Billboard #1 R&B Songs Of 1991 Rankdown (COMPLETE)

[.indulgecountry]

What an impeccable top 5.

[beyoncelover]

Aww three of my 5 favorites were revealed. But I'm glad that they made it to the Top 10!

Rooting for "All the Man That I Need" or "Emotions" to win! A strong Top 5 overall!

[Jay D83]

I bet all yall do is listen to diva music twirling around lip syncing into yalls hair brushes.

#Justice4TheMenzes!

[Soulsista]

Welcome back to the conclusion of the Billboard #1 R&B Songs Of 1991 Rankdown!

The first song leaving us today has two #1s, six other Top 5s, and just one bottom 10.

SPOILER: Click to show

{R&B Class Of '91}B-Boy chanman Private Dancer singingrulebritannia ccarter1023 aerodynamite rowellfarm490 divasummer 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 #LisaRinna Ivy Leegue™ SHOOTER Mirago BB🌕 Kelly's 10th Fan Mic Technique gonecountry wyckyd Ky annoymous1 samo🦕 Glove Slap .indulgecountry Juanca mamooshka

[Soulsista]

5. Running Back To You - Vanessa Williams

"Running Back To You" was the lead single from Vanessa's sophomore album The Comfort Zone. It became her second single to top the R&B chart and peaked inside the Top 20 on the Hot 100.

Apologies to Private Dancer and Glove Slap...


Stats
Chart Entry: August 3, 1991
Peak Date: October 5, 1991
Weeks At #1: 2
Weeks In Top 10: 7
Weeks On Chart: 16
Hot 100 Peak: #18

Points: 705
Average: 10.80
Standard Deviation: 8.021 (14th lowest)

Private Dancer - 1
Glove Slap - 1
Ky - 2
divasummer - 3
ccarter1023 - 4
Mirago - 4
.indulgecountry - 4
#LisaRinna - 5
Soulsista - 6
rowellfarm490 - 7
Ivy Leegue™ - 7
Juanca - 8
BB🌕 - 9
Mic Technique - 9

SHOOTER - 12
Kelly's 10th Fan - 13
singingrulebritannia - 14
aerodynamite - 14
samo🦕 - 14
annoymous1 - 15
gonecountry - 18
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 19

B-Boy - 24
chanman - 28
wyckyd - 29

Observing
mamooshka

Another #1 leaves us with the next reveal, taking with it nine other Top 5s and just one bottom 10.

[Glove Slap]

Her greatest single. So hot not even soggy Pulse could keep it out of the top 5.

[Soulsista]

4. Romantic - Karyn White

The lead single from her sophomore album Ritual Of Love, "Romantic" was Karyn's biggest hit, topping the R&B and Hot 100 charts. It also helped Ritual Of Love go gold.

Apologies to .indulgecountry...


Stats
Chart Entry: August 17, 1991
Peak Date: October 19, 1991
Weeks At #1: 1
Weeks In Top 10: 5
Weeks On Chart: 17
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (1 week)

Points: 770
Average: 8.20
Standard Deviation: 6.988 (8th lowest)

.indulgecountry - 1
ccarter1023 - 2
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 2
wyckyd - 2
samo🦕 - 3
#LisaRinna - 4
Mic Technique - 4
Juanca - 4
divasummer - 5
gonecountry - 5

Private Dancer - 6
rowellfarm490 - 6
Mirago - 6
BB🌕 - 6
Ky - 6
Soulsista - 7
chanman - 9
singingrulebritannia - 10
SHOOTER - 10

aerodynamite - 11
Kelly's 10th Fan - 12
Ivy Leegue™ - 13
B-Boy - 18
Glove Slap - 21

Keep The Lights On:
annoymous1 - 32

Observing
mamooshka


The next reveal has the 3rd lowest SD. Four of us will be losing a #1, but nobody loses a bottom 10. In fact everyone had this in their Top 20.

[singingrulebritannia]

Apr 27, 2022 10:37:45 GMT -5 Soulsista said:

nobody loses a bottom 10. In fact everyone had this in their Top 20.

Here we go again with another snoozer of a top 2...

[Soulsista]

3. How Can I Ease The Pain - Lisa Fischer

Born in Brooklyn, Lisa Fischer got her start under the stage name Xēna and released the dance club tracks "On The Upside" and "Only Love (Shadows)". She also sang backup for artists like Luther Vandross, Chaka Khan, and The Rolling Stones before cutting a deal with Elektra Records. "How Can I Ease The Pain" was the lead single from her album So Intense. Co-written with Narada Michael Walden and produced by Narada and Louis Biancaniello, it shot straight to the top of the R&B charts and almost hit the Top 10 on the Hot 100. It won a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and a Soul Train Award for Best Female R&B/Soul Single. Despite the success, Lisa never recorded another album, instead returning to singing back up for Luther and The Rolling Stones.

