Respect Yourself
"Respect Yourself" is the name of a classic soul song by American R&B/gospel group The Staple Singers. Released in late 1971 from their album , the song became a crossover hit. The Staple Singers' version peaked at #12 on the Hot 100, #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 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.Writing and recording
The song was written by Stax Records singer Luther Ingram and house songwriter Mack Rice. 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 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, musicians who laid down classic tracks for Wilson Pickett and Aretha Franklin, and with engineer/musician Terry Manning for vocals, overdubs, and mixing, in Memphis. The musicians were Barry Beckett, Roger Hawkins, Jimmy Johnson, and David Hood, with lead vocals by "Pops" and Mavis Staples. 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, nearly 57 at the time, on lead for more than two minutes.Chart performance
Staple Singers' version
Bruce Willis' version
| Year-end chart | Position |
| US Top Pop Singles | 89 |
Cover versions
"Respect Yourself" has been covered numerous times, including but not limited to the following:
