People Make the World Go Round

People Make the World Go Round

by The Stylistics

July 22, 1972

Let's go back 50 years to July 22, 1972, when the song 'People Make the World Go Round', a track from the self-titled 1971 debut album from the Stylistics, peaked at number 25. The song featured the distinctive falsetto vocals of Russell Tompkins Jr., and an extended coda with an early 70s jazz flavor. It epitomized the smooth groove sound that the band would become known for.

The band would go on to be a mainstay of 70s soul and R & B with hits like 'Break Up to Make Up', 'You Make Me Feel Brand New', and 'Can't Give You Anything (But My Love)'. 

Tompkins Jr. continues to perform live as 'Russell Tompkins and the Stylistics', and as this clip from 2021 shows, he still has the falsetto down cold ('People Make the World Go Round' starts at the 53 minute mark).