"I've Got to Use My Imagination," Gladys Knight & The Pips (1974)

Somehow, Gladys Knight makes heartbreak sound like fun.

Peak: #4 on the Hot 100
Streams: 6.1 million

Do you think for one second that Gladys Knight is going to let this fool get her down? From the first line she sings in “I’ve Got to Use My Imagination,” you can tell she’s resilient as hell. Her timbre, her control, her smooth delivery: She might be reflecting on a love gone wrong, but when the the song begins, it sounds like she’s gathering up her power. By the bridge, when starts wailing about the darkness all around her blocking out the sun, she rattles the windows in your car, your house, and your local Bank of America.