The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game

"The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" is a 1966 song written by Smokey Robinson. It was a hit single in 1967 for the American girl group The Marvelettes for the Motown label, from their self-titled album released that same year.

"The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
Single by The Marvelettes
from the album The Marvelettes[1]
B-side	"I Think I Can Change You"
Released	December 27, 1966
Recorded	1966
Studio	Hitsville U.S.A.
Genre	Soul, pop
Length	2:45 (single version) 3:13 (album version)
Label	Tamla
Songwriter(s)	Smokey Robinson
Producer(s)	Smokey Robinson
The Marvelettes singles chronology
"You're the One" (1966) "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (1966) "When You're Young and in Love" (1967)

The Marvelettes version

Background

The Marvelettes single peaked in the United States in spring 1967 at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart and at number two on the Billboard soul chart.^[2] The group's version of the song was produced by Smokey Robinson. The song is written in the first person, from the point of view of someone who has "laid such a tender trap" to catch a lover. Lead singer Wanda Young-Rogers (wife of Miracles member Bobby Rogers) talks about how she had been stalking her lover, having to learn his "ways and habits" so she could plan how to catch him. But "certain things rearrange" and she finds herself caught, presumably, in love with her 'game.'

There seems to be 3 variations issued. The original mono single ended cold, yet some (not all) of the stereo remixes fade at the end. There is also a different last verse on some of the reissues, leading to the assumption that Smokey recorded the song much longer than any of the issued versions. Additionally, the single version and at least one of the stereo mixes exclude the first part of the second verse.

Billboard named the song #71 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.^[3]

Personnel

• Lead vocals by Wanda Young-Rogers
• Background vocals by Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson and The Andantes: Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps
• Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers

Chart performance

Chart (1967)	Peak position
Billboard Hot 100[4]	13
R&B Singles[4]	2

Grace Jones version

"The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
Single by Grace Jones
from the album Warm Leatherette[5]
B-side	"Sinning", "Warm Leatherette"
Released	September 1980
Genre	Post-disco dance[6]
Length	3:50
Label	Island
Songwriter(s)	Smokey Robinson
Producer(s)	Chris Blackwell Alex Sadkin
Grace Jones singles chronology
"Private Life" (1980) "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (1980) "Breakdown" (1980)

Background

In 1980, Jamaican singer Grace Jones remade the song and had minor success with her version in the US. It was included on Warm Leatherette in 1980, her first post-disco album. It was also released as the lead single in the USA and the fourth in the UK. The B-side on the European single is an alternate version of the song, known as the "Special Single Version". This version was not released on CD until 2016 when Warm Leatherette was reissued.

Track listings

• US 7" single^[7]

A. "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" – 3:49

B. "Sinning" – 5:06

• EU 7" single^[8]

A. "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (LP version) – 3:50

B. "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (Special Version) – 3:20

• UK 12" single^[9]

A. "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (long version) – 6:43

B. "Warm Leatherette" (long version) – 5:36

Chart performance

Chart (1980)	Peak position
UK Singles (Record Business)[10]	97
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[11]	87

Other cover versions

The song has had several cover versions over the years:

• Blondie included a cover as the closing track on their 1982 conceptual album The Hunter.^[12]
• Massive Attack and Tracey Thorn (of Everything but the Girl) recorded a cover for the soundtrack to Batman Forever in 1995.
• Bette Midler performed a rendition included in the deluxe edition of her 2014 studio album It's The Girls!.^[13]
• Another cover also appeared on Jerry Garcia's Compliments in 1974,^[14] and was performed live by the Jerry Garcia Band until into the early 90s.