List of Hot R&B Singles number ones of 1962
In 1962, Billboard published a chart ranking the top-performing songs in the United States in rhythm and blues (R&B) and related African American-oriented music genres; it was published under the title Hot R&B Sides through the issue of the magazine dated October 27 and Hot R&B Singles thereafter. The chart has undergone various name changes over the decades to reflect the evolution of such genres and since 2005 has been published as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[1]
![Singer Ray Charles](../I/Aankomst_Ray_Charles_(kop)_op_Schiphol%252C_Bestanddeelnr_921-7410.jpg.webp)
In the issue of Billboard dated January 6, Ray Charles and his orchestra moved up to number one with "Unchain My Heart", which held the top spot for two weeks. Charles would go on to achieve two further chart-toppers later in the year, both taken from his album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, which is considered to have been a ground-breaking record.[2][3] His recording of Don Gibson's 1957 song "I Can't Stop Loving You" spent ten weeks at number one, the year's longest unbroken spell in the top spot. The song was a triple chart-topper, as it also reached number one on the Easy Listening chart as well as the all-genre Hot 100.[4][5] In December, Charles spent two weeks atop the chart with his version of "You Are My Sunshine", giving him a total of 14 weeks at number one, the most for any act in 1962. The only other act with more than one number one during the year was the 4 Seasons, who topped the chart with both "Sherry" and "Big Girls Don't Cry".
Several of 1962's number ones were associated with dance crazes of the time. In March, Sam Cooke spent three weeks atop the chart with "Twistin' the Night Away", which was followed into the top spot by "Soul Twist" by King Curtis and the Noble Knights, both of which referenced the dance the Twist.[6] The latter song was in turn displaced by "Mashed Potato Time" by Dee Dee Sharp, referring to the dance the Mashed Potato,[7] and later in the year Little Eva spent three weeks at number one with "The Loco-Motion", the lyrics of which described a dance which did not actually exist at the time but which came into being following the song's success.[8] Almost all of the acts to reach number one in 1962 did so for the first time; of the 13 acts to top the chart during the year, only Charles, Cooke and Esther Phillips had achieved a previous R&B number one.[9] Phillips, then known as Little Esther, had reached number one three times in 1950 as a featured vocalist with the Johnny Otis Orchestra, but had not entered the chart at all for more than ten years when her version of "Release Me" charted in late 1962 and quickly rose to number one.[9]
Chart history
![Singer Sam Cooke](../I/Sam_Cooke_2.jpg.webp)
![Singer Gene Chandler](../I/Gene_Chandler.jpg.webp)
![Musician King Curtis](../I/King_Curtis.png.webp)
![Singer Little Eva](../I/Little_Eva_1962.jpg.webp)
† | Indicates best-charting R&B single of 1962[10] |
References
- Molanphy, Chris (April 14, 2014). "I Know You Got Soul: The Trouble With Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Chart". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on January 21, 2019. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
- Cook, Stephen. "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music". AllMusic. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
- Hughes 2015, p. 36.
- Whitburn 2002, p. 52.
- Schinder & Schwartz 2007, p. 43.
- Pollock 2011.
- "Thanksgiving playlist: Add a soundtrack to your holiday dinner". USA Today. December 15, 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- Runtagh, Jordan (February 9, 2017). "10 Songs You Didn't Know Carole King Wrote". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- Whitburn 1996, pp. 40, 71, 74, 93, 94, 154, 168, 248, 269, 278, 348, 396, 474.
- "Billboard.com - Year End Charts - Year-end Singles - Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for January 6, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for January 13, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for January 20, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for January 27, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for February 3, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for February 10, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for February 17, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for February 24, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for March 3, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for March 10, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for March 17, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for March 24, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for March 31, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for April 7, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for April 14, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for April 21, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for April 28, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for May 5, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for May 12, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for May 19, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for May 26, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for June 2, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for June 9, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for June 16, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for June 23, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for June 30, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for July 7, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for July 14, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for July 21, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for July 28, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for August 4, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for August 11, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for August 18, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for August 25, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for September 1, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for September 8, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for September 15, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for September 22, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for September 29, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for October 6, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for October 13, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for October 20, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for October 27, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for November 3, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for November 10, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for November 17, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for November 24, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for December 1, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for December 8, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for December 15, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for December 22, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- "R & B Chart for December 29, 1962". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
Works cited
- Hughes, Charles L. (2015). Country Soul: Making Music and Making Race in the American South. UNC Press Books. ISBN 9781469622446.
- Pollock, Bruce (2011). If You Like the Beatles... Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781617130731.
- Schinder, Scott; Schwartz, Andy (2007). Icons of Rock: An Encyclopedia of the Legends Who Changed Music Forever. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9780313338458.
- Whitburn, Joel (1996). Joel Whitburn's Top R & B Singles, 1942–1995. Record Research Incorporated. ISBN 9780898201154.
- Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. ISBN 9780898201499.