Be What You Are
Studio album by
The Staple Singers
ReleasedDecember 8, 1973
Recorded1973
GenreSoul
Length51:56
LabelStax
ProducerAl Bell
The Staple Singers chronology
Be Altitude: Respect Yourself
(1972) 		Be What You Are
(1973) 		City in the Sky
(1974)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]

Be What You Are is a soul album by the Staple Singers, released on December 8, 1973. It reached number 13 on the Billboard Top Soul LPs chart. The first single, "Be What You Are", fared poorly; however, the follow-up, "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)", was a top ten hit, peaking at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the R&B Singles chart. The third single, "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" charting at number 23 on the Hot 100 and number three on the R&B chart in 1974.

Track listing

# Title Writer(s) Time
1 "Be What You Are" Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton 5:03
2 "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)" Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton 4:29
3 "Medley: Love Comes in All Colors/Tellin' Lies" Bettye Crutcher/Carl Smith 8:51
4 "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton 4:04
5 "Drown Yourself" Bettye Crutcher 4:38
6 "I Ain't Raisin' No Sand" Darryl Carter, Mack Rice 6:33
7 "Grandma's Hands" Bill Withers 2:43
8 "Bridges Instead of Walls" Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton 4:04
9 "I'm on Your Side" Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton 4:00
10 "That's What Friends Are For" Parsons, Penney, Mack Rice 4:16
11 "Heaven" Terry Manning 3:36

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1973) Peak
position
Billboard Top LPs[3] 102
Billboard Top Soul LPs[3] 13

Singles

Year Single Chart positions[4]
US
Pop 		US
Soul
1973 "Be What You Are" 66 18
"If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)" 9 1
1974 "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" 23 3

References

  1. ^ Elias, Jason. The Staple Singers: Be What You Are > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 7 October 2011.
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: S". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 13, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ a b "The Staple Singers US albums chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-10-07.
  4. ^ "The Staple Singers US singles chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-10-07.

External links

The Staple Singers
Categories