A demo for the song was initially sent to Richard Carpenter by Williams and Nichols. Upon hearing it, Richard felt that the song was perfect for him and Karen Carpenter to record. The song was recorded a few weeks before Karen’s 21st birthday. Richard wanted to keep the song’s arrangement sparse in order to showcase her vocal talent.[4]
“Rainy Days and Mondays” peaked at number 2 on the BillboardHot 100 chart, spending seven weeks in the Top 10, and was kept from number 1 by "It's Too Late"/"I Feel the Earth Move" by Carole King.[4] The song was also the duo's fourth number 1 single on the Adult Contemporary singles chart.[5] However, the song failed to chart in the United Kingdom until it went to number 63 in a reissue there in 1993. "Rainy Days and Mondays" was certified Gold by the RIAA for 500,000 copies sold in the United States.
