| Round 2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 1972 | |||
| Studio | Sigma Sound Studios, (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) | |||
| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 37:36 | |||
| Label | Avco | |||
| Producer | Thom Bell | |||
| The Stylistics chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Round 2 | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+ [2] |
Round 2 is the second studio album recorded by American R&B group The Stylistics, released in October 1972 on the Avco label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia.
The album reached #32 on the Billboard 200 and #3 on the R&B albums chart. It features the hit singles "Break Up to Make Up", "I'm Stone in Love with You", and "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)". All three singles reached the top-ten on the R&B charts. "Break Up to Make Up" and "I'm Stone in Love with You" also reached the top-ten on the Billboard Hot 100.
All tracks are written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I'm Stone in Love with You" | Thom Bell, Linda Creed, Anthony Bell | 3:19 |
| 2. | "If You Don't Watch Out" | 2:34 | |
| 3. | "You and Me" | 2:43 | |
| 4. | "It's Too Late" | Carole King, Toni Stern | 4:34 |
| 5. | "Children of the Night" | 7:00 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)" | Burt Bacharach, Hal David | 3:38 |
| 2. | "Break Up to Make Up" | Thom Bell, Linda Creed, Kenneth Gamble | 4:00 |
| 3. | "Peek-a-Boo" | Gregory Guess, Norman Knox | 2:53 |
| 4. | "You're as Right as Rain" | 3:46 | |
| 5. | "Pieces" | 3:09 |
| Chart (1972) | Peak [3] |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top LPs | 32 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Soul LPs | 3 |
| Year | Single | Peak chart position | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [3] | US R&B [3] | US A/C [3] | UK [4] | ||
| 1972 | "I'm Stone in Love with You" | 10 | 4 | 27 | 9 |
| 1973 | "Break Up to Make Up" | 5 | 5 | 20 | 34 |
| "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)" | 23 | 8 | 4 | — | |
| "Peek-A-Boo" | — | — | — | 35 | |
The Stylistics are an American, Philadelphia soul group that achieved their greatest chart success in the 1970s. They formed in 1968, with a lineup of singers Russell Thompkins Jr., Herb Murrell, Airrion Love, James Smith and James Dunn. All of their US hits were ballads characterized by the falsetto of Russell Thompkins Jr. and the production of Thom Bell. During the early 1970s, the group had twelve consecutive R&B top ten hits, including "Stop, Look, Listen", "You Are Everything", "Betcha by Golly, Wow", "I'm Stone in Love with You", "Break Up to Make Up" and "You Make Me Feel Brand New", which earned them 5 gold singles and 3 gold albums.
Thomas Randolph Bell is a Jamaican-born American singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer, known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. Bell is best known for his success with the Philadelphia sound in the 1970s, particularly with the Delfonics, Stylistics and Spinners. In June 2006, Bell was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2016, Bell was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.
Linda Diane Creed, also known by her married name Linda Epstein, was an American singer-songwriter and lyricist who teamed up with songwriter-producer Thom Bell to produce some of the most successful Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s.
"Stop, Look, Listen " is a soul song written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed that was originally recorded by the Philadelphia soul group the Stylistics.
Spinners is the third studio album recorded by American R&B group The Spinners, produced by Thom Bell and released in April 1973 on the Atlantic label. The album was the group's first for Atlantic after leaving Motown.
The Stylistics is the debut album by American R&B group the Stylistics, released in November 1971 on the Avco record label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia. The album has been called "a sweet soul landmark."
Phyllis Hyman is the self-titled solo debut studio album by American soul singer-songwriter Phyllis Hyman. It was released by Buddah Records in 1977. The album charted at number 107 on the Billboard 200 chart, and of the singles released from the album, "No One Can Love You More" was the most successful, charting at number 58 in the Billboard Hot Soul singles chart.
"One of a Kind " is a song recorded by the American R&B vocal group The Spinners. It was written by Joseph B. Jefferson and produced by Thom Bell.
Flying High Together is an album by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles on Motown Records' Tamla label, released in 1972. It is noted as The Miracles' last studio album with original lead singer Smokey Robinson, who retired from the act to concentrate on his duties as Vice President of The Motown Record Corporation. The album charted at #46 on the Billboard Pop Album chart, and featured two singles: the appropriately named "We've Come Too Far to End It Now", which matched the parent album's chart position on the Billboard singles chart, charting at #46, and reached the Top 10 of the Billboard R&B singles chart, charting at #9, and "I Can't Stand to See You Cry", which charted at #45 Pop, and #21 R&B.
Live! Coast to Coast is a live album by the R&B crooner Teddy Pendergrass. It was recorded in Philadelphia in 1978 and Los Angeles in 1979. It did rather well on the Billboard album charts, reaching #33 Pop and #5 R&B.
"Break Up to Make Up" was a 1973 hit by the Philadelphia soul group The Stylistics. The song was written by Thom Bell, Linda Creed, and Kenneth Gamble.
Russell Allen Thompkins Jr. is an American soul singer. Best known as the original lead singer of the vocal group The Stylistics and noted for his high tenor, countertenor, and falsetto vocals. With Russell as lead singer, The Stylistics had 12 straight Top 10 Billboard R&B singles, and 5 gold singles from 1971 through 1974.
Mighty Love is the fourth studio album recorded by American R&B group The Spinners, released in March 1974 on the Atlantic label. It was the Spinners' second album for Atlantic and, like their breakthrough Atlantic debut Spinners, was produced by Thom Bell at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia.
New and Improved is the fifth album by American R&B group The Spinners, released in December 1974 on the Atlantic label. Like the Spinners' two previous Atlantic albums, New and Improved was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia.
Pick of the Litter is the sixth studio album by American R&B group The Spinners, released in August 1975 on the Atlantic label. The album was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia.
Happiness Is Being with the Spinners is the seventh studio album recorded by American R&B group The Spinners, released in July 1976 on the Atlantic label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia and Kaye-Smith Studios in Seattle.
Rockin' Roll Baby is the third studio album recorded by American R&B group The Stylistics, released in November 1973 on the Avco label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studio North in Philadelphia. This would be the group's last album to be produced by Bell.
"I'm Stone in Love with You" is a 1972 single by the Philadelphia soul group The Stylistics. The song is noted for lead singer Russell Thompkins Jr.'s distinctive falsetto singing, which he employs through most of the record. The song was written by Thom Bell, Linda Creed, and Anthony Bell.
I'm Coming Home is an album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on September 21, 1973, by Columbia Records and was mainly composed of material written by the songwriting team of its producer, Thom Bell, and Linda Creed. Unlike several of the Mathis albums before it, I'm Coming Home relied primarily on new songs and included only two covers of established chart hits, both of which were by The Stylistics.
"People Make the World Go Round" is a song written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, originally recorded by The Stylistics and released in 1972 through Avco Records as the final single from their self-titled debut studio album, The Stylistics (1971). It reached #25 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, #25 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and #6 on the Soul Singles chart in the United States.
