Only Yesterday: The Carpenters' Story Page #2

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Karen started singing by then.

And we added some people we had met at college, and started this group called Spectrum.

Spectrum's line-up included Richard's college friend, John Bettis.

And a creative partnership soon developed.

Richard was so noticeable because of his talent, for one thing.

He was an amazing pianist then as he is now.

So everybody knew who Richard was.

# Yesterday I thought you'd stay... #

Karen was having a whale of a good time. It was really play-time, in a way.

A lot of hard work, but we were all together, there was a lot of laughs, a lot of fun, a lot of music.

Renowned West Coast musician Joe Osborne had long supported Richard and Karen,

letting them record in his garage studio and helping them refine their sound.

He was also a very important studio bass player and also close friends with The Mamas & Papas.

# All the leaves are brown

# All the leaves are brown

# And the sky is grey... #

And so he, for some reason, had access to The Mamas & Papas' equipment.

And we got a possibility to do an audition for a private club in Los Angeles called The Factory.

And so we were very excited, and we didn't really have proper equipment.

So Joe allowed us to borrow The Mamas & Papas' equipment.

It had white-stencilled on it "Mamas & Papas"!

Mamas & Papas! Mamas & Papas!

So we were on stage doing our best to stand in front of it!

And who walked in, but Cass Elliot?!

HE LAUGHS:

We were so busted!

# California dreamin'... #

By mid-1968, a string of rejections had taken their toll on Spectrum.

And tensions started to build.

I mean, the guys quit because we couldn't get a recording contract.

We went around for about a year trying to get someplace.

And zero, so everybody went their own way.

So Richard formed The Carpenters with sister Karen.

# Don't be afraid to love and get loved... #

In mid-'68 we made this demo. It ended up on Herb Alpert's desk.

And he heard the potential and that was it. We signed with A&M in April 1969.

# It knows how to make you sing... #

Usually I just close my eyes when listening to a new tape,

and I did on this occasion,

and all of a sudden this amazing voice came out of my speakers.

And it seemed like it was sitting next to me on the couch.

It was a real special...

God-given, you know, instrument that I had never heard quite like that before.

# You need cooling, baby I'm not fooling... #

You have to understand that at that time, the world was turning into serious rock'n'roll.

And here were these amazing kids

doing this incredible pop material.

Some say, "I think you kids are out of sync with your time, with the soft sound..."

Oh, sure.

- "..the rock noises were at their highest."

- Yeah, yeah.

We were in the era of Stones, Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, whatever.

That was the problem. We had a whole bunch of people who were hairy rock fans.

And if their mum liked The Carpenters, then you weren't going to like them.

Most of the people at A&M didn't want us there.

And they were trying to talk Herb into cutting his losses and just letting them go.

But I always felt that they had that special ingredient,

because they were so unique in what they were doing.

They were so honest about what they were doing.

I thought it was just a matter of time before before the audience would catch up to them.

I was 22 and Karen was 19.

And we were given carte blanche.

# I think I'm gonna be sad

# I think it's today... #

The first album yielded the ballad version of Ticket To Ride

which is mighty good and got on the charts at least.

A&M was going through a rough period in 1969,

probably the worst year in their history.

# He's got a ticket to ride... #

It sold substantially enough and got enough airplay,

that it definitely deserved another shot.

# He's got a ticket to ride

# And he don't care... #

What they obviously needed was a great song,

and an arrangement, a production that would really present them in a great way.

The search was on for the next song, and Herb Alpert turned to A&M song writer, Burt Bacharach,

for that crucial chart-topping hit.

Herbie said I have a record, but I don't want you to hear it, I don't want anything to influence

your arrangement except, after the first bridge, there are two quintuplets - piano.

One octave and then down an octave.

So in our key, which turned out to be G, it would be...

HE PLAYS QUINTUPLETS

# Why do birds suddenly appear

# Every time you are near

# Just like me they long to be

# Close to you... #

This thing took shape.

And we started adding things to it. People were doing what they weren't supposed to do -

studio protocol, and etiquette and all of that -

you were not supposed to push open a door and walk in the recording studio!

But people were - they'd push open the door and say, "What is this?

"I've never heard anything like this! This is sensational!"

# On the day that you were born The angels got together

# And decided to create a dream come true

# So they sprinkled moondust in your hair

# Of gold and starlight in your eyes of blue... #

When it's done, Herb plays it down the phone to Burt,

and...well, smash!

# ..all around

# Just like me

# They long to be close to you... #

It came in at 56, 37, 14, 7, 3, 1.

Then it stayed there for a month.

It was just one of those things you hear, and you say, "What did I do to deserve this?"

# Wah-ah-ha-ah

# Close to you... #

When the wah came on, they went, "OK, that works."

# Wah-ah-ha-ah... #

I was driving along on a street in Connecticut, had the radio on,

and I heard them singing Close To You - their first big hit.

I almost hit the telephone pole.

Wow, that's Karen and Richard. Oh, it's beautiful.

The nominees are...

Simon and Garfunkel for Bridge Over Troubled Water,

Carpenters for Close To You,

The Beatles for Let It Be.

It's all of your dreams coming true. You can't put it into words. It's so exciting.

It's Close To You!

APPLAUSE:

Er...We still can't believe we even had a record out!

You go from having time on your hands to not having enough time in the day.

APPLAUSE:

Wait, wait, wait!

That's enough. These days with The Carpenters, nobody can afford the overtime!

Looking for a follow-up to Close To You, Richard knew of an A&M writing team -

Roger Nichols and Paul Williams - whom he particularly admired.

Paul would drop by and sing with us when we were rehearsing in the sound stage,

so I was well aware of his voice.

# We've only just begun

# To live... #

This really good commercial comes on.

I knew it was Paul immediately, which means it's a Nichols/Williams song.

And I'm thinking, "This sounds like a hit record to me."

A bank commercial fell out of television set.

# We've only just begun... #

Richard just heard it and he was on the phone, probably before the programme went back on, saying,

"Is that a whole song? Please tell me that's a whole song!"

So I saw Paul and I said, "This song - We've Only Just Begun - does it have a bridge in the third verse."

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