Be What You Are

ReleasedSeptember 1973

Recorded1973

GenreSoul

Length51:56

Be What You Are
Studio album by The Staple Singers
Released	September 1973
Recorded	1973
Genre	Soul
Length	51:56
Label	Stax
Producer	Al Bell
The Staple Singers chronology
Be Altitude: Respect Yourself (1972) Be What You Are (1973) City in the Sky (1974)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	B[2]

Be What You Are is a soul album by the Staple Singers, released in September 1973. It reached number 13 on the Billboard Top Soul LPs chart. The first single, "Be What You Are", fared poorly; however, the follow-up, "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)", was a top ten hit, peaking at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the R&B Singles chart. The third single, "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend" charting at number 23 on the Hot 100 and number three on the R&B chart in 1974.

Guitarist Jimmy Page played acoustic and electric guitars as well as a solo on the last song, "Heaven." Stax engineer Terry Manning was a friend of Page's and worked on Led Zeppelin III.^[3]