R&B number-one hits of 1972 (USA)
Encyclopedia
These are the Billboard magazine R&B singles chart number one hits of 1972:
See also: 1972 in music
, List of number-one R&B hits (United States)
See also: 1972 in music
1972 in music
-Events:*January 17 – Highway 51 South in Memphis, Tennessee is renamed "Elvis Presley Boulevard"*January 20 – The début of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon at The Dome, Brighton, is halted by technical difficulties,...
, List of number-one R&B hits (United States)
| Issue Date | Song | Artist |
| January 1 | Family Affair Family Affair (Sly & the Family Stone song) "Family Affair" is a 1971 number-one hit single recorded by Sly & the Family Stone for the Epic Records label. Their first new material since the double a-sided single "Thank You "/ "Everybody is a Star" nearly two years prior, "Family Affair" became the fourth and final number-one pop hit for the... |
Sly & the Family Stone Sly & the Family Stone Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music... |
| January 8 | Let's Stay Together Let's Stay Together (song) "Let's Stay Together" is a song by Al Green on his 1972 album of the same name. Released as a single in 1971, the song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and remained on the chart for 16 weeks and also topped Billboards R&B chart for nine weeks. It was ranked the 60th greatest song of all time... |
Al Green Al Green Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"... |
| January 15 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| January 22 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| January 29 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| February 5 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| February 12 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| February 19 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| February 26 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| March 4 | Let's Stay Together | Al Green |
| March 11 | Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing (Pt. 1) Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing" is a funk song by James Brown and Bobby Byrd. Recorded on October 1, 1970, at Bobby Smith Studios in Macon, Georgia, it was first released as an edited two-part single on King Records that same year, but was quickly withdrawn. The single received a full release on... |
James Brown |
| March 18 | I Gotcha I Gotcha (Joe Tex song) "I Gotcha" is a song by Joe Tex. Tex originally intended for the song to be recorded by King Floyd, but Floyd never recorded a version of it. Instead, Tex went ahead and recorded it himself in the late 1960s, but ended up not releasing it... |
Joe Tex Joe Tex Joseph Arrington, Jr. , better known as "Joe Tex", was an American Southern soul singer-songwriter, most popular during the 1960s and 1970s... |
| March 25 | In the Rain In the Rain (song) "In the Rain" is a 1972 soul single by American vocal group The Dramatics. Released from their debut album, Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get, it reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and spent four weeks at number one on the Best Selling Soul Singles chart. It is the group's biggest... |
The Dramatics The Dramatics The Dramatics are an American soul music vocal group, formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1962. They are best known for their 1970s hit songs "In the Rain" and "Whatcha See is Whatcha Get", both of which were #1 R&B and Top 10 Pop hits.-Career:The Dramatics originally formed in 1962 recording as the... |
| April 1 | In the Rain | The Dramatics |
| April 8 | In the Rain | The Dramatics |
| April 15 | In the Rain | The Dramatics |
| April 22 | Day Dreaming | Aretha Franklin Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All... |
| April 29 | Day Dreaming | Aretha Franklin |
| May 6 | I'll Take You There I'll Take You There "I'll Take You There" is a number-one single written and produced by Al Bell and performed by soul/gospel family band The Staple Singers, released on Stax Records in February 1972... |
The Staple Singers The Staple Singers The Staple Singers were an American gospel, soul, and R&B singing group. Roebuck "Pops" Staples , the patriarch of the family, formed the group with his children Cleotha , Pervis , Yvonne , and Mavis... |
| May 13 | I'll Take You There | The Staple Singers |
| May 20 | I'll Take You There | The Staple Singers |
| May 27 | I'll Take You There | The Staple Singers |
| June 3 | Oh Girl Oh Girl "Oh Girl" is a number-one single recorded by the soul vocal group, The Chi-Lites and released on Brunswick Records in 1972. Included on the group's 1972 album A Lonely Man, "Oh Girl" centers around a relationship on the verge of break-up... |
The Chi-Lites The Chi-Lites The Chi-Lites are a Chicago-based smooth soul vocal quartet from the early 1970s, one of the few from the period not to come from Memphis or Philadelphia... |
| June 10 | Oh Girl | The Chi-Lites |
| June 17 | Woman's Gotta Have It Woman's Gotta Have It (song) "Woman's Gotta Have It" is a song written by Darryl Carter, Bobby Womack and Linda Womack. Released as a single from Bobby's 1972 album Understanding, it reached number one on the R&B chart and peaked at number 60 on the pop chart in the US. The idea for the song came from a marital situation that... |
Bobby Womack Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne "Bobby" Womack is an American singer-songwriter and musician. An active recording artist since the early 1960s where he started his career as the lead singer of his family musical group The Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guitarist, Womack's career has spanned more than 40... |
| June 24 | Lean On Me Lean on Me (song) "Lean on Me" is a song written and released by Bill Withers in 1972.It was his first and only number one on both the soul singles and the Billboard Hot 100. It is ranked number 205 on the Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Numerous cover versions have been recorded, and it is one of... |
Bill Withers Bill Withers William Harrison "Bill" Withers, Jr. is an American singer-songwriter and musician who performed and recorded from 1970 until 1985. Some of his best-known songs are "Lean on Me", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Use Me", "Just the Two of Us", "Lovely Day", and "Grandma's Hands"... |
