Australian-American singer Helen Reddy (1941–2020), often referred to as the "Queen of 70s Pop",[1] recorded 18 studio albums, seven of which have achieved sales of 500,000 units in the US for which they were awarded Gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America.[2] One of those seven, I Am Woman, eventually went Platinum by reaching sales of one million copies, and her first compilation album, Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits, was awarded Double Platinum status in 1992 for hitting the two million sales mark.[3] The respective US and Canadian album charts in Billboard[2] and RPM[4] magazine each had appearances by 10 of these LPs during the 1970s.
| Helen Reddy discography | |
|---|---|
.JPG) Reddy in 1973 | |
| Studio albums | 18 |
| Soundtrack albums | 1 |
| Live albums | 1 |
| Compilation albums | 15 |
| Singles | 31 |
| Video albums | 1 |
Reddy's singles had the most success on what was then Billboard's Easy Listening chart (later known as Adult Contemporary), where eight of her 24 entries reached number one.[5] Of those 24, 20 also made the Billboard Hot 100, with six of those hitting the top 10, including three ("I Am Woman", "Delta Dawn", and "Angie Baby") that reached number one.[6] Of those 20 Hot 100 entries, 19 were also Canadian pop hits in RPM,[7] and four of them – the three number ones and her number three hit "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" – earned Gold certification from the RIAA for the sales of one million copies that was the requirement for singles at that time.[3]
Capitol years (1971–1980)
editCapitol Records executive Artie Mogull sensed that a hit record could be made with the song "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from the 1970 musical Jesus Christ Superstar, and since Reddy's then-husband/manager, Jeff Wald, was tenacious in contacting him about getting Reddy her first recording session in the United States, he decided to give Reddy her big break.[8] The success of the single led to a 1971 album of the same name and a 10-year stay with the label. That album included her first recording of "I Am Woman", which was only released as a single after being rerecorded for the 1972 film Stand Up and Be Counted.[9] The new recording became the first of her three songs to reach number one on the Hot 100 in addition to providing the title of her third album. It also reached number two Adult Contemporary in the US, as did its follow-up, "Peaceful",[5] which got as high as number 12 pop.[6]
The five consecutive studio LPs that Reddy recorded between 1973 and 1976 all achieved Gold certification and peaked in the top 20 slots on the album charts in both the US and Canada. The two singles from the first of those five, Long Hard Climb, both had impressive chart runs and achieved their own Gold certification a few months after release in the US.[3] In addition to topping the US pop chart, the first of the two, "Delta Dawn", also made it to number one Adult Contemporary there, and the second, "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)", echoed that showing on the latter chart[5] and got as high as number three on the Hot 100.[6] Her first 1974 album, Love Song for Jeffrey, also had two AC number ones,[5] "Keep on Singing" and "You and Me Against the World", that respectively peaked at 15 and 9 on the pop chart.[6] Another two AC number ones came from her second 1974 release, Free and Easy.[5] The first, "Angie Baby", also went to number one pop and achieved Gold certification, while the second, "Emotion", only reached number 22 on the Hot 100.[6]
"Bluebird" was the lead single from her 1975 studio LP No Way to Treat a Lady and only peaked at number 5 Adult Contemporary[5] and number 35 pop,[6] but her next two singles from that album had better showings. "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady" was yet another AC number one[5] and made it to number eight on the Hot 100,[6] and "Somewhere in the Night" also did well (numbers two AC[5] and 19 pop[6]). Her last Gold album, 1976's Music, Music, included the last of her Adult Contemporary number ones, "I Can't Hear You No More",[5] which had a lower pop chart showing than the previous two, at number 29.[6] That album's second and final single, "Gladiola", was a number 10 AC hit[5] but also became her first domestic single that failed to reach the Hot 100.[6]
Her 1977 album Ear Candy not only ended her hot streak as it stalled at number 75 on Billboard's ranking of the top 200 albums; it also became her last to appear there at all.[2] The first song released from it as a single, "You're My World", became her last Hot 100 entry to make the top 40 and her last Adult Contemporary hit to make the top 10. Her final projects with the label included a concert album (Live in London) and studio efforts flavored by disco (Reddy) and rock (Take What You Find).[citation needed]
Post-Capitol years (1981–2020)
editReddy switched to MCA Records in 1981 and recorded Play Me Out, which yielded "I Can't Say Goodbye to You", her last song to reach either of Billboard's pop[6] or Adult Contemporary[5] charts. When her 1983 follow-up LP Imagination failed to get any attention, she received a letter from MCA notifying her that she was being dropped from the label.[10]
In 1990 Reddy recorded jazz interpretations of several of her hit songs along with new material for Feel So Young, a project she initially released herself that was later repackaged and retitled by other independent labels. 1998's Center Stage was her interpretation of some of her favorite songs from musicals, and her most recent studio effort was the holiday release The Best Christmas Ever in 2000.[citation needed]
