We've Only Just Begun

Paul Williams and Roger Nichols wrote it in an afternoon in 1970 for a Crocker-Citizens bank commercial about a couple getting married. The ad agency, led by Hal Riney, gave them the slogan "You've got a long way to go. We'd like to help you get there." The television version had two verses and no bridge. Smokey Roberds, a friend of Nichols, had already recorded the song under the name Freddie Allen in March 1970 without significant airplay.

Richard noticed the commercial around the time of the Close To You sessions and recognized Williams' voice. He later wrote that on hearing the demo he was convinced it was a hit, and called it their signature tune. Hal Blaine recalled stopping the session because Karen was singing way too high, and telling her to try taking it down three keys. The single, released on 21 August 1970, reached number 2 on the Hot 100, held off the top by the Jackson 5's I'll Be There and the Partridge Family's I Think I Love You. It was number 1 on Cash Box and spent seven weeks at the top of the Adult Contemporary chart. It reached 28 in Britain, was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. The video was shot for the 1971 television series Make Your Own Kind of Music.