Three 6 Mafia sampled it in their 1997 song "Late Nite Tip".

Apologies to Mirago, gonecountry, and Ky, I share your pain...


Stats
Chart Entry: April 13, 1991
Peak Date: June 29, 1991
Weeks At #1: 2
Weeks In Top 10: 7
Weeks On Chart: 20
Hot 100 Peak: #11

Points: 780
Average: 7.80
Standard Deviation: 5.895 (3rd lowest)

Soulsista - 1
Mirago - 1
gonecountry - 1
Ky - 1
BB🌕 - 2
Kelly's 10th Fan - 2
rowellfarm490 - 3
SHOOTER - 3
wyckyd - 3
Glove Slap - 4
Private Dancer - 5

Juanca - 7
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 8
Ivy Leegue™ - 8
B-Boy - 9
singingrulebritannia - 9
#LisaRinna - 9
ccarter1023 - 10

aerodynamite - 12
annoymous1 - 12
.indulgecountry - 13
Mic Technique - 17
chanman - 18
divasummer - 18
samo🦕 - 19

Observing
mamooshka

[Jay D83]

Whitney v Mariah again. How boring.

[singingrulebritannia]

"Emotions" for the win please and I hope it's not even close

[Soulsista]

Surprise, surprise, look who's back in the Top 2!



vs.




Who will take the crown? We'll find out shortly!

SPOILER: Click to show

{R&B Class Of '91}B-Boy chanman Private Dancer singingrulebritannia ccarter1023 aerodynamite rowellfarm490 divasummer 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 #LisaRinna Ivy Leegue™ SHOOTER Mirago BB🌕 Kelly's 10th Fan Mic Technique gonecountry wyckyd Ky annoymous1 samo🦕 Glove Slap .indulgecountry Juanca mamooshka

[wyckyd]

Apr 27, 2022 11:01:17 GMT -5 Soulsista said:

3. How Can I Ease The Pain - Lisa Fischer


Stats
Chart Entry: April 13, 1991
Peak Date: June 29, 1991
Weeks At #1: 2
Weeks In Top 10: 7
Weeks On Chart: 20
Hot 100 Peak: #11

Points: 780
Average: 7.80
Standard Deviation: 5.895 (3rd lowest)

wyckyd - 3

Yay, I finally get a perfect ranking!

Almost worth the way-too-obvious top 2. Almost...

[Soulsista]

But first, an extra. The final commercial release from her Rhythm Nation 1814 album topped the Hot 100 and peaked at #3 on the R&B chart. The music video , directed by the late Herb Ritts, presented a sexier, softer side of Janet. It was Ritts who suggested that Janet wear jeans and a tank top, as she originally wanted to wear a dress.

Love Will Never Do (Without You) - Janet Jackson

[samo🦕]

Love Will Never Do would've been the easiest #1 I've had in any of these so far

[Private Dancer]

Apr 27, 2022 11:02:48 GMT -5 Jay D83 said:

Whitney v Mariah again. How boring.

Welcome to Pulse

[Private Dancer]

Running Back To You deserved the #1 spot

[Soulsista]

2. All The Man That I Need - Whitney Houston

"All The Man That I Need" was first recorded by Linda Clifford in 1982, and covered that same year by Sister Sledge and David Simmons. It wasn't a hit, however, until Whitney got her hands on it. Produced by Narada Michael Walden, it topped the R&B, AC, and Hot 100 charts, and also hit #1 in Canada and Zimbabwe. It was nominated for a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and a Soul Train Award for Best Female R&B/Soul Single (losing in the latter category to "How Can I Ease The Pain").


Stats
Chart Entry: December 22, 1990
Peak Date: March 2, 1991
Weeks At #1: 2
Weeks In Top 10: 5
Weeks On Chart: 22
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (2 weeks)

Points: 786
Average: 7.56
Standard Deviation: 8.689 (19th lowest)

divasummer - 1
Soulsista - 2
Mirago - 2
Glove Slap - 2
ccarter1023 - 3
#LisaRinna - 3
Ivy Leegue™ - 3
Kelly's 10th Fan - 3
annoymous1 - 3
.indulgecountry - 3
Juanca - 3
SHOOTER - 4
gonecountry - 4
Ky - 4
samo🦕 - 4

chanman - 6
Private Dancer - 8
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 9
B-Boy - 10
rowellfarm490 - 10
BB🌕 - 10
Mic Technique - 11
wyckyd - 13

They Weren't Man Enough:
aerodynamite - 31
singingrulebritannia - 37

Observing
mamooshka

---

And now the #1...



