1971 Billboard Number One Hits: Every Hot 100 Chart-Topper

The 1971 Billboard Number One Hits list caught pop music in a wide-open early-1970s moment. Soul, rock, singer-songwriter pop, bubblegum, country-flavored ballads, post-Beatles solo hits, and movie themes all reached No. 1. George Harrison opened the year with My Sweet Lord, Three Dog Night ruled Billboard’s year-end chart with Joy to the World, Carole King’s Tapestry era reached the top, and Melanie closed the year with the playful Brand New Key.

This page follows the Billboard Hot 100 issue dates for 1971, shown here as reader-friendly weekly date ranges. Because Billboard chart weeks can cross calendar years, this list begins with George Harrison’s late-1970 carryover and continues into early 1972 with Melanie’s Brand New Key.

The Billboard Hot 100 ranks the most popular songs in the United States using radio airplay and sales. These are official Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 songs, not pop-only, adult-contemporary-only, R&B-only, country-only, rock-only, or “this was definitely playing from the back seat on AM radio” rankings.

1971 Billboard Number One Hits by Week

December 27, 1970 – January 16, 1971: My Sweet Lord / Isn’t It a Pity – George Harrison
January 17 – February 6, 1971: Knock Three Times – Dawn
February 7 – March 13, 1971: One Bad Apple – The Osmonds
March 14 – March 27, 1971: Me and Bobby McGee – Janis Joplin
March 28 – April 10, 1971: Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me) – The Temptations
April 11 – May 22, 1971: Joy to the World – Three Dog Night
May 23 – June 5, 1971: Brown Sugar – The Rolling Stones
June 6 – June 12, 1971: Want Ads – Honey Cone
June 13 – July 17, 1971: It’s Too Late / I Feel the Earth Move – Carole King
July 18 – July 24, 1971: Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian) – The Raiders
July 25 – July 31, 1971: You’ve Got a Friend – James Taylor
August 1 – August 28, 1971: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart – Bee Gees
August 29 – September 4, 1971: Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey – Paul & Linda McCartney
September 5 – September 25, 1971: Go Away Little Girl – Donny Osmond
September 26 – October 30, 1971: Maggie May / Reason to Believe – Rod Stewart
October 31 – November 13, 1971: Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves – Cher
November 14 – November 27, 1971: Theme from Shaft – Isaac Hayes
November 28 – December 18, 1971: Family Affair – Sly and the Family Stone
December 19, 1971 – January 8, 1972: Brand New Key – Melanie

Song-by-Song Notes on the 1971 Billboard No. 1 Hits

My Sweet Lord / Isn’t It a Pity – George Harrison

George Harrison opened the 1971 Billboard Hot 100 calendar with My Sweet Lord / Isn’t It a Pity, a late-1970 carryover from All Things Must Pass. Billboard treated the single as a double-sided No. 1, with both songs listed together during its chart-topping run.

My Sweet Lord made Harrison the first former Beatle to top the Hot 100 as a solo artist. The song’s spiritual lyric, gospel-like chorus, and slide guitar made it one of the defining post-Beatles singles of the early 1970s.

Knock Three Times – Dawn

Dawn reached No. 1 with Knock Three Times, a bright pop single built around a simple apartment-building romance story. Tony Orlando was not yet front-billed as part of the act name on the original single, but he would soon become strongly identified with Dawn’s hits.

Its three-week run helped launch the group’s early-1970s chart success. It is also one of the few songs where home repair sounds like flirting.

One Bad Apple – The Osmonds

The Osmonds spent five weeks at No. 1 with One Bad Apple, a bubblegum-soul hit that drew comparisons to the Jackson 5’s early Motown sound. The song gave the family group its first Hot 100 chart-topper.

Its long run made The Osmonds one of the year’s biggest new pop stories. The title warned about one bad apple, but the chart results were very sweet.

Me and Bobby McGee – Janis Joplin

Janis Joplin reached No. 1 posthumously with Me and Bobby McGee, a Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster song from Pearl. Joplin had died in October 1970, months before the single reached the top.

Her two-week run made her the second artist to earn a posthumous Hot 100 No. 1, after Otis Redding. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3} The song’s famous “freedom’s just another word” line became one of her lasting musical signatures.

Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me) – The Temptations

The Temptations reached No. 1 with Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me), a lush soul ballad led by Eddie Kendricks. It marked one of the group’s last major hits with Kendricks before he left for a solo career.

Its two-week run showed the softer side of The Temptations after their psychedelic soul period. The arrangement was dreamy, but the chart result was very real.

Joy to the World – Three Dog Night

Three Dog Night spent six weeks at No. 1 with Joy to the World, Billboard’s year-end Hot 100 song of 1971. :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4} The song’s opening line, “Jeremiah was a bullfrog,” became one of the decade’s most famous lyrical oddities.

Its six-week run was the longest Hot 100 reign of the year. The lyric did not need to make perfect sense; it needed to make people sing, and on that front, Jeremiah did his job.

Brown Sugar – The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones reached No. 1 with Brown Sugar, the lead single from Sticky Fingers. The song’s guitar riff, horn accents, and swagger made it one of the band’s signature rock hits.

Its two-week run kept the Stones firmly at the center of early-1970s rock. The song’s lyrics have also drawn major criticism over time, making it both a classic-rock staple and a complicated cultural artifact.

Want Ads – Honey Cone

Honey Cone reached No. 1 with Want Ads, a sharp soul-pop single from the Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting and production world. The song’s classified-ad concept turned romantic dissatisfaction into a catchy hook.

Its one-week run made Honey Cone one of several acts to earn a first No. 1 on the Hot 100 in 1971. Relationship trouble, now available in the classifieds.

It’s Too Late / I Feel the Earth Move – Carole King

Carole King spent five weeks at No. 1 with the double-sided hit It’s Too Late / I Feel the Earth Move. Both songs came from Tapestry, one of the defining singer-songwriter albums of the 1970s.

It’s Too Late showcased King’s reflective adult pop side, while I Feel the Earth Move brought a more energetic groove. Together, they made one of the strongest two-sided singles of the decade.

Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian) – The Raiders

The Raiders reached No. 1 with Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian), a song written by John D. Loudermilk. The track used Native American displacement as its subject, though its framing reflects the language and pop conventions of its era.

Its one-week run made it one of the year’s most unusual topical pop hits. It also became Billboard’s No. 6 year-end Hot 100 song of 1971. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5}

You’ve Got a Friend – James Taylor

James Taylor reached No. 1 with You’ve Got a Friend, written by Carole King. Taylor’s version became one of the defining soft rock songs of the early 1970s and won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

The song also tied directly into the Tapestry era, because King recorded her own version on that album. In 1971, Carole King was not just topping the chart; she was lending out No. 1 material.

How Can You Mend a Broken Heart – Bee Gees

The Bee Gees spent four weeks at No. 1 with How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, their first U.S. Hot 100 chart-topper. The ballad showed the group’s pre-disco sound, built around harmony, melancholy, and classic pop songwriting.

Its long run marked an important American breakthrough years before the Bee Gees became central to the disco era. Before the white suits, there were wounded harmonies.

Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey – Paul & Linda McCartney

Paul & Linda McCartney reached No. 1 with Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey, a whimsical multi-part pop single from Ram. The song shifts moods and sections in a way that still feels playful and odd.

Its one-week run gave Paul McCartney his first post-Beatles Hot 100 No. 1. George Harrison opened the year, and Paul joined him by late summer.

Go Away Little Girl – Donny Osmond

Donny Osmond spent three weeks at No. 1 with Go Away Little Girl, a cover of the Gerry Goffin and Carole King song that Steve Lawrence had taken to No. 1 in 1963. Osmond’s version made him a major solo teen idol.

The song became one of the rare compositions to top the Hot 100 in two different versions. Carole King’s fingerprints were all over 1971, even when she was not the performer.

Maggie May / Reason to Believe – Rod Stewart

Rod Stewart spent five weeks at No. 1 with Maggie May / Reason to Believe, a double-sided hit that helped turn him into a major solo star in the United States. Maggie May became the more famous side, with its mandolin, raspy vocal, and coming-of-age story.

The single ranked No. 2 on Billboard’s 1971 year-end Hot 100, just behind Joy to the World. :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6} Rod Stewart arrived at No. 1 sounding like he had already lived through the story twice.

Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves – Cher

Cher reached No. 1 with Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves, her first solo Hot 100 chart-topper. The song’s dramatic storyline helped launch Cher’s early-1970s run of theatrical story songs.

Its two-week run helped move her public image beyond Sonny & Cher and into a stronger solo identity. The spelling and framing are very much of their time, but the chart impact was major.

