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Got to Be There

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Got to Be There
Studio album by
Michael Jackson
ReleasedJanuary 24, 1972
RecordedJune–December 1971[1]
Genres
Length35:45
LabelMotown
Producers
Michael Jackson chronology
Got to Be There
(1972)		 Ben
(1972)
Singles from Got to Be There
  1. "Got to Be There"
    Released: October 7, 1971
  2. "Rockin' Robin"
    Released: February 17, 1972
  3. "I Wanna Be Where You Are"
    Released: May 2, 1972
  4. "Ain't No Sunshine"
    Released: July 3, 1972
  5. "You've Got a Friend"
    Released: 1972 (Turkey and Venezuela)

Got to Be There is the debut solo studio album by American singer Michael Jackson, released by Motown on January 24, 1972,[4] four weeks after the Jackson 5's Greatest Hits (1971). It includes the song of the same name, which was released on October 7, 1971, as Jackson's debut solo single.

On August 2, 2013, the album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies. The album was later remastered and reissued in 2009 as part of the 3-disc compilation Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection.

Background

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The album was arranged by The Corporation, Eddy Manson, James Anthony Carmichael, Gene Page, and Dave Blumberg. Berry Gordy served as Got to Be There's executive producer, while Jim Britt was credited for photography. The album included remakes of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine", Carole King's "You've Got a Friend" and The Supremes' "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone". The album's songs have a tempo ranging from 74 beats per minute on "Ain't No Sunshine" to 170 on "Rockin' Robin."[5]

Promotion

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The title track and "Rockin' Robin," a Bobby Day cover, were released as Got to Be There's first two singles and became back-to-back hits on the US Billboard Hot 100 at number four and number two, respectively. Third single "I Wanna Be Where You Are" peaked at number 16 on the same chart on June 24, 1972. In the United Kingdom, Jackson's version of Withers's "Ain't No Sunshine" was issued as the album's third single. It reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart.[6]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarHalf star[7]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[8]

Writing for Rolling Stone in 1972, the magazine described the album as "slick, artful and every bit as good as the regular The Jackson 5 product," praising Jackson's "sweetly touching voice" and "utter professionalism."[9] In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Rob Theakston rated the album two and a half out of five stars, noting that while the record is "wildly erratic" as a cohesive work, Jackson's covers of "You've Got a Friend" and "Ain't No Sunshine" effectively demonstrate his versatility as a singer.[7] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B+ grade, highlighting the "jaunty" cover of "Rockin' Robin", the "wistful" title track, and the "soaring" "I Wanna Be Where You Are".[8]

Commercial performance

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Got to Be There peaked at number 14 on the US Billboard 200 and number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart upon its release.[10][11] On August 2, 2013, over forty years after its original release, it was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies. In 2009, the album was remastered and reissued as part of the three-disc compilation Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection.[12]

Got to Be There sold over 750,000 copies within the first three weeks of its release, and reached one million copies sold in the US by the end of 1972.[13][14] The album has sold more than 1.5 million copies worldwide.[15]

Track listing

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Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)RecordedLength
1."Ain't No Sunshine"Bill WithersNovember 19714:09
2."I Wanna Be Where You Are"
November 19713:00
3."Girl Don't Take Your Love from Me"Willie HutchNovember 19713:46
4."In Our Small Way"
  • Beatrice Verdi
  • Christine Yarian
December 19713:34
5."Got to Be There"Elliot WillenskyJune – July 19713:23
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)RecordedLength
1."Rockin' Robin"Jimmie ThomasOctober 19712:30
2."Wings of My Love"The CorporationNovember 19713:32
3."Maria (You Were the Only One)"
  • Lawrence Brown
  • Linda Glover
  • George Gordy
  • Allen Story
July – September 19713:41
4."Love Is Here and Now You're Gone"Holland-Dozier-HollandDecember 19712:51
5."You've Got a Friend"Carole KingNovember 19714:45

Charts

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Weekly chart performance for Got to Be There
Chart (1972) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[16]121
UK Albums (Official Charts)[17]37
US Billboard 200[10]14
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[11]3

Certifications

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Certifications for Got to Be There
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[18] Gold 750,000[13]

References

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  1. ↑ Lecocq, Richard; Allard, François (2018). "Bad". Michael Jackson All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. London, England: Cassell. ISBN 978-1-78840-057-2.
  2. ↑ Bernadette McNulty (June 26, 2009). "Michael Jackson's music: the solo albums". The Telegraph. Retrieved May 13, 2026. Motown chief Berry Gordy pushed Jackson's first solo album firmly into the mould of his label's sound: lush, harmonious, optimistic, innocent pop
  3. ↑ Chery, Carl. "Michael Jackson Special Collectors Edition". XXL. American Press. p. 100.
  4. ↑ "Don't Forget the Motor City". dftmc.info. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  5. ↑ The Complete Michael Jackson. International Music Publications Ltd. 1997. ISBN 1-85909-447-3.
  6. ↑ "Michael Jackson: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Theakston, Rob. "Got to Be There – Michael Jackson". AllMusic. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  8. 1 2 Greenblatt, Leah (July 3, 2009). "Michael Jackson's Albums". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Got To Be There". Rolling Stone. December 7, 1972. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  10. 1 2 "Michael Jackson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  11. 1 2 "Michael Jackson Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Reviews of new box sets for the music fans on your list". The Seattle Times. The Associated Press. December 12, 2009. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  13. 1 2 Jackson 5 Lead Singer is "Best in 1971". Natchez News Leader. February 27, 1972.
  14. ↑ "Michael Jackson: 12 Million in 1972". The Michael Jackson Archives. 1972. Archived from the original on November 27, 2013. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  15. ↑ Abreu, Ruy Miguel (February 21, 2016). "Michael Jackson: a estrela sem cor". Blitz (in Portuguese). Impresa. Archived from the original on October 14, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Michael Jackson – Got to Be There". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Official Albums Chart on 25/6/1972 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  18. ↑ "American album certifications – Michael Jackson – Got to Be There". Recording Industry Association of America.
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