"Show and Tell" is a popular song written by Jerry Fuller and first recorded by Johnny Mathis in 1972. This original version made it to #36 on the Easy Listening chart.
Al Wilson version A 1973 recording of the song by Al Wilson reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of January 19, 1974.Al Wilson, Billboard Hot 100 – Billboard.com. Retrieved January 24, 2025. It sold over two million copies and was named a Cash Box #1 Single of the Year. Billboard ranked it as the #15 song for 1974.Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1974 Wilson's version also made #10 on the Hot Soul Singles chart.
For this version of the song, songwriter Jerry Fuller credits bassist Dennis Parker for the bass line. Parker reported that bandleader-arranger H. B. Barnum devised the bass line for the song's introduction.
Chart history
Weekly charts Chart (1973–1974)PeakpositionAustralia (Kent Music Report)57Canada RPM Top Singles7Canada RPM Adult Contemporary21U.S. Billboard Hot 1001U.S. Billboard Easy Listening3U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles10U.S. Cash Box Top 1001
Year-end charts Chart (1974)PositionCanada58U.S. Billboard Hot 10015U.S. Billboard Easy ListeningTop 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 197428U.S. Cash Box 1
Other cover versions Engelbert Humperdinck in 1974 on his album My Love. Peabo Bryson had a #1 R&B hit with it in 1989. Bryson's rendition did not chart on the Hot 100. American singer/actress Vanessa Williams for her 2005 studio album Everlasting Love.
In popular culture The song was often played by Paul Shaffer and The CBS Orchestra on the Late Show with David Letterman for the segment "Show & Tell". Wilson's version can be heard on TV show Malcolm in the Middle's episode "Forbidden Girlfriend".
Notes
References
External links Lyrics of this song