Philly Soul, Chi-town, Acapella, a little rock! Would you believe the all-terrain vehicle this one song has become? Hop aboard! Sometimes the "games people play" are melodious and eminently danceable!
Fantastic deep dive. I really like myself some Spinners (whom I discovered thanks to you). I didn’t know this track, and one can’t deny that beat is infectious! I loved the harmonies, how they play with their voices, and that falsetto/female solo/vocal part mystery!
Bonkers it took so long, after the first cover, for somebody else to accept the challenge!
Thanks so much, Andy! I'm not sure I knew 'twas thru moi you discovered the joys and wonders of The Spinners! That makes me feel great!
However much work he did (which was a lot) outside the group, I really think Thom Bell did some of his best, effective, and most hand-in-glove work with The Spinners....to the point of being their George Martin! There. I said it! If I may, I'd love to suggest a personal dive into the wonders of Master Bell's production and arranging discog! Treasures abound, no doubt! Here's a starting place...his production cache: https://www.discogs.com/artist/164262-Thom-Bell?superFilter=Production&creditFilter=Producer
Yes, that Benton/Fambrough dilemma! What shall we do with that?😊Believe me...before last Wednesday, I had no clue.....I only "knew" it was "some gal" who sang that! Silly me! A tiny portion of our discoveries, here, are known going in.....this one? My jaw dropped as are everyone's, today! Those are my favorite discoveries....they happen in real time as the keys slap the paper!!
As for the desert (🌵) spread out between covers of any song....for a good/great song, artists may feel the die has been cast....the template forged, and nowhere close would they want to tread! Again, this week was MY first time hearing all these covers. Mad respect for a contemporary to The Spinners, The Chi-Lites, for daring to go near....but, they did their thing, and made it their own, both with arrangement and vocals! And, great job, too, by The Nylons and Tripwires! A cover can go so wrong, but these were really well done!
BTW, this song has only been recorded 8 times, including The Spinners' first! Thanks again!💖
Thank you, Brad! Yes, it was indeed through you that I discovered them. I am sure I knew of them, in passing, but what I can tell you is that if I indeed listened to or heard one of their songs, I for sure didn’t know it was them.
It was you who put a face to the name, or rather, a tune to the title! 😅🎶
Fascinating stuff, indeed, the discography you mention and the history (or dearth) of covers. And yes, I agree that those who had the balls to do it did a pretty good job at it, all things considered!
That really does sound — to my ears, at least — like a woman singing that part. Aside from the pitch, there's something about the tonality that at the very least sounds like it's coming from someone with a smaller head... but who knows? Great deep dive into a wonderful song, in any case!
Thanks, Dan.....yeah, I'd thought that for years, and when I first found Bell's explanation, this week, I was incredulous, to say the least! We need Fil, Wings of Pegasus, to put his machine on the vocal to see what he can detect! You're right about the physical aspects....the vocal cords/air passage/sonic waves/head size, etc between a singing male vs. female! We're happily making our way through The Spinners' rich catalog!
Hi Brad. Really enjoyed this detailed exploration of one of my favourite songs of the seventies. I love the Spinners version but I agree that the Chi Lites iteration is extremely charming! Thanks! Hint: Would love to see further explorati,ons of the brilliant songs of the era of my childhood. Perhaps Billy Paul's Me and Mrs. Jones, For example. But I'll let you decide! That was fun to tune into! Cheers.
Thanks so much, Nadine! I appreciate the compliments and your enjoyment of the article! They're a blast to put together! Feel free to poke around for more Spinners '70s hits! They'd mostly be in the "Inside Tracks" tag at the top of our main page. Here's how to get to all the "Inside Tracks": https://bradkyle.substack.com/t/inside-tracks
Enjoy, and drop by anytime, FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE!
Thanks, AJ! This one was a good example, though, of artists taking a great song and making it their own...something that's hard to do...almost to the point of artists backing away from a potential cover if they can't figure out HOW to make it differ from the original!
And, if they CAN find a way (like our artists spotlighted today), then the execution is the last river to cross...and, these did it!
I love The Spinners. My go-to jam is 70s R&B/soul and they are obviously one of that genre's superstars.
You mentioned Taylor Dayne in passing and as an fyi, I recently took my 80s/90s-loving wife to see Dayne at the Dakota here in the Twin Cities. It's a fairly small club (maybe a 150 seats). But Dayne was amazing. Her voice has barely changed over the years and the four-piece band was super tight. A surprisingly solid set and I would definitely recommend seeing her live if that's your thing.