| July 1 | Outa-Space Outa-Space "Outa-Space" is a Funk/R&B instrumental recorded by Billy Preston that originally appeared on his 1971 A&M Records-debut album, "I Wrote a Simple Song". Preston created the sound of "Outa-Space" by running the sound from a clavinet through a wah wah pedal and then improvising a groove while calling... |
Billy Preston Billy Preston William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from... |
| July 8 | (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right " I Don't Want to Be Right" is a soul song written by Stax Records songwriters Homer Banks, Carl Hampton and Raymond Jackson. It has been performed by many singers, most notably by Luther Ingram, whose version topped the R&B chart for four weeks and rose to number three on the Billboard Hot 100... |
Luther Ingram Luther Ingram Luther Ingram was an American R&B and soul singer and songwriter.-Career:Born Luther Thomas Ingram in Jackson, Tennessee, his early interest in music led to him making his first record in 1965 at the age of 28. His first three recordings failed to chart but that changed when he signed for KoKo... |
| July 15 | (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right | Luther Ingram |
| July 22 | (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right | Luther Ingram |
| July 29 | (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right | Luther Ingram |
| August 5 | Where Is the Love | Roberta Flack Roberta Flack Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music... and Donny Hathaway Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway was an American soul singer-songwriter and musician. Hathaway contracted with Atlantic Records in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto, Part I" in early 1970, Rolling Stone magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music."His collaborations... |
| August 12 | I'm Still in Love With You I'm Still in Love with You (Al Green song) "I'm Still in Love With You" is a song originally recorded by Al Green. Released from the album of the same title, the single spent two weeks at #1 on the Hot Soul Singles chart in April 1972. It also peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart that same year... |
Al Green |
| August 19 | I'm Still in Love With You | Al Green |
| August 26 | Power of Love Power of Love (Joe Simon song) Power Of Love is a 1972 release by Joe Simon. The single was his second to hit #1 on the R&B charts, where it was at the top spot for two weeks. "Power Of Love" also made onto the Top 20 on the Pop charts, where it was one of Joe Simon most successful cross over singles.... |
Joe Simon Joe Simon (musician) Joe Simon is an American chart-topping, Grammy Award winning, soul and R&B musician. Amongst other chart singles, Simon secured three number one hits on the US Billboard R&B chart between 1969 and 1975.-Career:... |
| September 2 | Power of Love | Joe Simon |
| September 9 | Back Stabbers Back Stabbers (song) "Back Stabbers" is the second single from the 1979 album Love Explosion by Tina Turner.The song, along with the other two singles released from Love Explosion, was largely disco-oriented and was overlooked by audiences both in Europe and the United States due to the so called "anti-disco backlash"... |
The O'Jays The O'Jays The O'Jays are an American R&B group from Canton, Ohio, formed in 1963 and originally consisting of Eddie Levert , Walter Williams , William Powell , Bobby Massey and Bill Isles. The O'Jays were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2004, and The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005... |
| September 16 | Get On the Good Foot Get on the Good Foot "Get on the Good Foot" is a funk song performed by James Brown. It was released in 1972 as a two-part single and became a number one R&B hit and also peaked at number eighteen on the Hot 100..The song was also included on the double album of the same name released that year.The song's co-writer... |
James Brown |
| September 23 | Get On the Good Foot | James Brown |
| September 30 | Get On the Good Foot | James Brown |
| October 7 | Get On the Good Foot | James Brown |
| October 14 | I'll Be Around | The Spinners |
| October 21 | I'll Be Around | The Spinners |
| October 28 | I'll Be Around | The Spinners |
| November 4 | I'll Be Around | The Spinners |
| November 11 | I'll Be Around | The Spinners |
| November 18 | If You Don't Know Me by Now If You Don't Know Me By Now "If You Don't Know Me by Now" is a song written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and recorded by the jersey soul musical group Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, which became their first hit after being released as a single in 1972 topping the R&B chart and peaking at number three on the Pop chart.The... |
Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes were an American singing group, one of the most popular Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s. The group's repertoire included soul, R&B, doo-wop, and disco... |
| November 25 | If You Don't Know Me by Now | Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes |
| December 2 | You Ought to Be With Me You Ought to Be With Me "You Ought to Be with Me" is the name of a song by Al Green. Released from his album, Call Me, the single spent a week at number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart. It was also successful on the pop chart, peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in late 1972. It sold over one... |
Al Green |
| December 9 | Me and Mrs. Jones Me and Mrs. Jones "Me and Mrs. Jones" is a soul song written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. It describes an extramarital affair between a man and his lover, Mrs. Jones. It has been recorded by Billy Paul and Michael Bublé, amongst others.-Billy Paul version:"Me and Mrs... |
Billy Paul Billy Paul Billy Paul is a Grammy Award winning American soul singer, most known for his 1972 number-one single, "Me and Mrs. Jones" as well as the 1973 album and single "War of the Gods" which blends his more conventional pop, soul and funk styles with electronic and psychedelic influences... |
| December 16 | Me and Mrs. Jones | Billy Paul |
| December 23 | Me and Mrs. Jones | Billy Paul |
| December 30 | Me and Mrs. Jones | Billy Paul |
Chart comparisons
- Five songs went to number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: "Let's Stay Together," "Oh Girl," "I'll Take You There," "Lean on Me" and "Me and Mrs. Jones."