"
We've Only Just Begun" is
The Carpenters'
signature song. Although it was recorded in
early
1970, it is still much in demand
as a wedding anthem.
Written by the songwriting team of Roger Nichols (music) and
Paul Williams (lyrics),
the song originally debuted in a commercial for Crocker National Bank in California
in 1970, with Williams providing the vocals.
Williams has said they left out a direct reference to the bank in
part to make it salable as a pop song, and also because they
couldn't conceive a reasonable rhyme for "Crocker." It is ranked
#405 on the
Rolling Stone
magazine's list of "
the 500 Greatest
Songs of All Time".
The song was originally recorded by Smokey Roberds, a friend of
Nichols, under the name Freddie Allen (his Christian names).
Although fairly successful in California, it made no impact
nationally, which Roberds attributed to promotion and distribution
problems.
Believing that the song had hit potential,
Richard Carpenter selected the
composition for the duo's third single and included it on the LP
Close to
You. Released in the late summer of 1970, the single
featured his sister
Karen's lead
vocals and the overdubbed harmonies of both siblings. Following
their hit "
Close to
You" onto the charts, "We've Only Just Begun" crested at #2 on
the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100,
becoming the pair's second gold single and was considered by both
Karen and Richard to be their
signature
song. According to
The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits
(6th edition), on the U.S.
Adult Contemporary singles
chart, it was the duo's best-performing tune, lasting seven weeks
at #1 (besting the six-week stay at the top of "Close To You"). The
song helped them to win two
Grammy
Awards in 1971. One was for the
Best
New Artist (
The Carpenters), and
the other was for Best Contemporary Performance by a Duo, Group, or
Chorus (
Close to
You).
In
1998, the recording was inducted
into the
Grammy Hall of Fame for
recordings of lasting quality or historical significance.
| Chart |
Peak
position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 |
2 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary |
1 |
| Record World |
1 |
| Canadian Singles Chart |
2 |
| Oricon (Japanese) Singles Chart |
71 |
| UK Singles Chart |
28 |
Paul Williams Version
Songwriter
Paul Williams
recorded the song for his 1971 album "An Old Fashioned Love
Song".
Carpenters compilation appearances
- 1973 - The Singles:
1969-1973 (1973 remix)
- 1980 - Beautiful Moments
- 1985 - Yesterday Once More: Their Greatest Hits (1985
remix)
- 1989 - Anthology
- 1991 - From The Top (1991 remix)
- 1995 - Interpretations: A 25th Anniversary
Edition
- 1997 - Carpenters: Their Greatest Hits And Finest
Performances
- 1998 - Love Songs
- 2000 - The Singles:
1969-1981
- 2002 - The Essential Collection
- 2004 - Gold: 35th
Anniversary Edition
In 1996, Grant Lee Buffalo covered this song on If I Was Carpenter:
A Tribute to The Carpenters.
Other covers:
In cinema
The song was used in a rather unusual context in the film "
1408" adapted from an
eponymous short story by
Stephen King, marking a beginning of a horrible
experience the protagonist had to come through. It was also used as
the closing song in the 2000 gay ensemble "Broken Hearts Club,"
performed by Mary Beth Maziera (sp?). This song was featured as the
end of the Australian film,
The Castle,
which was sang by
Kate Ceberano. The
song was also played in John Carpenter's
In the Mouth of Madness, heard when
the protagonist has been committed to an insane asylum. The song
can be heard playing through the speakers in the halls of the
asylum.
In television, the song was performed on
The Steve Harvey Show. Lydia (and
briefly Bullethead) performed the song during Cedric's and Lovita's
marriage ceremony.
References
- We've Only Just Begun by The Carpenters Songfacts
- [Any Major Dude With Half A Heart, The Originals Vol.
32][1]
- The Singles: 1969-1973
- GRAMMY.com
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