I'll Be There (Jackson 5 song)

Release and reaction

In his 1988 autobiography Moonwalk, Michael Jackson noted that "I'll Be There" was the song that solidified The Jackson 5's careers and showed audiences that the group had potential beyond bubblegum pop. Said Allmusic about the song, "Rarely, if ever, had one so young sung with so much authority and grace, investing this achingly tender ballad with wisdom and understanding far beyond his years". Michael turned 12 one day after the song was released.

Record World said that the "change of pace [in using a slower tempo song than usual] showcases the group's versatility."

The most successful single ever released by the Jackson 5, "I'll Be There" sold 4.2 million copies in the United States, and 6.1 million copies worldwide. It replaced Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" as the most successful single released on Motown in the US, a record it held until the release of Lionel Richie's duet with Diana Ross, "Endless Love" (1981). Outside the US, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" remained Motown's biggest-selling record with worldwide sales of over seven million copies.

The song held the number-one position on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart for five weeks from October 17 to November 14, replacing "Cracklin' Rosie" by Neil Diamond; it was succeeded by "I Think I Love You" by The Partridge Family. "I'll Be There" was also a number-one hit on the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles Chart for six weeks, and a number 4 hit in the United Kingdom. The single's B-side was "One More Chance", a song from their second album.

"I'll Be There" was the Jackson 5's final number-one Hot 100 hit as a group. For the rest of their career as a major-label act, Jackson 5 singles would climb no higher than number 2. Michael Jackson scored numerous number-one hits as a solo artist, beginning with "Ben" in 1972. In 2020, Busta Rhymes released a song titled “Look Over Your Shoulders” featuring vocals from Kendrick Lamar, sampling “I’ll Be There”.

The song was remixed by Wayne Wilkins for the 2009 release The Remix Suite.

In 2011, this version of the song by The Jackson 5 on Motown Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Personnel

• Michael Jackson – lead and background vocals
• Jermaine Jackson – lead and background vocals
• Tito Jackson – background vocals
• Marlon Jackson – background vocals
• Jackie Jackson – background vocals, tambourine
• Los Angeles area studio musicians – instrumentation
  • David T. Walker – guitar
  • Louis Shelton – guitar
  • Arthur Wright – guitar
  • Bob West – bass
  • Gene Pello – drums
  • Joe Sample – keyboards
• Produced by Hal Davis
• Arranged by Bob West

Charts

Weekly singles

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Mariah Carey version

| B-side =

• "So Blessed"
• "Vanishing"
• "All in Your Mind"
• "If It's Over"
• Pop
• R&B
• soul
• 4:42 (original album version)
• 4:24 (video edit)
• Berry Gordy
• Bob West
• Willie Hutch
• Hal Davis
• Mariah Carey
• Walter Afanasieff

American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey had included "I'll Be There" as a last-minute addition to her MTV Unplugged setlist, after she had been informed that most acts on the show commonly perform at least one cover. "I'll Be There" was the sixth track on Carey's MTV Unplugged special, taped on March 16, 1992. It was performed as a romantic duet, with Carey singing Michael Jackson's lines and R&B singer Trey Lorenz singing Jermaine Jackson's lines. The program and resulting MTV Unplugged album were produced by Carey and Walter Afanasieff, who played the piano for the performance. Boyz II Men's Wanya Morris sang the song with Carey in the concert home video, Fantasy: Mariah Carey at Madison Square Garden. The song is composed in common time and has a moderate tempo of 84 beats per minute. Carey's vocal range spans two octaves and three semitones from the low note of D3 to the high note of F5.

The MTV Unplugged special aired on May 20, 1992, and was a notable success. Carey's label, Columbia Records, received many requests to release "I'll Be There" as a single, which had not been planned. A radio edit of the song was created which removed dialogue portions of the performance, and "I'll Be There" was released as a single. In the US, the song was issued with "So Blessed" as a B-side; in the United Kingdom, the "I'll Be There" single included the live version of "Vision of Love", and the album versions of "If It's Over" and "All in Your Mind".

"I'll Be There" was nominated for the 1993 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best R&B Song, losing both categories to Boyz II Men's "End of the Road". The "I'll Be There" music video, directed by Larry Jordan, was compiled from footage of Carey's MTV Unplugged appearance.

During Michael Jackson's memorial service on July 7, 2009, Carey and Lorenz sang their rendition of the song in tribute to Jackson 17 years after their first performance together.

Regularly, "I'll Be There" has been featured on Carey's catalog albums included on #1's (1998), Greatest Hits (2001), The Ballads (2008), The Essential Mariah Carey (2011), and #1 to Infinity (2015).

Critical reception

AllMusic editor Shawn M. Haney highlighted it and wrote, "...the power and esteem of these tales lift to new heights and remain at a peak with the breathtaking, moment-making performance of "I'll Be There"." Larry Flick from Billboard magazine stated that Carey "delivers an astonishingly restrained and soulful rendition". He added, "She is complemented by rich vocal support from Epic newcomer Trey Lorenz." An editor from Entertainment Weekly wrote that Mariah turned this song into a "killer duet." In 2018, the magazine called it a "revelation", noting that she "made it utterly her own."

Track listing

• Worldwide CD single

1. "I'll Be There"
2. "So Blessed"

• European CD maxi-single

1. "I'll Be There"
2. "So Blessed"
3. "Vanishing"

• UK CD maxi-single

1. "I'll Be There"
2. "Vision of Love" (live)
3. "If It's Over"
4. "All in Your Mind"

Chart performance

After the underperformance of "Make It Happen" compared to her previous singles, "I'll Be There" was a return to form for Carey: it became her sixth number-one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and allayed any concerns her record label had about her career in decline. "I'll Be There" was the number-one song on the Hot 100 for two weeks, from June 13, 1992, to June 27. It replaced "Jump" by Kris Kross, and was itself replaced by "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot. It became number-one on the US Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks. In fact, it is the only single released from the MTV Unplugged series that hit number-one. As of 2026, it remains as Carey's only single from her nineteen US chart-toppers not to be written by herself.

"I'll Be There" was Carey's breakthrough hit outside North America, becoming her most successful single in numerous markets. It topped the Canadian Singles Chart for two weeks, and became her first number-one single in the Netherlands for three weeks, and her second in New Zealand for five weeks. It also became her biggest hit at the time in the United Kingdom (where it hit number 2) and Australia (where it reached number 9). It peaked inside the top 20 in most markets across Europe, where Carey's success had previously been limited.

The song has sold a total of 345,000 copies in the UK.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

Arthur Hanlon version

• Berry Gordy
• Bob West
• Willie Hutch
• Hal Davis
• Arthur Hanlon
• David Cabrera

In 2013, American pianist Arthur Hanlon covered the song in bachata with Dominican guest singer Karlos Rosé as the lead vocalist. Their cover was recorded in Spanglish and will be included on Hanlon's Encanto del Caribe tour. The song was produced by Hanlon and David Cabera.

Charts

References

References

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