Created by Bernard Slade, the series was inspired by and loosely based on The Cowsills, a real singing family in the late sixties. In fact, in its early development the Cowsill children were approached to be featured on the show, though that idea was quickly discarded (The Cowsills rejected the offer when producers wanted to replace their real-life mother Barbara in the cast). The show starred Shirley Jones as mother Shirley Partridge and David Cassidy (Jones' real-life stepson) as her son Keith. The remaining Partridge children were played by Susan Dey as Laurie, Danny Bonaduce as Danny, Jeremy Gelbwaks (replaced after one year by Brian Forster) as Chris, and Suzanne Crough as Tracy Partridge. Dave Madden played Reuben Kincaid, who was their manager and family friend.
The back of the bus, became an icon for the show, due to its Mondrianesque paint design.
The Partridge Family was produced for ABC by Screen Gems television, which was just finishing its run with The Monkees, another show about a fictional music group. The company promoted the success of the show by releasing a series of albums featuring the music of the family band, though most cast members did not actually play on the recordings. A group of studio singers and musicians, led by producer Wes Farrell actually created the Partridge Family sound. Although he was originally cast with the intent to lip sync, just weeks into production David Cassidy convinced Farrell he could sing, and was allowed to join the studio ensemble as the lead singer. Several songs were made without Cassidy as lead, they were featured in some of the early episodes and on the first album. He and Shirley Jones, who sang background, were the only cast members who were actually featured on the recordings. The whole cast would lip sync to the recordings when they performed on each episode, though it was obvious to most viewers that the actors were lip-synching, The Partridge Family became an instant success, not only as a TV show, but as a band that produced actual hit songs.
The Partridge Family's biggest hit came in 1970 with the song "I Think I Love You," which began climbing the Billboard chart in September and peaked at number one in December of that year. The companion LP, "The Partridge Family Album" reached number four. Other Partridge Family singles including, "I'll Meet You Halfway", "Doesn't Somebody Want To Be Wanted", and "I Woke Up in Love This Morning" would also chart high on the Billboard chart. The theme songs "When We're Singing", and its successor "C'Mon, Get Happy" were composed by Danny Janssen and Wes Farrell.
The title card for the pilot episode of The Partridge Family was, "What? and Get Out of Show Business?".
As the show and associated merchandizing took off, David Cassidy became an overnight teen idol. Cassidy launched a solo singing career, touring with his own group of musicians and performing Partridge Family songs as well as hits from his own albums. In the midst of his overwhelming rise to fame, Cassidy soon grew tired of the show. In the summer of 1972 he gave a very candid interview to Rolling Stone magazine in which he attempted to distance himself from the squeaky-clean image of Keith Partridge.
By the fourth season, due to declining ratings and Cassidy's looming departure, a feeble effort was made by the producers to breathe new life into the show. They introduced a precocious 4-year-old neighbor named "Ricky Stevens" played by Ricky Segall to occasionally sing children's songs with the band. To no avail, the ABC network moved the show from its 8:30 Friday night slot to Saturday at 8:00, directly opposite the hit All in the Family, against which they knew it would not survive. The show was cancelled, after 96 episodes and ten Partridge Family albums.
The Partridge Family had a brief resurgence in animated form, which saw the family propelled into the future. The animated Partridge Family first appeared when the kids did a series of guest spots on "Goober and the Ghost Chasers". That idea evolved into a CBS Saturday morning Hanna-Barbera-produced cartoon, "Partridge Family 2200 A.D.". It featured new characters Veenie (Keith's Venusian friend) and Marion (Laurie's Martian friend). Danny had a pet robot dog named Orbit. Shirley Jones and David Cassidy did not voice their animated counterparts, and Susan Dey and Dave Madden had very limited involvement with this series. Sixteen half-hour installments were produced for the animated series, which lasted for half a season on CBS Saturday morning (September 7, 1974 - March 8, 1975); on the syndicated Fred Flintstone and Friends, it was retitled The Partridge Family in Outer Space.
Nickelodeon featured a heavily publicized run of the original series in the early- to mid-90s, along with the Brady Bunch, as part of its Nick-At-Nite line-up. The network used interviews and commercials featuring cast members, and even created a new version of the Mondrian-esque Family bus for promotion.
In 2000 two different made-for-TV movies aired on different networks; Both "Come On Get Happy" and "The David Cassidy Story" attempted to tell the story behind the series. While the movies were criticized as being somewhat inaccurate, they did recreate some of the imagery and music from the original series. "Come On Get Happy" even featured another replication of the bus, which was later auctioned off on eBay.
