Sure, there are old-school commercial jingles that live in our heads rent-free. But a special few have actually gone on to become full-blown chart-toppers. “We’ve Only Just Begun,” made famous by the Carpenters, is one of those songs.
Back in the early 1970s, Crocker National Bank (later acquired by Wells Fargo) sought a way to expand its brand beyond that of an institution for business moguls to regular folks, primarily young newlyweds.
The ad that didn’t feel like an ad
To do this, Crocker hired hotshot advertising executive Hal Riney, who wanted to make a commercial that felt more cinematic and resonated on an emotional level rather than coming across as a standard sales pitch. Today, that marketing strategy is fairly common, but at the time, it was quite novel.
The story Riney wanted to tell in the commercial was that of a young couple who had just gotten married, excited about the new chapter of life they were embarking on. This narrative needed a song to match—one that captured all the warm, fuzzy feelings of young love, the promise of a life together, and, of course, the need for a new checking account. So Riney enlisted respected songwriters Roger Nichols and Paul Williams to write a jingle that fit his vision.
Williams and Nichols were slightly reluctant at first, as they had their sights set on writing radio hits. But Tony Asher, the original songwriter hired for the project, had been hurt in an accident and personally reached out to ask that they replace him. The duo wanted to help. That—and the substantial “creative fee” being offered.
And so, the soft, romantic anti-commercial jingle was written in a single afternoon. It was a major success.
Richard Carpenter heard something special
Richard Carpenter heard the jingle and thought it would be a perfect fit for Karen Carpenter’s angelic voice. By that point in their career, the Carpenters had already made a splash with their slow, melodic cover of the Beatles’ “Ticket to Ride,” as well as “Close to You.”
Richard, who happened to share a record label with Williams, reached out to ask whether there was a full-length version of the jingle. There was. From there, he fleshed out the arrangement, Karen worked her magic, and the rest is music history.
The Carpenters performed “We’ve Only Just Begun” at the 1971 Grammy Awards ceremony, where they won the award for Best New Artist. In 1998, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. A massive hit by all accounts, it all started with a simple jingle.
Famous songs that began as advertising jingles
Though “We’ve Only Just Begun” is one of the biggest jingle success stories, it’s far from the only hit song that started as a commercial.
“I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing” by the New Seekers started in 1971 as a wildly popular Coca-Cola radio jingle titled “Buy the World a Coke.”
“Times of Your Life” by Paul Anka began as an emotional, nostalgic Kodak jingle in 1975 before Anka expanded it into a full-length pop song that peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Even the iconic 1957 doo-wop hit “Book of Love” by the Monotones was directly inspired by a Pepsodent toothpaste jingle.
Now the real question: Will the viral TikTok jingle “Dr Pepper Baby” become a chart-topping hit? If history is any indication, the chances are good.