Albums
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [11] |
CAN [4] |
NZ [12] |
UK [13] |
US [2] | ||||||||||||||
| I Don't Know How to Love Him |
|
51 | 40 | — | — | 100 | ||||||||||||
| Helen Reddy |
|
— | — | — | — | 167 | ||||||||||||
| I Am Woman |
|
10 | 7 | — | — | 14 | ||||||||||||
| Long Hard Climb |
|
16 | 14 | — | — | 8 | ||||||||||||
| Love Song for Jeffrey |
|
20 | 6 | — | — | 11 |
| |||||||||||
| Free and Easy |
|
33 | 9 | 16 | 17 | 8 | ||||||||||||
| No Way to Treat a Lady |
|
65 | 13 | 13 | — | 11 |
| |||||||||||
| Music, Music |
|
— | 14 | — | — | 16 |
| |||||||||||
| Ear Candy |
|
— | 84 | — | — | 75 | ||||||||||||
| We'll Sing in the Sunshine |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Reddy |
|
— | 97 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Take What You Find |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Play Me Out |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Imagination |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Feel So Young |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Center Stage |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Best Christmas Ever |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a title that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||||||
Live albums
edit| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Live in London |
|
Compilation albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [11] |
CAN [4] |
NZ [12] |
UK [13] |
US [2] | ||||||||||||||
| Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits |
|
42 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 5 | ||||||||||||
| No Way to Treat a Lady |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Best of Helen Reddy |
|
29 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Lust for Life |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Feel So Young – The Helen Reddy Collection |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| All-Time Greatest Hits |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Basic: Original Hits |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| When I Dream |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Love Songs |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| I Am Woman: The Essential Helen Reddy Collection |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Collection |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Absolutely the Best of Helen Reddy |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Come with Me: The Rest of Helen Reddy |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Woman I Am: The Definitive Collection |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Rarities from the Capitol Vaults |
|
— | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a title that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||||||
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [19] |
CAN [7] |
IRE [20] |
MEX [21] |
NLD [22] |
NZ [23] |
SA [24] |
SWE [25] |
UK [13] |
US [6] |
US AC [5] | ||||||||
| "One Way Ticket" | 1968 | 83 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | non-album single | |||||
| "I Don't Know How to Love Him" | 1971 | 2 | 8 | — | — | 23 | — | — | 14 | — | 13 | 12 | I Don't Know How to Love Him | |||||
| "Crazy Love" | 66 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 51 | 8 | |||||||
| "No Sad Song" | — | 51 | — | — | 29 | — | — | — | — | 62 | 32 | Helen Reddy | ||||||
| "Summer of '71" | 1972 | — | — | — | — | — | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "I Am Woman" | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | - | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | I Am Woman | ||||||
| "Peaceful" | 1973 | 36 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12 | 2 | ||||||
| "Delta Dawn" | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 13 | — | — | 1 | 1 | Long Hard Climb | ||||||
| "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" | 1[26] | 5 | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | 3 | 1 | |||||||
| "Keep on Singing" | 1974 | 22 | 10 | — | — | — | 17 | — | — | — | 15 | 1 | Love Song for Jeffrey | |||||
| "You and Me Against the World" | 55 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||||||
| "Angie Baby" | 13 | 3 | 5 | — | — | 7 | — | — | 5 | 1 | 1 | Free and Easy | ||||||
| "Emotion" | 1975 | — | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 22 | 1 | ||||||
| "Free and Easy" | 82 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "Bluebird" | 100 | 51 | — | — | — | 40 | — | — | — | 35 | 5 | No Way to Treat a Lady | ||||||
| "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady" | 94 | 2 | — | — | — | 12 | — | — | — | 8 | 1 | |||||||
| "Somewhere in the Night" | — | 27 | — | — | — | 27 | — | — | — | 19 | 2 | |||||||
| "I Can't Hear You No More" b/w "Music Is My Life" |
1976 | — — |
36 | — — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
29[A] | 1 — |
Music, Music | |||||
| "Gladiola" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | |||||||
| "You're My World" | 1977 | — | 13 | — | 4[B] | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | 5 | Ear Candy | |||||
| "The Happy Girls"/ b/w "Laissez Les Bontemps Rouler" |
— — |
65 — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
— — |
57 — |
14 — | |||||||
| "Candle on the Water" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 27 | Pete's Dragon soundtrack | ||||||
| "We'll Sing in the Sunshine" | 1978 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12 | We'll Sing in the Sunshine | |||||
| "Ready or Not" | — | 70 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 73 | 28 | |||||||