A modernized version of the bus was created for a new promotion in 2004, when VH1 premiered In Search of The New Partridge Family. This talent competition in the format of American Idol sought a new cast for a contemporary version of the sitcom. The elimination type program aired seven episodes in which a panel of judges selected a new Partridge Family cast from auditioners across the country. The resulting pilot episode of The New Partridge Family aired in January of 2005, but due to low ratings VH1 opted not to produce any more episodes.
The first two seasons of the original series were released as of October 2005 on DVD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Also, at the same time Arista Records released a new music compilation, "Come On Get Happy!: The Very Best of The Partridge Family," which included four previously unreleased tracks.
Despite the prefabricated nature of the "band", the Partridge Family's records were some of the best arranged and produced of their day. Much care was given not only to the overall sound, but even to show that sound would translate to AM radio, then the major outlet for pop music. The writing was equally good, at least on the early albums. However, as ratings and record sales began to drop, so did the quality of the material.
Maybe Someday
The Partridge Family Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I knew you were the one,
Who gave me somethin to believe in
We can feel it but we know
We can't let our feelings show,
"No Good," that's what they say about me,
No good, they'll never understand,
Maybe someday, we can find a way to be together,
Baby someday, they'll leave us alone,
Maybe someday, there may be some way
We can sing our songs together,
Don't you worry what they say,
'Cause with every passing day,
We get closer to tomorrow,
And tomorrow we'll be free,
To be what we want to be,
They say, "He's really not your kind,"
"Look out, you know that love is blind,"
"Look out," But they don't really see
Maybe someday, we can find a way to be together,
Baby someday, they'll leave us alone,
Maybe someday, there may be some way
We can sing our songs together,
Maybe someday, we can find a way to be together,
Baby someday, they'll leave us alone,
Maybe someday, there may be some way
We can sing our songs together.
The Partridge Family's song "Maybe Someday" talks about a blossoming love between two people who are from different backgrounds and are facing societal disapproval. The song's lyrics describe how the two individuals feel about each other, and how they struggle with their emotions since they can't be together in the present. The line "You came like the mornin' sun, and I knew you were the one who gave me somethin to believe in" is indicative of how the other person has brought light into the singer's life and made them feel hopeful about their future.
The lyrics also mention the constant scrutiny and criticisms they both face from others who don't approve of their relationship. The lines "No Good," that's what they say about me, You should try and live without me, No good, they'll never understand," highlight the emotional impact of such criticism. However, the chorus of the song offers a glimmer of hope for the two as they sing that "Maybe someday, we can find a way to be together."
The lyrics of "Maybe Someday" show how love can overcome societal prejudices and boundaries. The song offers hope for people in similar situations and encourages them to hold on to their love and trust that they will find a way to be happy.
Line by Line Meaning
You came like the mornin' sun,
Your arrival was impactful and bright, it gave me hope.
And I knew you were the one,
From the moment we met, I realized you were the person I had been waiting for.
Who gave me somethin to believe in
You provided me with a sense of purpose and optimism.
We can feel it but we know
We are aware of the deep connection we share.
We can't let our feelings show,
We need to hide our affection due to outside pressures.
"No Good," that's what they say about me,
Others have a negative opinion of me.
You should try and live without me,
Some believe that you would be better off without me in your life.
No good, they'll never understand,
People will never have a full comprehension of our relationship.
Maybe someday, we can find a way to be together,
One day, we hope to overcome obstacles and be together.
Baby someday, they'll leave us alone,
Eventually, people will stop interfering with our relationship.
Maybe someday, there may be some way
There is still a chance that we can make this work in the future.
We can sing our songs together,
We can express ourselves and share our passions with one another.
Don't you worry what they say,
You don't need to concern yourself with what others are saying.
'Cause with every passing day,
We are getting closer to our goals.
We get closer to tomorrow,
Each day brings us closer to a brighter future.
And tomorrow we'll be free,
We will be liberated from the constraints that hold us back.
To be what we want to be,
We will be able to be ourselves without judgement or interference.
They say, "He's really not your kind,"
People believe that we are incompatible.
"Look out, you know that love is blind,"
Others caution us about the perils of being in love.
"Look out," But they don't really see
Despite their warnings, they don't truly understand our situation.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: AUSTIN ROBERTS, JOHN MICHAEL HILL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind