| Be What You Are | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | The Staple Singers |
| Border: | yes |
| Released: | September 1973 |
| Recorded: | 1973 |
| Genre: | Soul |
| Length: | 51:56 |
| Label: | Stax |
| Producer: | Al Bell |
| Prev Year: | 1972 |
| Next Title: | City in the Sky |
| Next Year: | 1974 |
Be What You Are is a soul album by the Staple Singers, released in September 1973. It reached number 13 on the Billboard Top Soul LPs chart. The first single, "Be What You Are", fared poorly; however, the follow-up, "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)", was a top ten hit, peaking at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the R&B Singles chart. The third single, "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" charting at number 23 on the Hot 100 and number three on the R&B chart in 1974.
Guitarist Jimmy Page played acoustic and electric guitars as well as a solo on the last song, "Heaven." Stax engineer Terry Manning was a friend of Page's and worked on Led Zeppelin III.[1]
| Title | Writer(s) | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Be What You Are" | Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton | 5:03 | |
| 2 | "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)" | Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton | 4:29 | |
| 3 | "Medley: Love Comes in All Colors/Tellin' Lies" | Bettye Crutcher/Carl Smith | 8:51 | |
| 4 | "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" | Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton | 4:04 | |
| 5 | "Drown Yourself" | Bettye Crutcher | 4:38 | |
| 6 | "I Ain't Raisin' No Sand" | Darryl Carter, Mack Rice | 6:33 | |
| 7 | "Grandma's Hands" | Bill Withers | 2:43 | |
| 8 | "Bridges Instead of Walls" | Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton | 4:04 | |
| 9 | "I'm on Your Side" | Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson, Carl Hampton | 4:00 | |
| 10 | "That's What Friends Are For" | Parsons, Penney, Mack Rice | 4:16 | |
| 11 | "Heaven" | Terry Manning | 3:36 |
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Billboard Top LPs[2] | 102 |
| Billboard Top Soul LPs | 13 |
| Year | Single | Chart positions[3] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Pop | US Soul | |||
| 1973 | "Be What You Are" | 66 | 18 | |
| "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)" | 9 | 1 | ||
| 1974 | "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" | 23 | 3 | |