Little Girl Blue by Randy L. Schmidt Page A

five-member group is at its best on whisper-like vocals on their hit and the Beatles’ ‘Ticket to Ride,’” wrote
Los Angeles Times
music critic Robert Hilburn. “They were far less effective on up-tempo efforts like ‘Can’t Buy Me Love.’ The group received only fair response.”
    Receiving far more than “fair response” was “Close to You,” which was climbing the charts and gaining widespread recognition. As a result the Carpenters were booked to make numerous television appearances as guests of David Frost, Ed Sullivan, and Johnny Carson. Seeing Karen and Richard at the premiere taping of
The Don Knotts Show
during the summer of 1970, college friend Dan Friberg came to understand the magnitude of the duo’s newfound stardom. “That was when I knew they were hot stuff,” he says. “If I didn’t realize it before, I sure did at that point.” Following the taping, Friberg went backstage, where Karen called out to him in the hallway, and the two exchanged hugs. “We just found out it went to #1!” she exclaimed.
    In just two months the “Close to You” single secured the top spot on the Hot 100, where it stayed for four weeks and quickly sold two million copies. “ Everything seems to be going the way we wanted it to be,” Karen said in a 1970 interview. “The records are selling like mad, and we’re just flipped. It’s out of sight, you know. I’m happy. . . . I think the greatest thing that’s happened so far is having the #1 record in the country, having it go over two million records, and having it be the biggest single that A&M Records ever had. I think that’s the greatest feeling in the world. . . . I really don’t know what we’re going to be doing in five years, but I hope it’s the same thing.”

    S ELECTING THE right follow-up single to “Close to You” was of utmost importance. It occurred to Karen and Richard that “Close to You” might be their one and only hit, but they believed strongly in their recording of “We’ve Only Just Begun,” which by then had been completed and was ready for release. An ecstatic Jack Daugherty came to Roger Nichols one afternoon at A&M. “Roger, you’ve got to hear this song,” he said. “I think it’s a smash.”
    Nichols remembers being surprised by his enthusiasm. It was merely a bank commercial. He and Williams certainly never figured it wouldbecome a monster hit. “When I heard it I thought I was going to faint,” he says. “I still think to this day it’s one of the greatest records ever made. I’m not just talking about the song, I’m talking about the record. That record is something else. I just freaked out when I heard it. It was unbelievable.”
    â€œBegun” displayed all the great qualities of the Carpenters sound and their capabilities as artists. At only twenty years old, Karen was already showing skill as an instinctive vocalist and a master at phrasing. In one breath she sang, “We’ve only just begun to live,” something most other singers of this song never knew or cared to do. Her delivery was compelling, her interpretation convincing. “The thing about Karen’s voice is that it’s a strange combination of innocence and sensuality,” Williams explains. “She had the sound of a bride when she sang that, so it’s innocent and sensual at the same time.”
    â€œWe’ve Only Just Begun” was released alongside the
Close to You
album in August 1970 and within eight weeks was at #2 on the Hot 100. The song lingered for four weeks, unable to push the Jackson Five’s “I’ll Be There” or the Partridge Family’s “I Think I Love You” from the top spot. Whether it was #1 or #2 made little difference in the grand scheme of things. “Begun” assured the Carpenters were