Understanding (Bobby Womack Album) - "Woman's Gotta Have It"

"Woman's Gotta Have It"

The first single released from Understanding was "Woman’s Gotta Have It", a warning to a man who was taking his wife for granted, which Womack co-wrote with Darryl Carter and Linda Cooke Womack (Sam Cooke’s daughter). Recorded at American Sound, personnel on the track included Mike Leech on bass, Reggie Young on guitar, Hayward Bishop on drums and percussion, Bobby Wood on piano and Bobby Emmons on organ. With emphasis on Leech’s bassline, "Woman’s Gotta Have It" was Womack’s first Number One R&B hit, topping the charts in the spring of 1972. He followed with a cover of Neil Diamond’s 1969 hit "Sweet Caroline (Good Times Never Seemed So Good)". The song had moderate success on the R&B charts, perhaps on the strength of Womack’s two previous hits. However, black radio deejays played the B-side, "Harry Hippie." Taylor Hicks covered the song on his 2009 album The Distance.