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List of Best Selling Rhythm & Blues Singles number ones of 1968

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Singer Otis Redding
Otis Redding had a posthumous number one with "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay".

In 1968, Billboard published a weekly chart ranking the top-performing singles in the United States in rhythm and blues (R&B) and related African American-oriented music genres; 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] It was published under the title Top Selling R&B Singles in the issue dated January 6, 1968, Best Selling R&B Singles through the issue dated March 30, and Best Selling Rhythm & Blues Singles thereafter; during the year, 20 different singles topped the chart.[2]

Unusually, the year started and ended with different versions of the same song at number one. In the issue of Billboard dated January 6, Gladys Knight & the Pips were at number one with "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", the song's sixth week in the top spot.[3] In December, Marvin Gaye's version of the song reached number one and held the peak position for the final three weeks of the year. Gaye had actually recorded his version before Knight recorded hers, but Berry Gordy, owner of the Motown record label, refused to allow it to be released.[4] After Knight's version became a success, Gaye's version was included on his album In the Groove and was released as a single by popular demand. It ultimately outperformed Knight's version, becoming Motown's biggest-selling single to date, and has come to be regarded as the definitive version of the song.[4] It was Gaye's third chart-topper of 1968, following "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By", both duets with Tammi Terrell.

In March, Otis Redding reached number one with his song "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay", which spent three weeks in the top spot. Redding had died in a plane crash in December of the previous year just days after recording the track,[5] which in addition to topping the R&B listing became the first posthumous number one on the all-genre Hot 100 chart.[6] "Tighten Up" by Archie Bell & the Drells, "Grazing in the Grass" by Hugh Masekela and Gaye's version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" also topped both charts in 1968.[7] Redding, Bell & the Drells and Masekela all topped the R&B chart in 1968 for the first time, as did Tammi Terell, the Intruders, the Dells and Johnnie Taylor.[8][9] The Dells were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in recognition of their long and successful career, and the Intruders are considered to have been an early influence on the Philadelphia soul sound, which grew in prominence in the 1970s.[10][11]

Chart history

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Singer Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye had three number ones ("Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing", "You're All I Need to Get By" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine") in 1968, two of them duets with Tammi Terrell.
Singers Archie Bell and the Drells
"Tighten Up" was a chart-topper for Archie Bell & the Drells.
Musician Hugh Masakela
South African trumpeter Hugh Masakela (pictured in 2013) topped the chart with "Grazing in the Grass".
Music group The Intruders
The Intruders were an early influence on the Philadelphia soul sound. Their single "Cowboys to Girls" topped the chart for a week.
Key
† Indicates best-charting R&B single of 1968[12]
Chart history
Issue date Title Artist(s) Ref.
January 6 "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Gladys Knight & the Pips [3]
January 13 "I Second That Emotion" Smokey Robinson & the Miracles [13]
January 20 "Chain of Fools" Aretha Franklin [14]
January 27 [15]
February 3 [16]
February 10 [17]
February 17 "I Wish It Would Rain" The Temptations [18]
February 24 [19]
March 2 [20]
March 9 "We're a Winner" The Impressions [21]
March 16 "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay" Otis Redding [22]
March 23 [23]
March 30 [24]
April 6 "(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You've Been Gone" Aretha Franklin [25]
April 13 [26]
April 20 [27]
April 27 "I Got the Feelin'" James Brown [28]
May 4 [29]
May 11 "Cowboys to Girls" The Intruders [30]
May 18 "Tighten Up" Archie Bell & the Drells [31]
May 25 [32]
June 1 "Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day" Stevie Wonder [33]
June 8 "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell [34]
June 15 "Think" Aretha Franklin [35]
June 22 [36]
June 29 [37]
July 6 "I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)" The Temptations [38]
July 13 "Grazing in the Grass" Hugh Masekela [39]
July 20 [40]
July 27 [41]
August 3 [42]
August 10 "Stay in My Corner" The Dells [43]
August 17 [44]
August 24 [45]
August 31 "You're All I Need to Get By" Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell [46]
September 7 [47]
September 14 [48]
September 21 [49]
September 28 [50]
October 5 "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud (Part 1)" † James Brown [51]
October 12 [52]
October 19 [53]
October 26 [54]
November 2 [55]
November 9 [56]
November 16 "Hey, Western Union Man" Jerry Butler [57]
November 23 "Who's Making Love" Johnnie Taylor [58]
November 30 [59]
December 7 [60]
December 14 "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Marvin Gaye [61]
December 21 [62]
December 28 [63]

References

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  1. ^ 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.
  2. ^ Whitburn 1996, p. xii.
  3. ^ a b "R & B Chart for January 6, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Kirby, Hilary (October 23, 2015). "The Life of a Song: 'I Heard It Through the Grapevine'". Financial Times. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  5. ^ Deming, Mark. "Otis Redding Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  6. ^ Henry 2013, p. 73.
  7. ^ "Hot 100 – 1968 Archive". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  8. ^ Whitburn 1988, pp. 38, 115, 207, 276, 345, 403.
  9. ^ "Tammi Terrell Chart History". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  10. ^ Larkin 2011, p. 617.
  11. ^ Huey, Steve. "The Intruders Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  12. ^ "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.
  13. ^ "R & B Chart for January 13, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  14. ^ "R & B Chart for January 20, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  15. ^ "R & B Chart for January 27, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  16. ^ "R & B Chart for February 3, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  17. ^ "R & B Chart for February 10, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  18. ^ "R & B Chart for February 17, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  19. ^ "R & B Chart for February 24, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  20. ^ "R & B Chart for March 2, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  21. ^ "R & B Chart for March 9, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  22. ^ "R & B Chart for March 16, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  23. ^ "R & B Chart for March 23, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  24. ^ "R & B Chart for March 30, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  25. ^ "R & B Chart for April 6, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  26. ^ "R & B Chart for April 13, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  27. ^ "R & B Chart for April 20, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  28. ^ "R & B Chart for April 27, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  29. ^ "R & B Chart for May 4, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  30. ^ "R & B Chart for May 11, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  31. ^ "R & B Chart for May 18, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  32. ^ "R & B Chart for May 25, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  33. ^ "R & B Chart for June 1, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  34. ^ "R & B Chart for June 8, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  35. ^ "R & B Chart for June 15, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  36. ^ "R & B Chart for June 22, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  37. ^ "R & B Chart for June 29, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  38. ^ "R & B Chart for July 6, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  39. ^ "R & B Chart for July 13, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  40. ^ "R & B Chart for July 20, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  41. ^ "R & B Chart for July 27, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  42. ^ "R & B Chart for August 3, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  43. ^ "R & B Chart for August 10, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  44. ^ "R & B Chart for August 17, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  45. ^ "R & B Chart for August 24, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  46. ^ "R & B Chart for August 31, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  47. ^ "R & B Chart for September 7, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  48. ^ "R & B Chart for September 14, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  49. ^ "R & B Chart for September 21, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  50. ^ "R & B Chart for September 28, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  51. ^ "R & B Chart for October 5, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  52. ^ "R & B Chart for October 12, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  53. ^ "R & B Chart for October 19, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  54. ^ "R & B Chart for October 26, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  55. ^ "R & B Chart for November 2, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  56. ^ "R & B Chart for November 9, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  57. ^ "R & B Chart for November 16, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  58. ^ "R & B Chart for November 23, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  59. ^ "R & B Chart for November 30, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  60. ^ "R & B Chart for December 7, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  61. ^ "R & B Chart for December 14, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  62. ^ "R & B Chart for December 21, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  63. ^ "R & B Chart for December 28, 1968". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.

Works cited

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