The Spinners - The Rubberband Man

The song, written by producer Thom Bell and singer-songwriter Linda Creed, was about Bell’s son, 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 U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and topped the U.S. R&B chart at the end of 1976. It was also a top-20 hit in the UK Singles Chart, reaching number 16 in October 1976. The song returned to the Billboard charts in 2018 because of its use in the Guardians of the Galaxy’s introductory appearance in Avengers: Infinity War. The song was included in the Detroit Free Press’s “Detroit’s 100 Greatest Songs“ list, ranking 70th.