We've Only Just Begun - Carpenters (1970) 1/1/21

Happy New Year! I hope and pray that today's “Great Song of the '70s” will help signal the start of a better year for us all!

One day, Richard Carpenter was watching TV when he saw a commercial for Crocker State Bank of California.

He noticed two things immediately:

#1: The jingle singer sounded like songwriter Paul Williams.

#2: The jingle sounded like it might have hit potential.

He was right on both counts.

Both Paul and the Carpenters were signed to A&M records at the time, so it was easy for Richard to track down Paul and confirm that he not only sang the jingle, but co-wrote it with songwriter Roger Nichols. As for hit potential, Paul mentioned that the jingle was actually the short version of a full song called “We've Only Just Begun,” and he'd be happy to hand it over to Richard to see what he and Karen could do with it.

Well, what the Carpenters did with it was turn it into a lush, beautiful ballad that not only became a chart-topper, but their signature song! For the record, the song went to #1 On Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart, and #2 on the Hot 100. In Canada, it went to #1 of both of the matching charts! It sold more than a million copies, and, in addition to “Close to You,” (which we highlighted back on August 16th,)** “We've Only Just Begun” helped The Carpenters win the 1971 Grammy Award for “Best New Artist.” In 1998, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame!

FUN FACT: The commercial and jingle for Crocker State Bank (link below) were designed to appeal to newlyweds who were just getting started financially, and might be looking for a home or auto loan. Unfortunately, it worked TOO WELL. They were inundated with prospective borrowers—none of whom had any collateral or equity or anything else that would secure their credit. Because of that, they canceled the ad campaign—but not before syndicating the idea to other banks across the US!

“We've Only Just Begun:” a fitting song to start the new year, and “Great Song of 1970!”

The Carpenters:

Crocker State Bank:

“Close to You:” (Blog entry from August 16th):