Rubberband Man

"The Rubberband Man" is a song recorded by American vocal group the Spinners. The song, written by producer Thom Bell and singer-songwriter Linda Creed, originated because of Bell's son Mark, who was being teased by his classmates for being overweight. Intended to improve his son's self-image, the song eventually evolved from being about "The Fat Man" to "The Rubberband Man".

The last major hit by the Spinners to feature Philippé Wynne on lead vocals, "The Rubberband Man" spent three weeks at number two on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, number 3 on the US ''Cash Box'' Top 100 and topped the U.S. R&B chart. It also reached number 16 on the UK Singles Chart.

The song was included in the ''Detroit Free Press''s "Detroit's 100 Greatest Songs" list, ranking 70th.

Arrangement and structure

Wynne alternates between singing the verse and interjecting verbal asides and improvises the eight bars linking the chorus with the bridge. The backing singers' retort of "do-do-do-do" recalls the distinctive chorus in Stephen Stills' song "Love the One You're With."

Instrumentation

The bassline of the song is intended to mimic the sound of a rubber band. This sound was achieved by bassist Bob Babbitt, an experienced Motown session musician, by running the instrument through a device he called a "funk box."https://www.songfacts.com/facts/the-spinners/the-rubberband-man

Later uses

* Performed by Lynda Carter twice on TV in 1980: during her first (of five) ''Lynda Carter Special'', and in an episode of ''The Muppet Show'' accompanied by a band of Rubberband Men Muppets.
* The song also appears in the 1981 movie '' Stripes''.
* "The Rubberband Man" was used on the TV show '' Suits'' in the 2012 episode "Discovery".
* The song enjoyed a surge in popularity in 2018 as a result of its use in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film '' Avengers: Infinity War''.
* From 2004–2007 in several back-to-school advertising campaigns for OfficeMax, the song Rubberband Man was used as the theme for The 'Rubberband Man', a character played by actor Eddie Steeples, who would happily distribute school / office supplies to surprised and somewhat disappointed children or thankful office employees. In one commercial, Steeple's character has lost his rubber ball, and the commercial documents his search for the missing ball. At that time, Steeples was popular portraying the character of Darnell "Crab Man" Turner on the television sitcom ''My Name Is Earl''.
* The song was featured in the CBS sitcom ''Young Sheldon'' in the final episode of the series. It played right before ''Sheldon Cooper'' was baptized.

Personnel

* Lead vocals: Philippé Wynne
* Background vocals: Bobby Smith, Pervis Jackson, Henry Fambrough and Billy Henderson
* Additional background vocals: the Sigma Sweethearts (Barbara Ingram, Carla L Benson and Yvette Benton)
* Instrumentation: MFSB:
**Thom Bell: keyboards
**Tony Bell, Bobby Eli: guitars
**Bob Babbitt: bass guitar, funk box
**Andrew Smith: drums
**Larry Washington: percussion
*Produced, arranged and conducted by Thom Bell

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubberband Man, The
1976 singles
The Spinners (American group) songs
Songs written by Linda Creed
Songs written by Thom Bell
1976 songs
Atlantic Records singles
Song recordings produced by Thom Bell