<Li> "I Kept on Loving You" </Li> <Li> "Another Song" </Li> <P> "(They Long to Be) Close to You" is a popular song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, most notably recorded and performed by the Carpenters . </P> <P> The song was first recorded by Richard Chamberlain and released as a single in 1963 as "They Long to Be Close to You", without parentheses . However, only that single's flip side, "Blue Guitar", became a hit . The tune was also recorded as a demo by Dionne Warwick in 1963 and re-recorded with a Burt Bacharach arrangement for her 1964 album Make Way for Dionne Warwick, and was released as the B - side of her 1965 single "Here I Am". Bacharach released his own version in 1968 . But the version recorded by Carpenters with instrumental backing by L.A. studio musicians from the Wrecking Crew, which became a hit in 1970, is the best known . </P>

Who wrote they long to be close to you