Oh Girl
| "Oh Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by The Chi-Lites | ||||
| from the album A Lonely Man | ||||
| B-side | "Being in Love" | |||
| Released | March 2, 1972 | |||
| Format | 7" | |||
| Recorded | 1971 | |||
| Genre | R&B, soul | |||
| Length |
3:43 (album version) 3:16 (single edit) | |||
| Label |
Brunswick B 55471 | |||
| Writer(s) | Eugene Record | |||
| Producer(s) | Eugene Record | |||
| Certification | Gold | |||
| The Chi-Lites singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Oh Girl" is a single recorded by the soul vocal group, The Chi-Lites and released on Brunswick Records in 1972. Included on the group's 1972 album A Lonely Man, "Oh Girl" centers on a relationship on the verge of break-up. The narrator, portrayed by the song's author Eugene Record, expresses concern that the break-up may prove unbearable for him ("Oh girl/I'd be in trouble if you left me now/'Cause I don't know where to look for love/I just don't know how"), while knowing that staying will be no better ("I could save myself a lot of useless tears/Girl I've got to get away from here"; "Better be on my way, I can't stay here").
"Oh Girl" was the Chi-Lites' first and only number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at that position in May 1972 for one week. The single also reached the top position of the Billboard R&B Singles chart the following month, remaining in that position for two weeks.[1] Billboard ranked it as the No. 13 song for 1972.[2] In addition, it reached number fourteen on the UK Singles Chart in July 1972.[3]
The instrument featured in the song could be a melodica.
Covers and uses in the media
- "Oh Boy" was a gender-reversed cover of the song by Renée Geyer released in 1973.
- "Oh Girl" was also covered by British hip hop artist Hard Livin', Leo Sayer on his 1979 album, Here, and country music singer Con Hunley, who took his version of the song to number 12 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1982.
- The track was performed in 1990 by Paul Young. Young's version from his album Other Voices was also a hit, reaching number one on the Adult Contemporary chart and number eight on the Hot 100 in 1990.
- It was featured as a plot device in the Season Four episode of The Sopranos entitled Watching Too Much Television in 2002.
- It was covered in a punk style by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes on their 2003 album, Take a Break.
- Over thirty years after the original release of "Oh Girl", the recording was sampled by the Southern rapper, Paul Wall, for his 2006 single "Girl".
- It was also covered by Seal as the last track on his Soul 2 album released in 2011.
References
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 117.
- ↑ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972
- ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 103. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
External links
| Preceded by "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single (The Chi-Lites version) May 27, 1972 (one week) |
Succeeded by "I'll Take You There" by The Staple Singers |
| Preceded by "I'll Take You There" by The Staple Singers |
Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles number-one single (The Chi-Lites version) June 3, 1972 (two weeks) |
Succeeded by "Woman's Gotta Have It" by Bobby Womack |
| Preceded by "Release Me" by Wilson Phillips |
Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single (Paul Young version) September 22, 1990 (three weeks) |
Succeeded by "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers |
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