10 best Wilson Pickett songs

Wilson Pickett (1941 - 2006) was an American singer and songwriter who is considered one of the main figures in the development of the soul style,

Singer's Room writes, "He recorded more than 50 songs that entered the American R&B charts, many of which reached the Billboard Hot 100. Among Pickett's best-known hits are "In the Midnight Hour", "Land of 1,000 Dances", "634-5789 (Soulsville, USA)", "Mustang Sally", "Funky Broadway", "Engine No. 9", and "Don't Knock My Love".

In 1991, Wilson Pickett was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in recognition of his services to the development and popularization of rock music.

"Hey Jude"

"Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock band The Beatles, released as their non-album single in August 1968. It was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon.

"Hey Jude" became a number one hit in many countries around the world and was the commercially successful single of the year in the UK, USA, Australia and Canada.

As for Wilson Pickett, Hey Jude is the title of his ninth studio album, recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and released in 1969. The album's title track is a cover of the Beatles' song of the same name.

"Hey Jude", performed by Pickett, reached number 13 on the Billboard R&B singles chart and peaked at number 23 on the top 200.

"Don't Knock My Love"

"Don't Knock My Love" is an R&B hit written by Pickett in collaboration with Brad Shapiro. Released in the spring of 1971, this song was number one on the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles Chart for a week and reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart.

This up-tempo funk song was Pickett's last number one single and one of his last hits for Atlantic Records.

"I'm in Love"

"I'm in Love" is a song written by Bobby Womack. It was first recorded by Wilson Pickett in 1967 and in 1968 became a top ten hit on the Billboard R&B chart, peaking at number 4, and number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The lyrics to "I'm in Love" were written in response to the criticism he received after marrying the widow of the recently deceased Sam Cooke.

"In the Midnight Hour"

"In the Midnight Hour" is a song released on Pickett's self-titled album in 1965. It was also included on 1966's The Exciting Wilson Pickett.

The song was written by Pickett and Steve Cropper at the historic Lorraine Motel in Memphis, where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April 1968.

"In the Midnight Hour" was Pickett's first hit on Atlantic Records. It went to number one on the R&B charts and reached number 21 on the pop charts.

"Funky Broadway"

"Funky Broadway" is a funk song written by Arlester "Dyke" Christian. In 1966, he recorded it with his band Dyke & the Blazers. The single did well on Billboard's Top Selling R&B Singles and Hot 100 charts, reaching #17 and #65 respectively.

In 1967, a few months after the original's release, Wilson Pickett recorded his version of "Funky Broadway". It quickly became a hit, peaking at number one and number eight on the R&B and Hot 100 charts.

The song also appeared on The Sound of Wilson Pickett, released by Atlantic in 1967.

"Sugar, Sugar"

"Sugar, Sugar" is a song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was originally recorded by the Archies, a fictional group of studio musicians associated with the 1968-69 American morning television cartoon The Archie Show.

In the fall of 1969, the single topped Billboard's Hot 100 (for four weeks) and the UK Singles Chart (for eight weeks), ranking number one for the year in America and the UK.

Sugar, Sugar is the most successful bubblegum pop single of all time and is considered the apotheosis of the bubblegum genre of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

In mid-1970, Wilson Pickett created his own version of "Sugar, Sugar", which was a success on the American soul and pop charts.

"Land of a Thousand Dances"

"Land of a Thousand Dances" is a song written and recorded by American rhythm and blues singer Chris Kenner in 1962. It later became a hit performed by Wilson Pickett.

The lyrics are dedicated to the dance styles and moves that were popular in the 60s.

"Mustang Sally"

"Mustang Sally" is a rhythm and blues composition written and recorded by Mack Rice in 1965.

It became very popular after Wilson Pickett recorded a version of it the following year. The single, "Mustang Sally" was included in the 1966 album The Wicked Pickett.

"Fire and Water"

Fire and Water is the first song of the studio album by the English rock band Free, released in 1970. In 1971, the song was released as a single by William Pickett and was no less successful than the original, taking good positions in the leading charts in the United States and the United Kingdom.

"Engine No. 9"

The song Engine No.9 was released in 1970 as part of Wilson Pickett's eleventh studio album Wilson Pickett in Philadelphia. At that time, the singer, after many years of working in Memphis, went to Philadelphia to collaborate with Gamble and Huff.

This composition is considered one of Pickett's most popular singles of the early 1970s.