Roger Nichols, songwriter behind the Carpenters' hits, dead at 84

Roger Nichols, the songwriter who penned “We’ve Only Just Begun” and different hits for folk-rock duo the Carpenters, has died. He was 84.

Nichols’ decease connected May 17 was confirmed successful a societal media station from Nichols’ longtime songwriting partner, Paul Williams. He did not database a origin of death.

“The archetypal opus Roger Nichols and I wrote was called ‘It’s hard to accidental goodbye …’ Sadly, we deed the nail connected the head. Roger Nichols passed distant peacefully 4 days ago, astatine location with his beauteous family,” Williams wrote. “His woman Terry and the daughters helium was truthful arrogant of, Claire and Caitlin astatine his side.

“He was arsenic disciplined arsenic helium was talented,” Williams continued. “The words were calved of the quality successful his completed melodies. I wrote what I heard, enactment for enactment …word for word. The lyrics waiting successful the emotion already successful his music. He made it easy.”

Nichols, a Montana native, released his archetypal solo LP, “Roger Nichols & the Small Circle of Friends,” connected A&M Records successful 1968. It’s present regarded arsenic a cult classical successful the California pop-rock canon, with impermanent credits from Randy Newman, Van Dyke Parks and Lenny Waronker. However, helium earned his large interruption arsenic a songwriter aft helium penned an unexpectedly poignant jingle for a Crocker-Citizens National Bank commercial.

Richard Carpenter, who formed the fashionable duo with his sister Karen, heard the tune connected tv and asked if Nichols and Williams had a afloat mentation of the song. They rapidly extended it into a tune that became the duo’s 1970 smash “We’ve Only Just Begun.” The azygous was nominated for opus of the twelvemonth astatine the pursuing Grammys.

With Williams (and different lyricists), Nichols co-wrote galore of the Carpenters’ astir beloved songs, including “Rainy Days and Mondays,” “I Won’t Last a Day Without You,” “Let Me Be the One” and “I Kept connected Loving You.” Beyond his hits for the Carpenters, Nichols co-wrote songs that were recorded by the Monkees, Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Petula Clark and Art Garfunkel, among galore others.

In a remark connected Williams’ post, Nichols’ girl Claire wrote, “My mom, Terri, and my sisters, Caroline and Caitlin, are each truthful arrogant of the antheral helium was, and are successful awe of the bequest helium leaves.”