| "Make Love to Me" | 1979 | — | 57 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 60 | 41 | Reddy | |||||
| "Let Me Be Your Woman" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | |||||||
| "Take What You Find" | 1980 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Take What You Find | |||||
| "I Can't Say Goodbye to You" | 1981 | — | — | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | 88 | 42 | Play Me Out | |||||
| "Don't Tell Me Tonight" | 1983 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Imagination | |||||
| "Imagination" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "Voices That Care" (as part of the collective Voices That Care) |
1991 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 6 | non-album single | |||||
| "Surrender" | 1998 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Center Stage | |||||
| "—" denotes a title that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||||||
- A The B-side, "Music Is My Life", was eventually listed on the Hot 100 alongside "I Can't Hear You No More"[6] as a "tag along" to indicate that some radio stations were opting to play the flip side of the original hit that charted.[27]
- B On "You're My World" producer Kim Fowley's website is a note that the song "was number one (#1) in Mexico (Billboard) in 1977,"[28] but in the 17 nonconsecutive weekly appearances that the song made during its chart run on Billboard's "Hits of the World" list of the top 10 songs in Mexico in the issues dated between 15 October 1977, and 8 April 1978, the highest position that the song achieved was number four.[21]
Music videos
edit| Title | Year | Director |
|---|---|---|
| "I Am Woman" | 1972 | unknown |
| "Angie Baby" | 1974 | John D. Wilson[29] |
| "Imagination" | 1983 | Traci Wald Donat |
| "Voices That Care" (Various) | 1991 | David S. Jackson |
Notes
edit- ^ "Helen Reddy Ready to Roar Again". Chicago Tribune. Tribune Publishing. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
- ^ a b c d e Whitburn 2010, p. 646.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k RIAA Gold and Platinum Search for titles by Helen Reddy Archived 2015-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c "Helen Reddy Album Discography". RPM. RPM Library Archives. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Whitburn 2007, pp. 226–227.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Whitburn 2009, p. 805.
- ^ a b "Helen Reddy Singles Discography". RPM. RPM Library Archives. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ "Helen Reddy: Diamond and Diapers, Star and 'Sister', Denim and Devotion". Billboard. 3 August 1974. p. HR-6.
- ^ Reddy 2006, p. 145.
- ^ Reddy 2006, p. 235.
- ^ a b David Kent (1993). Australian Charts Book 1970—1992. Australian Chart Book Pty Ltd, Turramurra, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ a b "charts.nz". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
- ^ a b c "Helen Reddy - full Official Charts history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
- ^ a b c d e "Discography". Billboard. Vol. 86, no. 31. 3 August 1974. p. 52. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ a b "Cash Box Magazine" (PDF). Cash Box. 23 March 1978. p. 51. Retrieved 15 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
- ^ a b c d "Gold from Down Under" (PDF). Cash Box. 22 November 1975. p. unknown. Retrieved 15 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
- ^ a b "Certified Awards". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Helen Reddy's Awards Multiply" (PDF). Cash Box. 10 July 1976. p. 10. Retrieved 21 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
- ^ "Discography Helen Reddy". Australian-charts.com at Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ "Helen Reddy". The Irish Charts. irma.ie. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
- ^ a b "Hits of the World". Billboard. 4 February 1978. p. 82.
- ^ "Dutch Charts > Helen Reddy" (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
- ^ "Discography Helen Reddy". charts.nz at Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ Billboard magazine published the top 10 songs from these charts, but "Delta Dawn" peaked there at number 13. "South African Rock Lists Website – SA Charts 1969–1989 Acts (R)". South Africa's Rock Lists. South African Rock Encyclopedia. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
- ^ "Swedish Charts >Helen Reddy". swedishcharts.com Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
- ^ "Billboard Magazine, February 9, 1974". Billboard. 9 February 1974.
- ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 14.
- ^ "Kim Fowley at a Glance". Kim Fowley - Official Site. Kim Fowley.net. Archived from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ Fine Arts Film. "Fine Arts Film - Angie Baby". fineartsfilms.com. Retrieved 24 December 2017.
References
edit- Reddy, Helen (2006), The Woman I Am: A Memoir, Penguin Group, ISBN 1-58542-489-7
- Whitburn, Joel (2002), Joel Whitburn's Top Country Singles, 1944-2001, Record Research Inc., ISBN 0898201519
- Whitburn, Joel (2004), Joel Whitburn Presents Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, 1942-2004, Record Research Inc., ISBN 0-89820-160-8
- Whitburn, Joel (2007), Joel Whitburn Presents Billboard Top Adult Songs, 1961-2006, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0898201697
- Whitburn, Joel (2009), Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 1955-2008, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0898201802
- Whitburn, Joel (2010), Joel Whitburn Presents Top Pop Albums, Seventh Edition, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0898201833
External links
edit- Helen Reddy discography discography at Discogs