"Respect Yourself" is a song by American R&B/

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

group

the Staple Singers The Staple Singers were an American gospel, soul, and R&B singing group. Roebuck "Pops" Staples (December 28, 1914 – December 19, 2000), the patriarch of the family, formed the group with his children Cleotha (April 11, 1934 – February 21 ...

. Released in late 1971 from their album '' Be Altitude: Respect Yourself'', the song became a crossover hit. The Staple Singers' version peaked at No. 12 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

, No. 2 on the Hot Soul Singles chart, and is one of the group's most recognizable hits. In 2002, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and in 2010 it was ranked #468 on the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' list of the

500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

, moving down 4 spots from #464 in 2004.

Writing and recording

The song was written by Stax Records singer

Luther Ingram Luther Thomas Ingram (November 30, 1937 – March 19, 2007) was an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. His most successful record, "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right", reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart and No. 3 ...

and house songwriter

Mack Rice Bonny "Mack" Rice (November 10, 1933 – June 27, 2016), sometimes credited as Sir Mack Rice, was an American songwriter and singer. His best-known composition and biggest hit as a solo performer was " Mustang Sally". He also wrote " Respe ...

. Ingram, who was frustrated with the state of the world at the time, told Rice "black folk need to learn to respect themselves." Rice liked the comment so much that he built a funk groove around it, prepared a demo record, and suggested to

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

Al Bell that the Staple Singers record it. The group agreed. Bell teamed the group with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section of

Muscle Shoals, Alabama Muscle Shoals is the largest city in Colbert County, Alabama, Colbert County, Alabama, United States. It is located along the Tennessee River in the northern part of the state and, as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the populati ...

, musicians who laid down classic tracks for

Wilson Pickett Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bill ...

and

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

, and with engineer/musician Terry Manning for vocals, overdubs, and mixing, in Memphis. The musicians were Barry Beckett (keyboards), Roger Hawkins (drums), Jimmy Johnson (guitar), and

David Hood David Hood (born September 21, 1943) is an American bassist from Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He also plays the trombone. He is a member of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. Early life and education Hood was born in Sheffield, Alabama and attende ...

(bass), with lead vocals by "Pops" and

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel singer, actress, and civil rights activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers (she is the last surviving member of that band). Durin ...

. The horns were overdubbed by Manning after the vocals were recorded, and were played by the Memphis Horns led by Andrew Love and Wayne Jackson. The song had resonance for a burgeoning self-empowerment movement for African-Americans during the post-civil-rights movement of the 1970s. The Staple Singers' long version featured

Roebuck "Pops" Staples Roebuck may refer to: Animals *Roe buck or roebuck, a male roe deer People * Alvah Curtis Roebuck (1864–1948), American businessman, co-founder of Sears, Roebuck and Company * Daniel Roebuck (born 1963), American television film actor, writer a ...

, nearly 57 at the time, on lead for more than two minutes.

Personnel

Partial credits from Richard Buskin and Terry Manning. ;The Staple Singers *

- vocals * Pops Staples - vocals * Cleotha Staples - harmony and backing vocals * Yvonne Staples - harmony and backing vocals ; Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section * Jimmy Johnson - guitar *

- bass * Barry Beckett - keyboards, Wurlitzer

electric piano An electric piano is a musical instrument which produces sounds when a performer presses the keys of a piano-style musical keyboard. Pressing keys causes mechanical hammers to strike metal strings, metal reeds or wire tines, leading to vibrations ...

* Roger Hawkins - drums ;Additional musicians * Staple Sisters - harmony and backing vocals * Terry Manning - lead guitar,

Moog synthesizer The Moog synthesizer is a modular synthesizer developed by the American engineer Robert Moog. Moog debuted it in 1964, and Moog's company R. A. Moog Co. (later known as Moog Music) produced numerous models from 1965 to 1981, and again from 20 ...

The Memphis Horns The Memphis Horns were an American horn section, made famous by their many appearances on Stax Records. The duo consisted of Wayne Jackson (November 24, 1941 – June 21, 2016) on trumpet and Andrew Love (November 21, 1941 - April 12, 2012) on ...

(including Wayne Jackson and Andrew Love - horns (saxophones, trumpets, baritone saxophone, trombone) *

Ben Cauley Ben S. Cauley, Jr. (October 3, 1947 – September 21, 2015) was an American trumpet player, vocalist, songwriter, and founding member of the Stax recording group the Bar-Kays. He was the only survivor of the 1967 plane crash that claimed the live ...

- horns ;Production and technical staff * Al Bell – arranger,

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

* Johnny Allen - arranger * Terry Manning –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

, additional production (uncredited), additional arrangements (uncredited) * Jerry Masters – engineer * Ralph Rhodes – engineer

Charts

The Kane Gang version

In 1984, English

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

band

the Kane Gang The Kane Gang were an English pop trio formed in Seaham in 1982. The group comprised Martin Brammer, Paul Woods and Dave Brewis. They scored several UK and US hits in the 1980s. Named alluding to the movie '' Citizen Kane'', the trio recorded ...

covered the song for their 1985 debut album ''The Bad and Lowdown World of the Kane Gang''. Produced by Pete Wingfield and the band, it was released as the third single from the album. This version charted at number 19 in Australia and number 21 in the UK. The Kane Gang's version changes the lyric "If you don't give a heck about the man with the Bible in his hands" to "If you don't give a damn about the man with the Bible in his hands".

Charts

Bruce Willis version

In 1986, American actor Bruce Willis (as his fictitious alter-ego Bruno Radolini) began a short-lived singing career. Willis covered "Respect Yourself" for his 1987 album ''The Return of Bruno'', a companion to the HBO special of the same name, which aired shortly after the album's release. Willis' version was released in December 1986 as his debut single, and is based on the Kane Gang's version, sped up a bit. It also features backing vocals by

the Pointer Sisters The Pointer Sisters are an American pop and R&B singing group from Oakland, California, that achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Their repertoire has included such diverse genres as pop, jazz, electronic music, bebop, b ...

;

June Pointer June Antoinette Pointer (November 30, 1953 – April 11, 2006) was an American singer, best known as the youngest of the founding members of the vocal group The Pointer Sisters. Early life and career Born the youngest of six children to minister ...

also sings a verse. It was produced by Robert Kraft, and charted in four different countries.

Charts

Robert Palmer version

In 1995, English singer Robert Palmer covered the song as a non-album single. Palmer's version reached number 45 in the UK and number 170 in Australia.

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1971 songs 1971 singles 1984 singles 1986 debut singles 1995 singles The Staple Singers songs Kane Gang songs Bruce Willis songs Robert Palmer (singer) songs EMI Records singles Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Kitchenware Records singles Motown singles Songs written by Luther Ingram Songs written by Mack Rice Stax Records singles