Thanks, Rick! She had a moment, didn't she! The whole '90s into new-century music scene was jam-packed with stars'n'superstars, and the airwaves and early 'net seemed overwhelmed, and for some (like I perceive her career was), just as rapidly kaput! Not to denigrate her talent....she does have a powerhouse voice, and it's great to hear she's A) still working, and B) sounding great!
You'll enjoy this: The Taylor-introduced Spinners track was an abbreviated one. Here's the full 3-song medley The Spinners did on that show that Dayne introduced, with Taylor singing the Dionne Warwick part on the middle-of-the-three songs, "Then Came You"!
Thanks, Mark! That's so cool......we love hearing how people come to this song or that, and to different artists! Plus, it's good to hear K-Tel and their incessantly annoying TV ads turned out to be good for somethin'! In case you missed that great era of '70s K-Tel ads, here's one.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyiLOPnENfE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLD1rywXMJk (don't ask me why the YT creator put The Kings album cover on the screen while this plays the audio!) The album this "K-Sel" ad parody was on came out around 1971 on Warner Bros. Records....I had it at the time....a scream! I believe YT has the whole album somewhere. The album was called "A Great Gift Idea" by The Credibility Gap! Your homework for the week! I wish I could listen to it with you! Thanks again!!😊
That'd be cool....meeting them, and seeing that photo! Find it, and I'd be happy, con su permision, to slap it up here, with DanPal props! Wonder if they ever came to Houston in the '70s. I know I never saw them.....willing to bet they were a group I more fully discovered later on, and only enjoyed the radio hits at the time!
Ha! I didn't know that! I will say, for us singers, this is a fun trip around the staff, with all the ups'n'downs, pitch-wise, this one has! I also know that "12:45" has never been a lyric I was unsure of when it came time to sing along! I was never gonna...oops...forget, and sing, "8:23", "a quarter to twelve," or some such!! Great stuff....thanks, David!
Fantastic deep dive. I really like myself some Spinners (whom I discovered thanks to you). I didn’t know this track, and one can’t deny that beat is infectious! I loved the harmonies, how they play with their voices, and that falsetto/female solo/vocal part mystery!
Bonkers it took so long, after the first cover, for somebody else to accept the challenge!
Amazing read.
Thanks so much, Andy! I'm not sure I knew 'twas thru moi you discovered the joys and wonders of The Spinners! That makes me feel great!
However much work he did (which was a lot) outside the group, I really think Thom Bell did some of his best, effective, and most hand-in-glove work with The Spinners....to the point of being their George Martin! There. I said it! If I may, I'd love to suggest a personal dive into the wonders of Master Bell's production and arranging discog! Treasures abound, no doubt! Here's a starting place...his production cache: https://www.discogs.com/artist/164262-Thom-Bell?superFilter=Production&creditFilter=Producer
Yes, that Benton/Fambrough dilemma! What shall we do with that?😊Believe me...before last Wednesday, I had no clue.....I only "knew" it was "some gal" who sang that! Silly me! A tiny portion of our discoveries, here, are known going in.....this one? My jaw dropped as are everyone's, today! Those are my favorite discoveries....they happen in real time as the keys slap the paper!!
As for the desert (🌵) spread out between covers of any song....for a good/great song, artists may feel the die has been cast....the template forged, and nowhere close would they want to tread! Again, this week was MY first time hearing all these covers. Mad respect for a contemporary to The Spinners, The Chi-Lites, for daring to go near....but, they did their thing, and made it their own, both with arrangement and vocals! And, great job, too, by The Nylons and Tripwires! A cover can go so wrong, but these were really well done!
BTW, this song has only been recorded 8 times, including The Spinners' first! Thanks again!💖
Thank you, Brad! Yes, it was indeed through you that I discovered them. I am sure I knew of them, in passing, but what I can tell you is that if I indeed listened to or heard one of their songs, I for sure didn’t know it was them.
It was you who put a face to the name, or rather, a tune to the title! 😅🎶
Fascinating stuff, indeed, the discography you mention and the history (or dearth) of covers. And yes, I agree that those who had the balls to do it did a pretty good job at it, all things considered!
That really does sound — to my ears, at least — like a woman singing that part. Aside from the pitch, there's something about the tonality that at the very least sounds like it's coming from someone with a smaller head... but who knows? Great deep dive into a wonderful song, in any case!
Thanks, Dan.....yeah, I'd thought that for years, and when I first found Bell's explanation, this week, I was incredulous, to say the least! We need Fil, Wings of Pegasus, to put his machine on the vocal to see what he can detect! You're right about the physical aspects....the vocal cords/air passage/sonic waves/head size, etc between a singing male vs. female! We're happily making our way through The Spinners' rich catalog!
