Back Stabbers (song)
"Back Stabbers" | ||||
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![]() Side A of US vinyl single | ||||
Single by The O'Jays | ||||
from the album Back Stabbers | ||||
B-side | "Sunshine" | |||
Released | August 1972 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:06 | |||
Label | Philadelphia International | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | ||||
The O'Jays singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
"Back Stabbers" is a 1972 song by the O'Jays. Released from the hit album of the same name, the song spent one week at number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart. It was also successful on the pop charts, peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in October 1972.[1] The narrator in "Back Stabbers" warns men about their male "friends" who smile to their faces, but are secretly planning to steal their wives or girlfriends.[2] It was also inspired by an earlier hit with a similar theme, the Undisputed Truth's "Smiling Faces Sometimes", the chorus of which is quoted at the end of the song. It was part of the soundtrack for the 1977 movie Looking for Mr. Goodbar.
This was the O'Jays first release with Philadelphia International.[3]
Chart performance
Weekly charts
Chart (1972) | Peak position |
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Australia KMR[4] | 92 |
Canada RPM [5] | 39 |
UK Singles (OCC)[6] | 14 |
US Billboard Hot 100[7] | 3 |
US Billboard R&B | 1 |
US Cash Box Top 100[8] | 1 |
Year-end charts
Chart (1972) | Rank |
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US Billboard Hot 100[9] | 35 |
US Cash Box Top 100[10] | 21 |
Cover versions
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"Back Stabbers" | ||||
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Single by Tina Turner | ||||
from the album Love Explosion | ||||
Released | 1979 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:34 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Alec R. Costandinos | |||
Tina Turner singles chronology | ||||
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"Back Stabbers" is the second single from the 1979 album Love Explosion by Tina Turner. The song, along with the other two singles released from Love Explosion, was largely disco-oriented and was overlooked by audiences both in Europe and the United States due to the so-called "anti-disco backlash" at the time.
"Back Stabbers" was also covered by Stephen Cummings in 1983.
References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Joel Whitburn presents top R & B/hip-hop singles, 1942-2004. Menomonee Falls, WI: Record Research. p. 438. ISBN 978-0-89820-160-4.
- ^ Ankeny, Jason. "Back Stabbers" at AllMusic. Retrieved 14 October 2011.
- ^ "The O'Jays | Rock & Roll Hall of Fame". www.rockhall.com. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
- ^ David Kent's "Australian Chart Book 1970-1992" Archived March 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ RPM
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "Archive". Archived from the original on 2016-10-18. Retrieved 2016-10-15.
- ^ "Musicoutfitters.com". Archived from the original on 2017-04-27. Retrieved 2016-10-15.
- ^ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 30, 1972". Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
External links
- 1972 singles
- 1979 singles
- 1983 singles
- The O'Jays songs
- Stephen Cummings songs
- Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles
- Philadelphia International Records singles
- United Artists Records singles
- EMI Records singles
- Tina Turner songs
- The J.B.'s songs
- Songs written by Gene McFadden
- Songs written by John Whitehead (singer)
- Songs written by Leon Huff
- 1972 songs
- Songs about betrayal
- 1970s single stubs