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.
Something New Got Old
The Partridge Family Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Something right for oh-so long turned out so wrong
You don't have to say goodbye, I can read between the lines
Little things you say and do let me know I'm losing you
And when friends all ask about you just like friends will sometimes do
They wonder why you've gone away, the only thing I know to say is
Something right for oh-so long turned out so wrong
Girl, I've had my share of takers, go-betweens, and promise breakers
Starting over where I landed always came up empty handed
Ah, but when it came to you, to me, your kind of love was new
Happiness and always giving, something new to keep me living
Never thought you'd let me down
Always said you'd be around
Something new got old, something warm grew cold
Something new got old, something warm grew cold
The Partridge Family's song Something New Got Old tells a story about a relationship that has lost its spark. The lyrics describe how something that was once new and exciting has become routine and dull, and how something that was once warm and comfortable has grown cold. The singer seems to be aware that their partner is pulling away, and they are struggling with the feelings of loss and confusion that come from watching the person they love drift away.
The song's chorus is particularly poignant, as the singer laments the loss of something that was once so right. They don't want to say goodbye, but they can feel their partner slipping away. The little things that their partner says and does are telling them that the relationship is over, and even their friends are noticing that something has changed. All the singer can do is repeat the phrase "something new got old, something warm grew cold" - a mantra that encapsulates the feeling of disappointment and disillusionment that comes with the end of a relationship.
Overall, Something New Got Old is a touching and relatable song that captures the bittersweet nature of love and loss. The lyrics are simple and straightforward, but they pack a powerful emotional punch, and the melody and instrumentation create a wistful and nostalgic mood that perfectly complements the melancholy lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Something new got old, something warm grew cold
Something that was once new and exciting has become dull and tiresome, and something that used to be comforting and affectionate has turned distant and indifferent.
Something right for oh-so long turned out so wrong
A once solid and sure thing has unexpectedly gone awry, causing disappointment and confusion.
You don't have to say goodbye, I can read between the lines
Despite not explicitly saying it, it's evident that the relationship is coming to an end, and there's no need to formally end it.
Little things you say and do let me know I'm losing you
The small actions and words of the other person indicates that their feelings have changed and the artist is losing their love.
And when friends all ask about you just like friends will sometimes do
When the artist's friends ask about the other person as friends often do, the artist struggles to provide a satisfactory answer about why they've left.
They wonder why you've gone away, the only thing I know to say is
The singer's friends ask why the other person has left, but the singer doesn't know the reason and can't give an answer.
Girl, I've had my share of takers, go-betweens, and promise breakers
The singer has been in many relationships where the other person was selfish, insincere, and didn't keep their word.
Starting over where I landed always came up empty handed
Whenever the artist tried to start over again, it always ended up being unproductive and unsuccessful.
Ah, but when it came to you, to me, your kind of love was new
The other person's love was different from the others, and it was new and refreshing to the artist.
Happiness and always giving, something new to keep me living
The other person's love brought happiness and generosity to the artist, and it gave them a renewed purpose for living.
Never thought you'd let me down, always said you'd be around
The singer believed that the other person would always be there for them, and they never expected to be let down by them.
Something new got old, something warm grew cold
The repetition of the opening line emphasizes how the situation has deteriorated, and the once new and warm affection has become stale and chilly.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: BOBBY HART, WES FARRELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind