The Most Beautiful Girl

"The Most Beautiful Girl"
"The Most Beautiful Girl"
SinglebyCharlie Rich
from the albumBehind Closed Doors
B-side	"I Feel Like Going Home"
Released	29 August 1973
Recorded	1973
Studio	Columbia(Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre	Country; country pop; blue-eyed soul;
Length	2:43
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Rory Bourke; Billy Sherrill; Norro Wilson
Producer(s)	Billy Sherrill
Charlie Richsingles chronology

"The Most Beautiful Girl"is a song recorded byCharlie Richand written byBilly Sherrill,Norro Wilson,andRory Bourke.Thecountrypolitanballad reached No. 1 in theUnited Statesin 1973 on threeBillboardmusic charts:the pop chart(two weeks),the country chart(three weeks), andthe adult contemporary chart(three weeks),^[6]as well as inCanadaon threeRPMcharts: theRPM 100Top Singles chart, the Country Tracks chart, and the Adult Contemporary chart.Billboardranked it as theNo. 23 song for 1974.

It is actually a merging of two songs previously recorded by Wilson: "Hey Mister" (from 1968). which forms a major part of the song; and "Mama McCluskie”, used in part in the chorus.

TheB-side,Rich's own "I Feel Like Going Home”, was later covered byRita Coolidgeand was released on her 1974 albumFall into Spring. British pop singerEngelbert Humperdinckcovered "The Most Beautiful Girl" on his 1973 albumEngelbert: King of Hearts.

"The Most Beautiful Girl" was also recorded bySlim Whitmanin the 1970s.Andy Williamsreleased a version in 1974 on his albumThe Way We Were.In 1975ABBAsingerAnni-Frid Lyngstadrecorded a Swedish-language version called "Vill du låna en man?" (with Swedish lyrics byStig Anderson) on her solo albumFrida ensam.Sergio Franchirecorded the song on his 1976 DynaHouse album20 Magnificent Songs.Country music boy bandSouth 65recorded an updated version of the song, titled "The Most Beautiful Girl (2001 Version)”. on their 2001 albumDream Large.

The song receives a very brief airing byBrenda Frickerin the filmSo I Married an Axe Murderer.Jason Alexanderoffered a rendition as his characterGeorge Costanzaon the December 16, 1992, episode of the sitcomSeinfeldtitled "The Pick",where he bemoaned the loss of his girlfriend, Susan.^[7]The song is featured prominently in the 2018 horror filmThe Ranger.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1973–1974)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[8]	7
Belgian VRT Top 30	1
CanadianRPMCountry Tracks	1
CanadianRPMTop Singles	1
CanadianRPMAdult Contemporary	1
Danish Singles Chart	5
French Singles Chart	10
German Singles Chart	14
Irish Singles Chart	2
Netherlands	3
Norwegian Singles Chart	8
UK Singles Chart	2
USBillboardHot 100^[9]	1
USBillboardHot Country Singles^[10]	1
USBillboardEasy Listening	1
USCash BoxTop 100	1

Year-end charts

Chart (1973)	Rank
Canada^[11]	84

Chart (1974)	Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[12]	57
UK^[13]	25
USBillboardHot 100^[14]	23
USCash Box^[15]	3

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[16]	Gold	1,000,000^{^}
^{^}Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^"Charlie Rich - the Most Beautiful Girl".
^Kosser, Michael (2006).How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.: A History Of Music Row.Lanham, Maryland, US: Backbeat Books. pp. 155–160.ISBN 978-1-49306-512-7.
^Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "The Energy Crisis: MOR".Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s.St. Martin's Griffin.p. 159.ISBN 031214704X.
^Marsh, Dave (1989).The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.Plume.p. 473.ISBN 0-452-26305-0.
^Smith, Troy L. (14 December 2021)."Every No. 1 song of the 1970s ranked from worst to best".Cleveland.com.Retrieved30 January2023.
^Whitburn, Joel(2002).Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001.Record Research. p. 203.
^"The Pick".Seinfeld Scripts.Retrieved2016-10-08.
^Kent, David(1993).Australian Chart Book 1970–1992(illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 251.ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^"Charlie Rich Chart History (Hot 100)".Billboard.
^Whitburn, Joel(2004).The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition.Record Research. p. 289.
^Canada, Library and Archives (July 28, 2017)."Image: RPM Weekly".Library and Archives Canada.
^"National Top 100 Singles for 1974".Kent Music Report.30 December 1974.Retrieved15 January2022– viaImgur.
^"Top 100 1974 - UK Music Charts".Uk-charts.top-source.info.Retrieved2016-10-08.
^"Top 100 Hits of 1974/Top 100 Songs of 1974".Musicoutfitters.com.Retrieved2016-10-08.
^"Cash Box Top 100 Singles of 1974".Archived fromthe originalon 2019-07-22.Retrieved2018-04-05.
^"American single certifications – Charlie Rich – The Most Beautiful Girl".Recording Industry Association of America.RetrievedAugust 15,2024.

[1] "Charlie Rich - the Most Beautiful Girl".

[KosserM-2] Kosser, Michael (2006).How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.: A History Of Music Row.Lanham, Maryland, US: Backbeat Books. pp. 155–160.ISBN 978-1-49306-512-7.

[Breithaupt_1996-3] Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "The Energy Crisis: MOR".Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s.St. Martin's Griffin.p. 159.ISBN 031214704X.

[Marsh_1989-4] Marsh, Dave (1989).The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.Plume.p. 473.ISBN 0-452-26305-0.

[5] Smith, Troy L. (14 December 2021)."Every No. 1 song of the 1970s ranked from worst to best".Cleveland.com.Retrieved30 January2023.

[6] Whitburn, Joel(2002).Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001.Record Research. p. 203.

[7] "The Pick".Seinfeld Scripts.Retrieved2016-10-08.

[aus-8] Kent, David(1993).Australian Chart Book 1970–1992(illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 251.ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

[sc_Billboardhot100_Charlie_Rich-9] "Charlie Rich Chart History (Hot 100)".Billboard.

[10] Whitburn, Joel(2004).The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition.Record Research. p. 289.

[11] Canada, Library and Archives (July 28, 2017)."Image: RPM Weekly".Library and Archives Canada.

[aus74-12] "National Top 100 Singles for 1974".Kent Music Report.30 December 1974.Retrieved15 January2022– viaImgur.

[13] "Top 100 1974 - UK Music Charts".Uk-charts.top-source.info.Retrieved2016-10-08.

[14] "Top 100 Hits of 1974/Top 100 Songs of 1974".Musicoutfitters.com.Retrieved2016-10-08.

[15] "Cash Box Top 100 Singles of 1974".Archived fromthe originalon 2019-07-22.Retrieved2018-04-05.

[United_StatesCharlie_RichThe_Most_Beautiful_GirlsingleCertRef-16] "American single certifications – Charlie Rich – The Most Beautiful Girl".Recording Industry Association of America.RetrievedAugust 15,2024.

[6]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]