"(You've Got Me) Dangling on a String" is a 1970

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...

song by the

Chairmen of the Board Chairmen of the Board is an American-Canadian, Detroit, Michigan-based soul music musical ensemble, group, who saw their greatest commercial success in the 1970s. Recording career General Johnson (musician), General Johnson (1941–2010) had a ...

. The single reached No. 38 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100,Joel Whitburn's Bubbling Under the Billboard Hot 100 1959-2004 No. 19 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' R&B

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...

, and No. 5 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The song was written by

Ronald Dunbar Ronald Dunbar (April 15, 1939 – April 3, 2018) was an American songwriter, A&R director and record producer who worked closely with Holland–Dozier–Holland, and with George Clinton. His co-writing credits include the hit songs "Give Me Just ...

and Edythe Wayne.

Live performances

The group performed "Dangling on a String" on

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...

on May 16, 1970.

Chart history

;Chairmen of the Board ;Donny Osmond

Cover versions

*The song was

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Donny Osmond Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond (born December 9, 1957) is an American singer, dancer, actor, television host, and former teen idol. He first gained fame performing with four of his elder brothers as the Osmonds, earning several top ten hits and gol ...

, and released as a single from the August 1977 album '' Donald Clark Osmond'', "bubbling under" the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart at number 109. Catalogue number PD 14417, Int'l. # 2066 847 77 NP 2827. It was produced by

Brian Holland Brian Holland (born February 15, 1941) is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the songwriting and production team that was responsible for much of the Motown sound, and numerous hit ...

. *A version with substantially altered music was also recorded by the UK

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

band

C Cat Trance C Cat Trance were a post-punk band from Nottingham, England, formed by John Rees Lewis after his departure from Medium Medium. They released five albums before splitting up in the mid-1990s. History After leaving Medium Medium, Rees Lewis forme ...

, on their album ''Play Masenko Combo'' and as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of their 1984 single "Dreams Of Leaving" (Ink INK123). *In 1988, "Danglin' on a String" was also covered by Boys Club for their eponymous debut album and released as their third and final single, in 1989, on

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...

(MCA-53649).

External links

Lyrics of this song
* (Chairmen of the Board)

References

1970 songs 1970 singles 1977 singles Chairmen of the Board songs Donny Osmond songs Songs written by Holland–Dozier–Holland Songs written by Ron Dunbar {{1970s-R&B-song-stub