I was so surprised, I was hypnotized
By the sound this cat’s puttin’ down
I had this single in the late seventies. I bought it at the dime store in a discount rack for 10 cents. I didn’t know what I was buying but it was the best dime I ever spent. The song has had a resurgence in popularity recently with the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack. It’s a great piece of 1970s soul music.
The Rubberband Man peaked at #2 in the Billboard 100, #7 in Canada, and #16 in the UK in 1976. The Spinners had 7 top ten hits and one #1 with Then Came You. Once you hear it…it sticks with you.
The Spinners’ producer, Thom Bell, wrote this song for his son with help from his songwriting partner Linda Creed. Bell wrote theme songs for all of his children, although this is the only one that was ever recorded. “The Fat Man is what it was called at first since his son Mark was rather large, and that’s what his schoolmates called him.
Bell wanted to change the perception of this nickname, so he wrote a song about a big man who could really move. He’s the guy everyone waits for at the party since it can really get going when he arrives.
Thom Bell: “It was written for big people who were hip, to change the whole idea of a person being large being sloppy, slow.”
The Rubberman Man
Hand me down my walkin’ cane
Hand me down my hat
Hurry now and don’t be late
‘Cause we ain’t got time to chat
You and me we’re goin’ out
To catch the latest sounds
Guaranteed to blow your mind
So high you won’t come down
Hey, y’all prepare yourself
For the rubberband man
You never heard a sound
Like the rubberband man
You’re bound to lose control
When the rubberband starts to jam
Oh, Lord this dude is outta sight
Everything he does
Seems to come out right
Once I went to hear them play
At a club outside of town
I was so surprised, I was hypnotized
By the sound this cat’s puttin’ down
When I saw this short fat guy
Stretched a band between his toes
Hey, I laughed so hard ’cause the man got down
When he finally reached his goal
Hey, y’all prepare yourself
For the rubberband man
You never heard a sound
Like the rubberband man
You’re bound to lose control
When the rubberband starts to jam
Got that rubberband
Up on his toes
And then he wriggled it up
All around his nose
Guaranteed to blow your mind
Playin’ all that music, yet keepin’ time
Where in the world did he learn that, oh, Lord
Lord, help him get away
Hey, y’all prepare yourself
For the rubberband man
You never heard a sound
Like the rubberband man
You’re bound to lose control
When the rubberband starts to jam
Rubberband man, rubberband man
How much of this stuff do he think we can stand
So much rhythm, grace and debonair from one man, Lord
And then he had the nerve to wiggle his left toe
To his knee, got the feelin’ in his head, y’all
Ah, come on baby
Hey, y’all prepare yourself
For the rubberband man
You never heard a sound
Like the rubberband man
You’re bound to lose control (and he likes to jam)
When the rubberband starts to jam
Rubberband man starts to jam
Movin’ up and down across the land
Got people all in his ways
Everything about him seems out of place
Just a movin’, just a movin’, just a move-move-movin’
Just a, a rubberband, rubberband man
Just a movin’, just a movin’, just a move-move-movin’
Just a rubberband, rubberband man
Get down
Oh, get down lover
Uh-huh
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I had a friend from Philadelphia when this came out. He loved this song. I was not a big fan of Philly Soul at the time. His claim to fame was appearing on American Bandstand as a teen. I’m not sure if he was telling the truth, though he was 16 when the show moved to LA.
That would have been a badge of honor. I had a cousin to appear on Bozo and she still talks about it to this day. I like the early seventies soul more than the Philly sound but I do like it.
Max, whenever I hear a Spinners tune from that period (’72-’77) I go back to when my late Dad would rush to the record store & get the new Spinners albums when they came out (he actually got 8-track tapes always so that he could play ’em in the car) & my brother who is your age listened to them every time that we were in the car with he & our Mother for months after that. We knew every word to all of those songs. Linda Creed wrote most of those songs with Tom Bell & it was a part of the classic ‘Philly Sound’. So well produced & written & performed. Like that ‘L.A. Pop’ they had their moment in time & it was about 5 years (Philly Sound).