Theme from Shaft – Isaac Hayes

Isaac Hayes reached No. 1 with Theme from Shaft, the groundbreaking soul-funk theme from the film Shaft. The song became one of the most famous movie themes of the decade and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Its two-week run was a milestone for soul music, film music, and Black popular culture. The wah-wah guitar alone deserves its own billing.

Family Affair – Sly and the Family Stone

Sly and the Family Stone spent three weeks at No. 1 with Family Affair, a darker, leaner funk record from There’s a Riot Goin’ On. The song’s drum machine, subdued vocal, and weary mood made it very different from the group’s earlier, more celebratory hits.

Its run showed that funk could be sparse, heavy, and emotionally complicated while still topping the Hot 100.

Brand New Key – Melanie

Melanie closed the 1971 Billboard Hot 100 year with Brand New Key, which carried into January 1972. The song’s playful roller-skate lyric and folk-pop style made it one of the more unusual chart-toppers of the early 1970s.

Its cross-year run gave 1971 a quirky exit. If Theme from Shaft was cool, Brand New Key was charmingly odd — the Hot 100 has always had range.

Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Stories of 1971

Joy to the World Was Billboard’s Year-End No. 1

Three Dog Night’s Joy to the World spent six weeks at No. 1 and finished as Billboard’s top Hot 100 song of 1971. :contentReference[oaicite:7]{index=7} Its “Jeremiah was a bullfrog” opening became one of the decade’s most memorable pop lyrics.

Carole King Was Everywhere

Carole King topped the chart with It’s Too Late / I Feel the Earth Move, wrote James Taylor’s You’ve Got a Friend, and had songwriting roots in Donny Osmond’s Go Away Little Girl. Her Tapestry era helped define the singer-songwriter sound of the early 1970s.

Post-Beatles Solo Careers Hit No. 1

George Harrison opened the year with My Sweet Lord / Isn’t It a Pity, while Paul & Linda McCartney reached No. 1 with Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey. The former Beatles were already proving they could dominate the Hot 100 separately.

First-Time No. 1 Artists Filled the Year

Sixteen acts earned their first Hot 100 No. 1 in 1971, including Dawn, The Osmonds, Janis Joplin, Honey Cone, Carole King, The Raiders, James Taylor, Bee Gees, Linda McCartney, Donny Osmond, Rod Stewart, Isaac Hayes, and Melanie. :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8}

Soul and Funk Took Several Major Turns

The Temptations, Honey Cone, Isaac Hayes, Sly and the Family Stone, and The Bee Gees’ ballad work all helped make 1971 a strong soul and crossover year. Theme from Shaft and Family Affair especially pointed toward the darker, funkier side of the decade.

1971 Billboard Number One Hits Trivia

Joy to the World by Three Dog Night was Billboard’s year-end Hot 100 song of 1971.
Joy to the World spent six weeks at No. 1, the longest run of the year. :contentReference[oaicite:9]{index=9}
My Sweet Lord made George Harrison the first former Beatle to top the Hot 100 as a solo artist.
Janis Joplin became the second artist to earn a posthumous Hot 100 No. 1 with Me and Bobby McGee. :contentReference[oaicite:10]{index=10}
It’s Too Late / I Feel the Earth Move was a double-sided No. 1 from Carole King’s Tapestry.
You’ve Got a Friend was written by Carole King and became a No. 1 hit for James Taylor.
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart gave the Bee Gees their first U.S. Hot 100 No. 1.
Theme from Shaft won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Brand New Key closed 1971 and carried into the 1972 Billboard chart year.

Why the 1971 Billboard Number One Hits Matter

The 1971 Billboard Number One Hits list shows the early 1970s moving away from the 1960s without settling into one sound. Soul, funk, singer-songwriter pop, bubblegum, British rock, folk-rock, movie themes, and family-group pop all shared space at No. 1.

The year also delivered major career shifts: George Harrison and Paul McCartney proved post-Beatles chart power, Carole King became one of the defining voices and writers of the era, Rod Stewart broke out as a solo star, and Isaac Hayes made movie-theme history with Theme from Shaft.

For chart fans, 1971 was a bridge year with personality: bullfrogs, broken hearts, want ads, yellowish early nostalgia, funk family affairs, and enough Carole King influence to make the Hot 100 feel like it had a piano bench at the center.