Hi Brad. Really enjoyed this detailed exploration of one of my favourite songs of the seventies. I love the Spinners version but I agree that the Chi Lites iteration is extremely charming! Thanks! Hint: Would love to see further explorati,ons of the brilliant songs of the era of my childhood. Perhaps Billy Paul's Me and Mrs. Jones, For example. But I'll let you decide! That was fun to tune into! Cheers.
Thanks so much, Nadine! I appreciate the compliments and your enjoyment of the article! They're a blast to put together! Feel free to poke around for more Spinners '70s hits! They'd mostly be in the "Inside Tracks" tag at the top of our main page. Here's how to get to all the "Inside Tracks": https://bradkyle.substack.com/t/inside-tracks
Enjoy, and drop by anytime, FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE!
Hey, Nadine! Here's one I think you'll dig! All Philly, all the time! You may find some new loves in here! Hint: Two words: Philly Devotions! https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/disco-reduxthe-philly-found-and-forgotten-3a7
I liked how multiple artists would record the same song and it created standards. Great dive into this one Brad!
Thanks, AJ! This one was a good example, though, of artists taking a great song and making it their own...something that's hard to do...almost to the point of artists backing away from a potential cover if they can't figure out HOW to make it differ from the original!
And, if they CAN find a way (like our artists spotlighted today), then the execution is the last river to cross...and, these did it!
I love The Spinners. My go-to jam is 70s R&B/soul and they are obviously one of that genre's superstars.
You mentioned Taylor Dayne in passing and as an fyi, I recently took my 80s/90s-loving wife to see Dayne at the Dakota here in the Twin Cities. It's a fairly small club (maybe a 150 seats). But Dayne was amazing. Her voice has barely changed over the years and the four-piece band was super tight. A surprisingly solid set and I would definitely recommend seeing her live if that's your thing.
Thanks, Rick! She had a moment, didn't she! The whole '90s into new-century music scene was jam-packed with stars'n'superstars, and the airwaves and early 'net seemed overwhelmed, and for some (like I perceive her career was), just as rapidly kaput! Not to denigrate her talent....she does have a powerhouse voice, and it's great to hear she's A) still working, and B) sounding great!
You'll enjoy this: The Taylor-introduced Spinners track was an abbreviated one. Here's the full 3-song medley The Spinners did on that show that Dayne introduced, with Taylor singing the Dionne Warwick part on the middle-of-the-three songs, "Then Came You"!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7fcr3La2v8
Thanks again!
Great piece Brad! My parents had "Games People Play" on one of their K-tel albums and it's how I got into The Spinners.
Thanks, Mark! That's so cool......we love hearing how people come to this song or that, and to different artists! Plus, it's good to hear K-Tel and their incessantly annoying TV ads turned out to be good for somethin'! In case you missed that great era of '70s K-Tel ads, here's one.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyiLOPnENfE
and, of course, the inevitable parody, by the inimitable Credibility Gap! You know who they are! If not, here ya go: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Credibility_Gap
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLD1rywXMJk (don't ask me why the YT creator put The Kings album cover on the screen while this plays the audio!) The album this "K-Sel" ad parody was on came out around 1971 on Warner Bros. Records....I had it at the time....a scream! I believe YT has the whole album somewhere. The album was called "A Great Gift Idea" by The Credibility Gap! Your homework for the week! I wish I could listen to it with you! Thanks again!!😊
There's a song on that I love called "You Can't Judge A Book By It's Hair"
Yep.....such a classic album! And, from there, so much hilarity...from "Spinal Tap" to "The Simpsons" to that folk music movie, and more!
My brother Mike once saw the Spinners live and got to meet them afterwards. They all autographed a photo that I have somewhere. I need to find that!
That'd be cool....meeting them, and seeing that photo! Find it, and I'd be happy, con su permision, to slap it up here, with DanPal props! Wonder if they ever came to Houston in the '70s. I know I never saw them.....willing to bet they were a group I more fully discovered later on, and only enjoyed the radio hits at the time!
Pervis Jackson's reading of the line "12: 45" led to that becoming his nickname.
Ha! I didn't know that! I will say, for us singers, this is a fun trip around the staff, with all the ups'n'downs, pitch-wise, this one has! I also know that "12:45" has never been a lyric I was unsure of when it came time to sing along! I was never gonna...oops...forget, and sing, "8:23", "a quarter to twelve," or some such!! Great stuff....thanks, David!