"Games People Play", also known as "'They Just Can't Stop It' The (Games People Play)", is a song recorded by American R&B vocal group The Spinners. Released in 1975 from their Pick of the Litter album, featuring lead vocals by Bobby Smith, it was a crossover success, spending a week at number one on the US Hot Soul Singles chart and peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot 100.[1] Recorded at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios, the house band MFSB provided the backing. Female backing vocals on the song were performed by Carla L. Benson, Evette Benton, and Barbara Ingram, who together formed the legendary studio backing vocal group Sweethearts of Sigma. The female lead vocal on the track is by Evette Benton. This song was an RIAA-certified million seller for the Spinners.[2]
| "Games People Play" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 One of side-A labels of the US single | ||||
| Single by The Spinners | ||||
| from the album Pick of the Litter | ||||
| B-side | "I Don't Want to Lose You" | |||
| Released | May 1975 | |||
| Studio | Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |||
| Genre | Philly soul | |||
| Length | 3:29 (7") 4:41 (album) | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Joseph B. Jefferson, Bruce Hawes, Charles Simmons | |||
| Producer(s) | Thom Bell | |||
| The Spinners singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Credits
edit- Lead vocals by Bobby Smith, Pervis Jackson, and Evette Benton
- Background vocals by Philippé Wynne, Pervis Jackson, Henry Fambrough, Billy Henderson, and the Sweethearts of Sigma: Barbara Ingram, Carla L. Benson and Evette Benton
- Instrumentation by various MFSB
Charts
editWeekly charts
edit| Chart (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian RPM Top Singles[3] | 21 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[4] | 5 |
| US Billboard Easy Listening[5] | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 1 |
| US Cash Box Top 100[6] | 2 |
Year-end charts
edit| Chart (1975) | Rank |
|---|---|
| Canada[7] | 89 |
| US Cash Box Top 100[8] | 25 |
References
edit- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 545.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ^ "Bienvenue au site Web Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / Welcome to the Library and Archives Canada website". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "Adult Contemporary Music Chart". Billboard. 1975-10-25. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ^ "Top 100 1975-10-25". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2012-10-03. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca.
- ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1975". cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
External links
edit- Song review on Allmusic
- Song review at Songfacts
- Spinners - Games People Play on YouTube