1. Emotions - Mariah Carey

The lead single from her sophomore album of the same name, "Emotions" quickly shot to the top of the R&B, dance, and Hot 100 charts, making her the first artist to have her first five singles top the latter chart. Co-written and co-produced with David Cole and Robert Clivillés, it was nominated for a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

It's considered an homage to The Emotions' "Best Of My Love", so much so that the song's co-writer, Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire, accused Mariah and Sony of plagiarism. The matter was eventually settled out of court.

The 12" Club Mix was later sampled in the Drake song "Emotionless".


Stats
Chart Entry: August 31, 1991
Peak Date: November 2, 1991
Weeks At #1: 1
Weeks In Top 10: 6
Weeks On Chart: 16
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (3 weeks)

Points: 826
Average: 5.96
Standard Deviation: 6.093 (4th lowest)

chanman - 1
ccarter1023 - 1
rowellfarm490 - 1
#LisaRinna - 1
Ivy Leegue™ - 1
BB🌕 - 1
annoymous1 - 1
samo🦕 - 1
singingrulebritannia - 2
gonecountry - 2
.indulgecountry - 2
Juanca - 2

divasummer - 4
Kelly's 10th Fan - 4
Soulsista - 5
Private Dancer - 7
aerodynamite - 7
SHOOTER - 7
wyckyd - 7

B-Boy - 11
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 12
Mic Technique - 14
Ky - 14
Glove Slap - 19

Mirago - 22

Observing
mamooshka


And that concludes the Billboard #1 R&B Songs Of 1991 Rankdown! Thanks to everyone who participated.

We're staying in the '90s this time, as 1992 is on deck!

[singingrulebritannia]

These rankdowns gas up Whitney more than the rock rankdowns gas up Royal Blood and Tool lmao
I'm convinced that if she had sang Kid Rock songs she would still effortlessly make top 5

Anyway thanks for hosting!

[Private Dancer]

I mean... Whitney's voice alone is top 5....

[Jay D83]

Apr 27, 2022 12:22:50 GMT -5 Private Dancer said:

I mean... Whitney's voice alone is top 5....

Exactly - no need to 'gas her up'.

[#LisaRinna]

Apr 27, 2022 11:02:48 GMT -5 Jay D83 said:

Whitney v Mariah again. How boring.

As it should!

[#LisaRinna]

MARIAH'S NECK WON

[Ivy Leegue™]

Some really disturbing results leading to a deserving #1. Can't wait for 1992! The M in PMB really should stand for Mariah, LOL.

[Soulsista]

Perfect Rankings:

#LisaRinna / Mirago - 6
chanman / Juanca / Ivy Leegue™ / Mic Technique / Glove Slap / rowellfarm490 - 4
Kelly's 10th Fan - 3
Ky / singingrulebritannia / Soulsista / annoymous1 / SHOOTER / .indulgecountry / ccarter1023 - 2
Private Dancer / aerodynamite / gonecountry / B-Boy / wyckyd / BB🌕 / samo🦕 - 1
divasummer / 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 0


I'll leave you with one final extra. The lead single from her Spellbound album spent 5 weeks at #1 on the Hot 100 and was her final Top 40 hit on the R&B chart, peaking at #20.

Rush Rush - Paula Abdul

[Private Dancer]

Rush Rush is also THAT song! I didn't know it went top twenty on R&B. But that was a huge song back in the day. Always on pop radio...from what I've heard

[Kelly's 10th Fan]

I couldn't bring myself to outright tank ATMTIN (my most favorite of favorite Whitney vocals, but sidebar, it is WILD how many of her singles are covers of random ass flops that Clive found lying on the floor) or Emotions (which is just a beast), and in the case of Emotions a tank would have accomplished nothing anyway. Very few honest ranks in this series would put either woman outside the top 10, let alone top 20, so they'll always get by on sheer statistics. But I'm not going to lie, I was kind of hoping Lisa could pull off the upset. How Can I Ease The Pain is literally if 1990 Whitney and Mariah had a wonder baby and debuted her to the world the next year. She fucking ATE, okay? It is the only song to have no rank outside the top 20, though, so I suppose that is a victory in its own way!

IIRC a large reason Lisa did not release a follow-up album is bc she actually preferred being a backup vocalist. I wonder how things might have panned out if she was really interested in stardom, bc goodness knows she had the lungs to compete and 90s r&b was arguably the most accommodating time period for new faces.

[#LisaRinna]

Come on WIN!!

[ccarter1023]

Thank you Soulsista This was an amazing top 5!

[gonecountry]

Not that I would ever tank anything purposely, but I was so hoping that Lisa would win or at least hit #2 vs. the same ole same ole.  She sure came close.  I couldn't force myself to tank the competition and I was 99% sure who that would be...  Glad to see she hit #3 for a masterful song.

This all said, two things are important to say:

1. Thank you Soulsista for another great rankdown!

and

2.  If Love Will Never Do (Without You) was in the running it would have been my #1, without question.