You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)

"You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)" is a song written by former Motown songwriters James Dean and John Glover and popularized by the husband/wife duo of Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr., former members of the vocal group The 5th Dimension. Released from their album, I Hope We Get to Love in Time, it became a crossover success, spending six months on the charts and soaring to No. 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Soul Singles charts during late 1976 and early 1977.^[3] It also reached No. 6 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart and No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart.^[4] It would eventually be certified gold, selling over one million copies, and winning the couple a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1977.^[5]

"You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)"
French release cover
Single by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr.
from the album I Hope We Get to Love in Time
B-side	"We've Got to Get it On Again"
Released	September 1976
Genre	R&B[1] soul[2]
Length	4:41 (Album version) 3:40 (Single version)
Label	ABC Records
Songwriter(s)	James Dean, John Glover
Producer(s)	Don Davis
Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. singles chronology
"I Hope We Get to Love on Time" (1976) "You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)" (1976) "Your Love" (1977)
Alternative release
Side A of the US single
Audio
"You Don't Have to Be a Star" on YouTube

Personnel

• Marilyn McCoo – vocals
• Billy Davis Jr. – vocals
• James Jamerson – bass
• Horrace Ott – concertmaster

Chart performance

Weekly charts Chart (1976–1977) Peak position Australia KMR 21 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[6] 1 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[7] 3 Ireland (IRMA)[8] 8 U.S. Billboard Hot 100[9][10] 1 U.S. Billboard R&B/Soul[11][3] 1 U.S. Billboard Easy Listening[citation needed] 6 New Zealand[12] 5 UK Singles (OCC)[4] 7

Year-end charts Chart (1977) Rank Australia 137 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[13] 33 New Zealand[14] 37 UK[15] 98 U.S. Billboard Hot 100[16] 27

Other versions

• Geri Reischl and Barry Williams performed the song in a 1977 episode of The Brady Bunch Variety Hour.
• In 1978, Ralph Carter and Janet Jackson performed it in the Season 5 finale of the CBS sitcom Good Times. At the time, Carter and Jackson were 16 and 11 years old, respectively.