Carole King

Carole King wrote songs for others before becoming a performer and writing for herself. In her new memoir, A Natural Woman, she details the stories behind some of her most famous songs and her relationships with songwriters like James Taylor, Gerry Goffin and Paul Simon.

The prolific songwriter and performer has been living in Idaho, away from the public eye. Now she returns with a new, more rocking album. King joins Fresh Air to talk about dropping out college to pursue a music career, writing songs with her former husband Gerry Goffin for other artists, and becoming a solo artist.

When Carole King's album Tapestry came out in 1971, it became one of the best-selling albums of all time and marked her as one of pop's most talented songwriters. King's masterpiece has been reissued as a 2-disc Legacy Edition by Sony. Music historian Milo Miles takes a look at the landmark work.