“I Need To Be In Love” by The Carpenters
This song is based on the romantic discontent of the vocalist. That is to say that she is very much down with the idea of falling in love and has “pockets full of good intentions” which is looking forward to endowing on that special someone. However the reality of the situation is that special someone, as of the present, does not exist. In other words she has yet to meet him.
And as such she is exclaiming that she ‘needs to be in love’. For as alluded to earlier she has a whole lot of love to give. Moreover, she feels that she has already “wasted too much time” playing the singles’ game. So now she desires someone akin to a serious, long-term partner. And in its entirety this song is an expression of that longing.
Facts about “I Need To Be In Love”
One half of the Carpenters, Richard Carpenter, co-wrote “I Need to Be in Love” along with John Bettis and Albert Hammond. And Richard also served as the producer of the track.
Moreover Richard Carpenter has noted that this was actually the favorite Carpenters’ song of his sister and musical partner, the late Karen Carpenter (1950-1983).
When this song was first released, it fared impressively on music charts. For instance, it topped Billboard’s Easy Listening list in the United States and the RPM Adult Contemporary chart in Canada. And overall it charted in five countries, including appearing on the UK Singles Chart and Japanese Singles Chart. However, it peaked in popularity, specifically in Japan, in 1995 when it served as the theme song to a mini-series entitled “ Miseinen”. That time around, it peaked at number five in the country and went on to be certified Gold in the Land of the Rising Sun.
The sad reality is that Karen never found a long-lasting romantic relationship with any man, let alone in her disastrous marriage to Tom Burris, so it makes this song extra poignant and tragic.