"ABC" is a song by the Jackson 5. It was released as a single on February 24, 1970. The song knocked the Beatles' "Let It Be" off the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1970, and was No. 1 on the soul singles chart for four weeks. It is the title track to the group's second album.
Written with a similar structure and feel as the Jacksons' first hit of 1970, "I Want You Back". ABC was performed on television on American Bandstand (February 21, 1970), The Ed Sullivan Show (May 10, 1970), and The Flip Wilson Show (November 4, 1971), among many other broadcasts. "ABC" is considered one of the band's signature songs. It is one of the shortest titles to hit #1, and is the first alphabetically in a list of #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100.[4] The upbeat lyrics compare learning to love to learning the alphabet. This makes it similar to Len Barry's 1965 hit "1-2-3."
It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1971. 50 Cent told NME that the song was the first he remembered hearing: "I've always loved MJ, so I guess it was probably a good place to start music: right here, with the ABCs."[5] On November 7, 2016, the Grammy Hall of Fame announced its induction, along with that of another 24 songs.[6]
