1975 Beloved Love Song by the Carpenters Was Considered a Flop-Until It Took Off on the Charts
What started with little confidence from its own creators quickly proved everyone wrong, as the Carpenters' tender love song climbed the charts and became one of their most enduring hits.
"Only Yesterday" was released in March of 1975. By June of that year, it reached a Billboard chart high of No. 4 and remained on the charts for 13 weeks.
The song was included on the 1975 LP album Horizon. The brother-sister duo's sixth album also included the hits "Please Mr. Postman" and "Solitaire," reported U Discover Music.
However, the song's composers, Richard Carpenter and longtime collaborator John Bettis, didn't think "Only Yesterday" would become a hit. Reportedly, Carpenter and Bettis were so sure the song wouldn't succeed, they placed a thousand-dollar bet with their recording engineer, Roger Young, that the song wouldn't top the charts, which they ultimately lost.
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Carpenter spoke of his songwriting process with Bettis in an interview for Songwriter Universe. He revealed, "I would come up with a melody, and usually I would hear a title and a couple of words myself. Then I'd get together with John, and I'd play it, and he would write the lyrics and toss some ideas at me, and that's how it happened."
In the comments section of the song's YouTube video, fans reflected on how much "Only Yesterday" and the band's music meant to them. Many shared personal memories and heartfelt praise, noting how the Carpenters' sound continues to resonate across generations.
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"There will never be another Karen Carpenter. The greatest natural female voice that ever was, or will ever be heard by man," wrote one follower.
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"In my opinion, the greatest female singer who ever lived was and is Karen Carpenter. Absolutely, no one else had a voice like Karen. The music she made with her brother Richard is timeless and will touch the hearts of people forever," penned a second social media user.
A third fan claimed, "The purest voice ever. None of today's female singers are even close."
"Only Yesterday" not only cracked the Billboard Top 100, but it also became a Top 5 global single. The song was the Carpenters' twelfth and last Top 10 hit.
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This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 5:39 AM.