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Got to Be There (song)

1971 single by Michael Jackson

Field	Value
name	Got to Be There
image	Got to be there by michael jackson UK single solid centre.png
alt	side-A label
caption	Solid centre variant of the UK single
type	single
artist	Michael Jackson
album	Got to Be There
B-side	Maria (You Were the Only One)
released
recorded	June–July 1971
studio	Motown Recording Studios (Los Angeles, California)
length	3:22
label	Motown
writer	Elliot Willensky
producer	Hal Davis
next_title	Rockin' Robin
next_year	1972
misc

| B-side = Maria (You Were the Only One)

"Got to Be There" is the debut solo single by the American singer Michael Jackson, written by Elliot Willensky and released as a single on October 7, 1971, on Motown Records. The song was produced by Hal Davis and recorded at Motown's Hitsville West studios in Hollywood.

The single became an immediate success, reaching number one on Cashbox's pop and R&B singles charts, while reaching number four on Billboard's pop and R&B singles charts. Released to select European countries, it also found success, reaching number five in the UK. The song was composed as a pop ballad with soul and soft rock elements. The song was musically arranged by Dave Blumberg while Willie Hutch produced its vocal arrangements.

Motown label mates the Miracles released their version on their 1972 album Flying High Together, while Diana Ross recorded a version of the song for her unreleased 1973 album To the Baby which was eventually issued as part of the 2010 Expanded edition of her Touch Me in the Morning album. R&B group Black Ivory recorded a version on their 1972 debut album entitled, "Don't Turn Around", which peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard's R&B chart.

A cover version of the song by Chaka Khan from her eponymous fourth solo album reached #5 on the R&B Charts in 1983.

Live performances

Hellzapoppin': Jackson performed "Got to Be There" for the first time at Hellzapoppin' at March 1, 1972 with his brothers, along with Sugar Daddy and Brand New Thing. The performance is about 2 minutes and it included an intro showing a garage door opening revealing the Jackson 5.
Live at the Forum: The performance is similar to the one from Hellzapoppin'. It was recorded on August 26, 1972, and released on June 21, 2010.
The Jackson 5 in Japan: Audio recording from the concert in Japan at April 30, 1973 was released on the album Jackson 5 in Japan. Here, the performance is almost 4 minutes and it had a spoken line for intro.

Personnel

Written and composed by Elliot Willensky
Produced by Hal Davis
Lead vocals by Michael Jackson
Background vocals by Jackie Jackson, Tito Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, and Marlon Jackson
Arrangement by Dave Blumberg
Vocal arrangement by Willie Hutch

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1971–72)	Peak
position	Australian ARIA Singles Chart	Canadian RPM Top Singles	UK Singles Chart	US Billboard Hot 100	US Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles	US Billboard Easy Listening	US Cash Box Top 100
83
3
5
4
4
14
1

Year-end charts

Chart (1971)	Position	Canada
38

Sales

Cover versions

Fellow Motown recording act the Miracles recorded the track for their final studio album, Flying High Together, in 1972.
In 1972, R&B Group, Black Ivory recorded a version on their top R&B 20 debut album, "Don't Turn Around". It was the B-side to their top 40 single, "Time Is Love".
In 1982, Chaka Khan had a top 5 R&B hit version with the song, featured on her self-titled album.
In 1993, George Benson performed the track using his guitar and vocal hums on his 1993 album, Love Remembers.
In 2007, group Boyz II Men covered it for their 2007 release, Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA.

References

(2018). "Michael Jackson All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track". [[Cassell (publisher).
"''Billboard'' Singles". [[All Media Guide]] / [[Billboard (magazine).
"Official Charts Company". [[Official Charts Company]].
"Hellzapoppin' {{!}} Live performance recording details".
Bradock Michael Jackson. (2010-11-26). "Got to Be There (Hellzapoppin - 01-03-1972)".
"Live At The Forum {{!}} Album information".
"In Japan! {{!}} Album information".
Florin Mihalache. (2016-09-07). "The Jackson 5 - Got To Be There (Live In Japan) [Audio HQ] HD".
(30 September 2021). "Michael Jackson Chart History (Hot 100)". [[Billboard (magazine).
(1972-01-01). "Cash Box Top 100 1/01/72".
"Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca.
(2003). "Michael Jackson the Solo Years". Authors On Line.
"Black Ivory".
"Black Ivory".

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1971-songs 1971-debut-singles michael-jackson-songs song-recordings-produced-by-hal-davis cashbox-number-one-singles pop-ballads rhythm-and-blues-ballads 1970s-ballads motown-singles

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