I KEPT ON LOVING YOU before WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN

[Hammerandnails]

Most of us know that both songs were written by Paul Williams and Roger Nichols.And we also know the infamous story of the Crocker Bank commercial re: WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN.

We also know "I KEPT ON LOVING YOU" came out as the flip-side to CLOSE TO YOU and that was before the release of "WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN". Does anyone know how Richard heard the song "I KEPT ON LOVING YOU"?.

We also DO know that Paul Williams and Roger Nichols were already with A&M. But wouldn't it behoove Paul and Roger (on the A&M lot) to say to Richard "Hey, if you wanna record 'I KEPT ON LOVING YOU' - here's a new one we wrote -"WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN".? Before it was a commercial?

The story of Richard FIRST hearing WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN on a TV commercial THEN wanting to record it sounds like a myth to me. One would think maybe Herbie would have pointed Williams-Nichols in Rich's way or at least he would have been privy to the Williams-Nichols catalog . And that Richard actually heard WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN BEFORE it was a TV commercial......

Just wondering if there is anyone on here from A&M or otherwise that may have a scoop on this -

 

[Dave]

Well to my knowledge the Carpenters were the only ones who ever did "I Kept On Loving You" and no other versions by Paul Williams or others, I think exist...

Paul had to have peddled it somehow to Richard & Karen... I think the recording of "We've Only Just Begun" was simply brought to life by them getting back with Paul wanting to do that song... (And that, of course had been covered by many others)...

That's just my opinion or at least what I could conjecture from what I have read and heard...



Dave

 

[Actorman]

As much as I love the traditional story we’ve always heard regarding “We’ve Only Just Begun,” I have always felt that it had to have been embellished a bit.

I remember an interview with Paul Williams on a Carpenters documentary and he talks about Richard seeing the commercial and calling him up to see if it was a complete song. Williams says something to the effect of “even if it wasn’t I would have lied and told him it was because it was a really big deal to be asked to be on a Carpenters’ record at that time.” This just doesn’t ring true to me because of the timing. At the time, Carpenters were barely a blip on the radar with one flopped album and one very minor hit single (“Ticket To Ride”) so I can’t believe that it really would have been that big of a deal since they hadn’t yet had a commercial breakthrough. By the time “Close To You” hit number one in July, the Close To You album would have to have been nearly (if not fully) completed because it was released in August.

I think the fact that “We’ve Only Just Begun” had been used in the Crocker Bank commercial just helped make for a great story. I’ve always thought of it in the Lana Turner/Schwab’s Drug Store vein – based in truth, but given a Hollywood “spin” for PR purposes.

 

[A&Mguyfromwayback]

But remember, artists don't sit around waiting for songwriters they know to play them every song they've ever written - artists (especially ones who write themselves and wouldn't have necessarily been SEEKING outside material) hear a ton of songs, and maybe Paul did put it on a tape or played a few bars for them, but it wasn't remembered. There are many more factors to getting a song played, yesterday or today, than you can imagine.......

 

[Dave]

I believe that "We've Only Just Begun" is merely portrayed as being the FIRST Paul Williams song Karen and Richard did, on the strength of how it was such a big hit...

That "I Kept On Loving You" never gets the recognition status it deserved was that it was simply B-Side Album Filler, if it was the real first song by Williams the Carpenters really covered...

It's really a documentary on the Carpenters I saw a long time ago that really foretells this and it's often "documentary fodder" altogether not to get every detail on a career chronicled, out of keeping and confining a running length to one or two hours, even with the discerning waving and teetering between what's fact & what's fiction...



Dave

 

[Hammerandnails]

I think the fact that “We’ve Only Just Begun” had been used in the Crocker Bank commercial just helped make for a great story. I’ve always thought of it in the Lana Turner/Schwab’s Drug Store vein – based in truth, but given a Hollywood “spin” for PR purposes.

Totally agree, Actorman! That's what I think the story was about "Begun"...It seems it was a great spin to PR the whole song being recorded by Karen and Richard AND GREAT PR for A&M's "new" songwriting duo. I don't believe for a minute Richard heard it first on the commercial.

Maybe it was Herbie who pushed Williams/Nichols toward Richard for new material for the second (CLOSE TO YOU) album. "I KEPT ON LOVING YOU" IS a GREAT SONG !

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Hmm, I don't know, I tend to believe the multiple parties who all tell the story the exact same way. It's doubtful that Herb, Paul, Roger, Karen and Richard all got together and say "OK, this is what we're going to tell everyone....[/i]

As for Paul being excited about being on a Carpenters record... well, the Carpenters were signed to a major label and had already had a chart single. And they were on A&M, a label becoming known for sticking by their artists and working until they got noticed. If I were a songwriter with zero hits to date, I'd have given all my back teeth to get on one of their records.

 

[Harry]

There always seems to be a lot of conpiracy theories regarding Carpenters and A&M as if the label had it in for them or something. I've never understood that, other than the idea that people like to paint big companies as 'evil' and 'moneygrubbing'.

Like Mike said, there's no reason to doubt the story. Why is it so inconceivable that a song could be first heard in a commercial? I hear catchy songs in commercials all the time.

The voice doing the song vocals in the commercial was unmistakably Paul Williams, so why not give a call to a fellow labelmate and ask about the song - particularly if you've already recorded a song written by Williams and Nichols?

Harry