"Rules of the Game" is a 1983 single by UK pop group

Bucks Fizz Bucks Fizz were a British pop group that achieved success in the 1980s, most notably for winning the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Making Your Mind Up". The group was formed in January 1981 specifically for the contest and comp ...

. It fared poorly in the UK Charts, becoming their first single to miss the top 40.

Overview

The song was written by

Warren Harry Warren Harry (born Warren Philip Harry, 16 September 1953 – 10 March 2008) (also known as Warren Bacall) was a British songwriter and performer. Biography Harry was born in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England. From 1976 to 1984, Warren Har ...

(under the name Warren Bacall), who had written their top 10 hit " When We Were Young" a few months earlier. It was produced by Brian Tench with co-production by Andy Hill. Released in November 1983, it proved to be one of the group's least successful singles, peaking at No.57. Despite this, it remained on the Top 100 Chart for 10 weeks. The record's chart failure was commented on by the group some months later, with member

Jay Aston Jay Hilda Aston (born 4 May 1961 in Purley, Surrey) is a British singer and occasional songwriter. She was a member of the British pop group Bucks Fizz from 1981 to 1985 and now under The Fizz. She was the youngest member of the group's ori ...

stating; "It didn't get played. It came out a bit too soon after ' London Town' and got a bit lost among the Christmas stuff".

Bobby G Bobby G (also known as Bobby Gee) (born Robert Alan Gubby, 23 August 1953) is a member of pop group Bucks Fizz, best known for winning the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest and for achieving three UK number one hits with "Making Your Mind Up" (1981 ...

agreed that the record company was putting out too many singles at the time, "We gave them a lot of material and record companies, being what they are, released it." Following this they decided simply to not give any of their finished material over. As a result, the next single was released some nine months later. The single was released in tandem with their first ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album. The B-Side, "When We Were at War", a ballad, was written by the group themselves. At 6 minutes running length, it remains the longest song recorded by the group. "Rules of the Game" features lead vocals by member

Cheryl Baker Rita Maria Stroud (''née'' Crudgington; born 8 March 1954), known professionally as Cheryl Baker, is an English singer and television presenter. She was a member of 1980s pop group Bucks Fizz, who won the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest and now p ...

. The song's lyrics centre on a woman who becomes famous and turns her back on her old friends, but when the fame ends, she finds herself desperately lonely. Baker has since said of her dislike for this song, stating that she finds the lyrics depressing and was unhappy with the affected way she was asked to sing, although it remains a fan-favourite. The single received a negative review in ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'', although it said it was an improvement on their previous single "London Town". The

Promotional Video In video production, a promotional video is marketing or advertising: Arts, media and entertainment * Promotional recording, an audio or video recording distributed to publicize a recording * Trailer (promotion), a commercial advertisement for a ...

shows the group performing the song as moderators of a game featuring two

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players.Bucksfizzearlyyears - Video shots
/ref> An extended 12" version of the song was produced but never released at the time. It finally surfaced on a re-release of the group's '' Are You Ready'' album in 2000.

Track listing

# "Rules of the Game" (Warren Bacall) (4.04) # "When We Were at War" (Bucks Fizz) (6.00)

References

{{Authority control 1983 singles Bucks Fizz songs 1983 songs RCA Records singles