But to me, it didn't - that wasn't enough. As I was putting the chart together, it would have ended (singing) just like me, they long to be close to you.Īnd that was - I mean, it had a little more of a - an ending. So how did you come up with that?ĬARPENTER: Yeah, what it is - it's mostly the end. GROSS: The opening piano part that you play on 'Close To You' has become kind of like an official part of the melody. They wanted me to just, as I said, arrange it the way I felt it should go. So when I saw the end of - on the lead sheet - of in your eyes of blue, the melody, I got exactly what Herb was talking about, the (imitating piano) on the piano. It's for - to have something to look at so they get to know the song and do their own arrangement. There's no intro, no outro, no arrangement. It was a ballad version - my take on 'Ticket To Ride.'ĬARPENTER: Yeah, and during this time, Herb Alpert brought a lead sheet of a rather obscure Bacharach-David song called 'They Long To Be Close To You.' And I looked at the lead sheet - I say a lead sheet, for those who may not know, is just the melody, the chord changes and the lyric. And we had a single released in October of that year that was doing fairly well. RICHARD CARPENTER: We'd signed in April of '69. And then, not long after you were signed, he - if I get the story right - he gave you this song. You had just been signed to A&M Records, the record label that Herb Alpert co-founded. Let's start with your first big hit, which is 'Close To You,' which is written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Rainy days and Mondays always get me down. Walking around, some kind of lonely clown. Nothing is really wrong, feeling like I don't belong. What I've got they used to call the blues. Sometimes I'd like to quit, nothing ever seems to fit. THE CARPENTERS: (Singing) Talking to myself and feeling old. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, 'RAINY DAYS AND MONDAYS')

Terry began with The Carpenters hit 'Rainy Days And Mondays,' which was written by Roger Nichols and Paul Williams. On December 5, the documentary 'Close To You: Remembering The Carpenters' will air on PBS and public television. Terry spoke with Richard Carpenter in 2009 with the release of The Carpenters' collection titled '40/40.' It features 40 Carpenters songs and marked the 40th anniversary of The Carpenters signing with A&M Records. Karen died in 1983 from complications of anorexia.

Richard chose the songs, co-wrote some of them, did the arrangements and sang backup vocals. The other half was his sister, Karen Carpenter. They were played so much they were part of the soundtrack of the decade, songs like 'Close To You,' 'We've Only Just Begun,' 'Rainy Days And Mondays,' 'Superstar,' 'Goodbye To Love' and 'Yesterday Once More.' Our guest, Richard Carpenter, was half of the duo. If you were alive in the '70s, you probably know a lot of The Carpenters' records.

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