Top Songs of 1972: The Year's Biggest Hits & Trends

The top songs of 1972 were led by a ballad that almost didn't become a hit at all.

Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" had been sitting on her 1969 debut album.

It sat there for three years before it suddenly exploded into the biggest song of the year.

Beyond that number one, 1972 was a year of real soul dominance.

It was also full of strange chart coincidences.

A wave of artists each landed exactly two songs on the year-end list.

This is a closer look at the artists and stories behind the top songs of 1972.

Hand-drawn Sketch Note infographic about the top songs of 1972, showing Roberta Flack's number one hit The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Al Green's three year-end chart entries, and I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing charting twice under two different acts

Chart data: Billboard Year-End Hot 100, 1972.

Roberta Flack's Slow-Burn Ballad Topped the Top Songs of 1972

Billboard's Year-End Hot 100 named "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" the top song of 1972.

Its path to that spot was anything but typical.

Roberta Flack had recorded the song back in 1969 for her debut album.

It took years and an unexpected boost to turn it into a genuine phenomenon.

The song was originally written in 1957 by British singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl.

It found new life years later in an unexpected way.

Director Clint Eastwood featured Flack's version prominently in his film "Play Misty for Me."

That placement is widely credited with driving the song's explosion in popularity.

A song that once sat quietly on a debut album suddenly had a second life.

That slow build paid off in a big way.

The song went on to win Grammys for both Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Curious what else was topping the chart around this time?

Our Birthday #1 Song Finder pulls the exact number one hit for any date.

Al Green Became 1972's Most Charted Artist

While Flack held the top spot, no artist placed more songs on the year-end list than Al Green.

Three separate Al Green singles made the 1972 chart, more than any other act that year.

His run that year included three singles.

"Let's Stay Together"
"Look What You Done for Me"
"I'm Still in Love with You"

That stretch cemented him as one of soul music's defining voices of the early 70s.

That kind of consistency, three genuine hits in a single year, stands out.

It's a clear sign of just how dominant Green's sound was during this stretch of the decade.

That dominance is part of why the top songs of 1972 still get discussed today.

The Same Song, Two Different Acts

One of the strangest quirks of 1972's chart involved a single song.

It made the year-end list twice, under two completely different names.

"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" made the year-end list for both acts.

The New Seekers and The Hillside Singers each recorded their own version.

Both versions charted in the same year.

It remains one of the more unusual footnotes in Billboard chart history.

That kind of overlap was rare even by the standards of the era.

It says something about how much the song's message resonated with listeners.

Two competing versions still found an audience at the same time.

A Year Full of Two-Hit Wonders

1972 was also a year where landing exactly two hits on the year-end list was almost its own trend.

Several major names hit that mark at once.

Michael Jackson, with "Ben" and "Rockin' Robin"
Harry Nilsson, with "Without You" and "Coconut"
Don McLean, with "American Pie" and "Vincent"
Bill Withers, with "Lean on Me" and "Use Me"
Three Dog Night, with "Black and White" and "Never Been to Spain"
Joe Simon, with "Drowning in the Sea of Love" and "Power of Love"

That spread, six different artists all landing precisely two hits, is striking.

It shows just how wide open the middle of the chart was that year.

Success was shared across soul, pop, and singer-songwriter acts alike.

That balance is a big part of what makes the top songs of 1972 worth revisiting.

See how 1972 compares to the year before it in our Top Songs of 1971 countdown.

Instrumentals Found Real Chart Success

Not every hit song of 1972 needed lyrics to connect with listeners.

Instrumental tracks performed unusually well on the year-end chart that year.

That run was led by "Popcorn" by Hot Butter and "Scorpio" by Dennis Coffey.

Both tracks proved that a strong hook and a distinctive sound could carry a song into the year-end conversation.

That's just as true as it is for a memorable vocal performance.

Neither song needed a single lyric to become a genuine year-end hit.

That range says a lot about the top songs of 1972 as a whole.

Want to hear how tracks like these stack up against other years in the decade?

Our 70s Decade Wheel lets you spin through year by year.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the number one song of 1972?

Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" was the top song of 1972.

That's according to Billboard's Year-End Hot 100.

The song had originally appeared on her 1969 debut album.

It gained new popularity after director Clint Eastwood featured it in his film "Play Misty for Me."

It eventually won Grammys for both Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Which artist had the most songs on the 1972 year-end chart?

Al Green placed three singles on Billboard's Year-End Hot 100 for 1972, more than any other act that year.

Those hits included "Let's Stay Together," "Look What You Done for Me," and "I'm Still in Love with You."

That run made him one of the defining soul artists of the early 70s.

Did the same song chart twice in 1972 under different artists?

The same song did chart twice in 1972, under two different artists.

"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" made the year-end list for both acts.

The New Seekers and The Hillside Singers each recorded their own version.

Both versions charted in the same year.

Which artists had exactly two hits on the 1972 chart?

Several major names landed precisely two songs each on the 1972 year-end list.

Those artists included Michael Jackson, Harry Nilsson, Don McLean, Bill Withers, Three Dog Night, and Joe Simon.

That spread reflected how widely success was shared across soul, pop, and singer-songwriter acts that year.

Were there any big instrumental hits in 1972?

Instrumental tracks did have real success on the 1972 year-end chart.