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.
Story Book Love
The Partridge Family Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A fantasy world where we love one another,
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other
But I feel you lookin at me,
And in your eyes it's plain to see,
One day soon we both will be much more than friends
It's a storybook love
And that's all and that's all,
A fantasy world where we love one another,
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other
But I already know,
How much I'm gonna love you so,
I feel it inside me even though it hasn't happened yet,
So all we get
Is a storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A fantasy world where we love one another,
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other
My imagination starts a racin' when I think of you
Well it's a fairy tale right now,
But you could make it all come true
It's a storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A fantasy world where we love one another,
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other
But I feel you're lookin' at me,
And in your eyes it's plain to see,
One day we both will be much more than friends,
But until then
It's a storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A fantasy world where we love one another,
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other.
The Partridge Family's sentimental song Storybook Love is about the wonderful feeling of falling in love for the first time. The lyrics describe the blissful illusion of a storybook-like love between two people who barely know each other. It's a fairy tale for now, but they both sense that their connection will lead to much more as time goes by.
The song's protagonist is head over heels from the very beginning of this budding relationship. They feel that special connection when they look into each other's eyes, revealing that there is something more significant between them than just friendship. Despite not knowing each other well at the start, the singer is confident that they will love each other very much. These sentiments speak to the universal feeling of hope and expectation in a new relationship, with the lyrics painting the picture of a love that is fun, innocent, and full of possibilities.
As for the meaning behind the song, it's a heartfelt declaration of the feeling of falling in love. The song's idyllic vision of love and its innocence is especially relatable to those in the early stages of a relationship, making it a popular choice for those looking for a beautiful, gentle love story.
Line by Line Meaning
We've got a storybook love and that's all and that's all,
Our love is like a storybook, a fictional tale that we have created and it's all we have right now.
A fantasy world where we love one another,
Our love is set in a fantastical world, where it's just the two of us and our feelings for each other.
A storybook love and that's all and that's all,
Our love is like a storybook and there's nothing else to it, yet.
A boy and a girl who hardly know each other
We are just beginning to get to know each other and our feelings are still new.
But I feel you lookin at me,
I sense you are interested in me and there are feelings brewing beneath the surface.
And in your eyes it's plain to see,
I can tell by the way you look at me that you feel something too.
One day soon we both will be much more than friends
We will move beyond friendship and explore a romantic relationship.
But until then
For now, we will cherish our storybook love and enjoy the feelings we have for each other.
But I already know,
I am confident and certain of my feelings for you.
How much I'm gonna love you so,
I know that I will love you deeply and passionately in the future.
I feel it inside me even though it hasn't happened yet,
My feelings for you are so strong that I can feel them deep within me, even though we haven't officially become a couple yet.
So all we get
This is all we have for now, our storybook love is our reality for the present moment.
My imagination starts a racin' when I think of you
You inspire my imagination and I daydream about what our future could hold.
Well it's a fairy tale right now,
Our love might seem too good to be true, like a fairytale that hasn't quite come to fruition yet.
But you could make it all come true
But I believe you have the power to make our storybook love a reality.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@marylounelson4460
David's breathy, powerful voice is awesome here. He paints a wonderful picture. My all-time favourite singer. I could watch him all day, that smile just melts your heart.
@cebukatiekat
How could I disagree? x
@didiwongo
Magical breathy delicate and strong all at the same time. Such were the vocal talents of David Cassidy. Rest In Peace dear David. Your fans will never forget you 💕
@didiwongo
David Cassidy was the best of the best. He sings this simple song so beautifully and makes it unforgettable... that is true talent, may he Rest In Peace and thanks so much for sharing this 🙂
@tina_mariemurphy9410
I think many of the partridge family songs were very beautiful how could they not be with David Cassidy singing them .The greatest singer ever .⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🎸⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🎸⭐🎸🎸🎸🎸
@patriciacoxson3180
Love David Cassdiy in the 70s on the P Family Show. Thank you for the Memories. David has brought laughter music voice smile hair eyes to us Fans. Cherish David forever 💙💙
@deanadiedrich9304
He Melt my heart away! It hard to believe he's gone...is he?
@DrQuizzler
Another wonderful PF/DC song, showing off his amazing performing style and his silky smooth vocals. Other cool elements were: Laurie on the autoharp, Shirley's backup singing as always. Danny on the guitar looks like he's experimenting with strumming different places on the strings. I wonder if a bunch of people ran out and bought autoharps when this first aired, and I wonder if an autoharp can play all the chords in this song, but it sure looked cool here.
@Bub4055
I heard people would come up to Chris and tell him that he is the reason they took up the drums 🥁
@michelegibson8510
I love this song !!!