We've Only Just Begun

"We've Only Just Begun" is the opening song on Carpenters sophomore album Close to You. It was written by Paul Williams and Roger Nichols.

The song was originally in a wedding-themed television commercial for Crocker National Bank in California in early 1970, with Paul Williams on vocals. As a single, the full song was first recorded by Smokey Roberds, a friend of Roger Nichols, singing under the name "Freddie Allen". It was released in March 1970 but did not get significant airplay. Separately, Richard Carpenter saw the TV commercial and guessed correctly that Williams was the vocalist (both of them were under contract to A&M Records). Carpenter ran into Williams on the record company's lot and asked whether a full-length version was available. Although the TV commercial had only two verses and no bridge, Williams stated that there was a bridge and an additional verse, forming a complete song, which was then delivered. Upon hearing the demo, Richard was convinced the song was a hit.

According to Williams in the documentary Close to You: Remembering The Carpenters. "We'd had some success with songs before, a few album cuts and some B-sides - but no singles. This was a major break, a chance to get an A-side and maybe even a hit, so we would have absolutely lied through our teeth if there wasn't a full song."

Carpenter selected the composition for the duo's third single for the album Close to You. It was released in late summer 1970, featuring Karen's lead vocals and the overdubbed harmonies of both siblings. "We've Only Just Begun" hit No. 1 on the Cash Box singles chart (that described the song as having "delicious lyrics and a sparkling production.") and No. 2 on the U.S.Billboard Hot 100, becoming the pair's second million-selling gold single, spending nine weeks in the Top 10. It 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 No. 1 (beating the six-week stay at the top of "Close to You").

Williams recorded his own version of "We've Only Just Begun" for his 1971 album Just an Old Fashioned Love Song. Bitty McLean also released a notable cover version of "We've Only Just Begun" on June 5, 1995, and reached No. 23 on the UK Singles Chart

For Williams, the song was a personal victory; it was his first collaboration with Nichols that resulted in a hit single, and it opened the door to many more thereafter. In 1998, the recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for recordings "of lasting quality or historical significance".

Although it only charted at number 28 in the UK Singles Chart in 1970, its subsequent growth in popularity in the UK saw it voted second in The Nation's Favourite Carpenters Song, broadcast by ITV in 2016.