I Want You Back – The Jackson 5 | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#1 for 4 weeks) and R&B (1);1970

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

A blistering piano glissando and a galloping bass line followed by the wailing vocal of an eleven year old marked the exciting coming-out of Motown super group the Jackson 5.

The Jackson family made their debut in front of a national television audience on October 18th, 1969 singing I Want You Back. The song’s writers had originally called the track I Wanna Be Free and pegged it to revive Gladys Knight’s flagging career.

However, when owner Berry Gordy, Jr. heard the young-sounding track, he suggested they change it to a boy-wants girl-back lyric and give it to his latest act; a family group from Gary, Indiana. A month after the show, I Want You Back entered the R&B and pop charts, and topped both in January, 1970.

In an ironic twist, the new boys in (Mo)town bumped the old guard – represented by Diana Ross and The Supremes – out of the R&B top slot. The name of Diana’s swan song with the Supremes was Someday We’ll be Together.

This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.

Produced by:

  • The Corporation

Lyrics Written by:

  • The Corporation
  • Berry Gordy
  • Freddie Perren
  • Alphonso Mizell
  • Deke Richards

Check Out all the Song Meanings of the 70s
Top 100 Songs Of The 1970s

Ed Osborne

Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).