Evers
, who became her third husband. The new associations, however, did not signal an impressive new phase in her work. The rollicking
"Hard Rock Cafe"
was the only moderate hit here, with most of the music well-meaning but lacking the distinctiveness of
King
's previous pop classics. Similarly,
Navarro
, her backup band, were adequate but no more. Despite the stimulus of a new label,
Simple Things
became
's first album since her breakthrough with
Tapestry
to peak below the Top Ten. ~ William Ruhlmann