In The Number Ones, I’m looking at every song that reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, starting from the first in 1958 and moving up to the present day.
In my opinion, “Grandma’s Hands,” the 1971 hit by Bill Withers who previously had a number one, is one of the most touching songs ever recorded. Withers didn’t start his music career until later in life, after serving in the military and working in factories. His debut album, Just As I Am, shines with a wisdom and warmth rarely heard on a first album. While the whole album is fantastic, the standout moment comes three songs in when Withers reflects on the elderly woman who helped raise him.
Withers’ grandmother, who was born during a time of slavery and passed away when he was young, probably influenced the evocative nature of “Grandma’s Hands,” which paints vivid scenes from his childhood in West Virginia. Withers recalls moments like his grandmother’s hands clapping in church, offering him candy, and comforting local unwed mothers. She also cautioned him not to rush and intervened when his mother wanted to discipline him. The song ends with a poignant sense of loss as Withers reflects, “I don’t have Grandma anymore. If I get to heaven, I’ll search for Grandma’s hands.”
Listen To Grandma’s Hands;
“Grandma’s Hands” wasn’t crafted to be a huge hit. It was created to endure. Bill Withers wasn’t particularly fond of the music business, and once he walked away from it, he didn’t look back. He took pride in knowing that “Grandma’s Hands” resonated with people and evoked emotions. It’s interesting to consider how Withers felt when the simple chords he played and the gentle hum at the start of “Grandma’s Hands” became part of a chart-topping record.
Riley had begun forming a new R&B group. Initially, Blackstreet, occasionally written as BLACKstreet, was founded by Riley and his close friend and creative partner, Chauncey “Black” Hannibal. Riley initially considered naming the group Flavor but Flavor Flav owned that name, so they went with Blackstreet instead. Blackstreet made their debut with “Baby Be Mine,” a 1993 single recorded for the soundtrack of the Chris Rock rap mockumentary CB4. “Baby Be Mine” went top-20 on Billboard‘s R&B chart, but it didn’t cross over to the Hot 100.
Blackstreet put out their self-titled album in 1994, and one of its songs became popular with a wider audience. The slow song “Before I Let You Go” was a chance for Dave Hollister, a member of Blackstreet, to shine, and it reached #7 on the charts. That first album sold a million copies, but Hollister decided to leave Blackstreet and pursue a solo career. (His most successful solo song, “My Favorite Girl,” reached #39 in 1999.) Eventually, Eric Williams and Mark Middleton, who had been part of other R&B groups that didn’t find success, joined Teddy Riley and Chauncey Hannibal in Blackstreet.
Blackstreet’s first album had a song called “I Like The Way You Work.” They brought in LL Cool J at some point to rap on a new version. Even though it seems like that remix never got released, something LL said in it caught Teddy Riley’s attention: “I like the way you work it, no diggity, got to bag it up.” (Just so you know, “No diggity” is like saying “no doubt” in a tricky way, and “bag it up” is a pretty blunt way to talk about safe sex.) Riley really liked that line and thought it would sound better sung instead of rapped. (By the way, LL Cool J’s two most popular songs where he was the main artist, the 1995 song “Hey Lover” with Boyz II Men and the 1996 song “Loungin'” with Total, both reached #3 on the charts. “Hey Lover” is rated a 4, and “Loungin'” is a 6. You’ll hear more about LL Cool J as a guest in this column later on.)
A year after they worked on the remix, Riley and his friend William “Skylz” Stewart were playing around with a part of “Grandma’s Hands” in the studio. They took Bill Withers’ soft humming part at the start and kept repeating it. By using just that part and not the rest of the song, Riley and Stewart made Withers sound a bit cold and like he was hunting for something. That little hum now sounded like a guy who knows he’s cool without being surprised. They added big drums and a loud piano line that rumbled like thunder. The beat had so much confidence, it was almost too much. It flowed smoothly like a spaceship. Even before they had written any words for the song, Stewart told Riley that it was going to be a hit.
Since “No Diggity,” Blackstreet has split up and gotten back together many times. They released two more albums, but neither did very well. Guy reunited and then broke up again. Teddy Riley went on to collaborate with artists who would later have number one hits, like Snoop Dogg and Lady Gaga. What I find really interesting is that he got involved in South Korean pop music when it was still becoming popular. He helped write and produce songs for K-pop groups such as Rania and Girls Generation.
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