I Want You Back
This article is about the song by the Jackson 5. For the unrelated song "I Want You Back" by Bananarama, see I Want You Back (Bananarama song)."
I Want You Back" is a
1969 number-one single recorded by
The Jackson 5 for the
Motown label. It held the number-one position on the
Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for one week, from
January 23 to
January 31,
1970, replacing "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head" by
B.J. Thomas, and replaced by "Venus" by
The Shocking Blue.
The single was a notable first in many respects: it was the first Jackson 5 single to be released on Motown, the first of four Jackson 5 number-ones released in a row (the others are "
ABC", "
The Love You Save", and "
I'll Be There"), and the first song
written and
produced by
The Corporation™, a team compromised of Motown chief
Berry Gordy,
Freddie Perren,
Alphonzo Mizell, and
Deke Richards. "I Want You Back" was also the first Jackson 5 song recorded in
Los Angeles, California; the quintet had previously been recording
Bobby Taylor-produced
covers, including "
Who's Lovin' You", the b-side to "I Want You Back", at
Hitsville U.S.A. in
Detroit, Michigan.
Originally considered first for
Gladys Knight & the Pips and later for
Diana Ross, as "I Wanna Be Free", "I Want You Back" explores the familiar theme of a lover who decides that he was too hasty in dropping his partner. The unusual aspect about "I Want You Back" was that its main lead vocal was performed by an eleven-year-old
preteen,
Michael Jackson, who sings the song with the emotional weight of an adult.
The Jackson 5 performed "I Want You Back", along with
Sly & the Family Stone's "Sing a Simple Song",
The Delfonics' "Can You Remember", and
James Brown's "There Was a Time", during their first television appearance on
The Hollywood Palace as the special guests of
Diana Ross & the Supremes. Although Gladys Knight and Bobby Taylor of the Vancouvers had been the ones to bring the Jackson brothers to Motown, the Motown publicity credited Ross with discovering them, not only to help promote the Jackson 5, but also to help ease Ross' transition into a solo career, which officially began in January
1970.
"I Want You Back", backed with a cover of
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles' "
Who's Lovin' You", was the only single from the first Jackson 5 album,
Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5. It is today considered one of the best songs ever released on Motown, and is one of the Jackson 5's signature songs. It was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame in
1999. It consistently features in best singles of all time lists, appreciated by both fans and music critics alike.
A "live" version by
Graham Parker and The Rumour garnered mild success in
1979. The title of this version is sometimes shown as "I Want You Back (Alive)." Female singer-songwriter KT Tunstall often performs a cover version of the song live at her concerts. The song is one of the most
sampled Motown songs, with notable uses by
Kris Kross ("
Jump",
1992),
Tamia ("Imagination, 1998),
Jay-Z ("Izzo (H.O.V.A.)",
2001), and
Lil Romeo ("My Baby",
2001). The song was also
interpolated by
BLACKstreet and
Mya featuring
Ma$e and Blinky Blink for the
remix of "Take Me There" from the
Rugrats Movie soundtrack.
*Lead vocals by
Michael Jackson,
Jermaine Jackson and
Jackie Jackson*Background vocals by Michael Jackson, Jermaine Jackson,
Tito Jackson, Jackie Jackson and
Marlon Jackson*Written, produced and arranged by
The Corporation™:
Berry Gordy,
Freddie Perren,
Alphonzo Mizell and
Deke Richards*Keyboards by Freddie Perren
*Guitar by David T. Walker, Louis Shelton and Don Peake
*Bass guitar by Wilton Felder
*Drums by Gene Pello
*
Overview of "I Want You Back" Complete picture sleeved records from all over the world