Oh this one was one of the best singles I ever bought. I was a kid and I didn’t get it until the mid to late 70s but I saw the name…and I had to take a chance. These guys sounded so good and tight…
Such a cool memory for you to remember.
The 70’s had classic music but I still think that the 80’s…maybe the 90’s were better for contemporary music in the U.S.
Oh Carl…you had me until then lol. I never liked the 80s synth sound…I did like some of the 90s though… The 80s declared war on regular rock bands….although yes there was some good music in the 80s…but I sure love the 60s-70s.
Lol…ya’, we disagree on ‘Synth Pop’ & New Wave but that’s what will make for good dialogue on a potential show. Hopefully, things will work out for me there & I can convince my publisher that a music/sports YouTube show could work from that location with a couple of older ‘Gen X’rs’ talkin’ about 60’s-early 2000’s pop/rock/country/funk music. Give me a few months Max.
Oh I think it would work well! I like combining the two subjects.
Me also…I should start pumping out articles within a couple of weeks & we’ll see where that goes.
Oh cool!
Carl, don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of contemporary 80s 90s (eg U2, REM, Pearl Jam, Radiohead) but nothing and nobody can top music from the 60s and 70s.
Okay…I can dig that. I love that music also. I was born in ’64 so I remember a lot of it in the background at the beginning of things for me. Oh ya’.
🙂
sacrilege!
Lol
A fun one to boogie too!
Yes it is Dana!
Love that song! I think when all is said and done the Spinners were my favorite of the many Philly soul acts of the ’70s. It was the new Motown so to speak
Yea they were probably the best at doing that sound…I agree…it was the new Motown.
That is a smoooooth groove.
Oh yes!
Great to hear this one again
Love the Spinners. All their songs are great, but my favorite is “Could It Be I’m Falling In Love”. That came out when I was in 5th grade.
Oh I like that one as well.
“it was the best dime I ever spent.” Love this, Max. I really had no idea what this song was about until now. I just remember loving the sound of it, the rhythm, and the chorus. Thanks for once again educating me on old gold. Happy Friday.
I didn’t know what it was about either until I wrote that. It’s so cool what he did for his son.
Yes!
I have The Best of the Spinners on LP. I find myself returning to it again and again. I’ll be Around, Then Came You, Could it be I’m Falling in Love are so lush and vibrant…I love the Philadelphia Sound. Musically, I like Rubberband Man but I could never get past it’s “silly” lyrics. Now that I know Thom Bell wrote it for his children, I have a new appreciation for it. Thanks Max.
Yea I had no clue about that wih his children…the song makes sense now.
this one hits hard. My younger brother (RIP) had this on a 45 when he was a kid. Every time I hear it, all I see in my head is my brother dancing around our small apartment until he fell down. Between this and car wash, I’m sure he was a closet spinner or a back up pip. thanks so much for the memory, sad though it is.
Great song. Just a lot of fun.
Remember this?
Oh I forgot that John! I came back to me when I started to watch it.
I love that funky bass sound. Great stuff!
Glad you liked it Stewart…I love this philly sound.
Soul music is definitely not high up on my music pecking order, but this was jumpy and sassy. Very nice.
Cool groovy song I hadn’t heard before. I generally dig Philly soul, and The Spinners had some good stuff. Unfortunately, I’ve only heard a handful of their songs.
Its a good ‘un. I generally rated their stuff, especially the early 70’s soul ballads which still sound fab!
I barely know these guys, but this track sounds great. My dad hated them because there was another folk band named The Spinners and he thought they were better.
That is funny. I don’t know much about them but yes…it’s a good track. The guys from my old band…we get together sometimes and play…I asked him to learn this for a guitar-bass-drum arrangement….that should be interesting.
Yeah, bet it’s fun to play!