SoulTracks Looks Back: Richard Dimples Fields hit his peak with “She’s Got Papers on Me”

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Richard “Dimples” Fields was a singer who had a big moment of fame in the 80s as an artist who always seemed to be winking at his audience, even as he tested them with the topics he was covering and how he was covering them. His approach led to nearly a decade’s worth of chart success.

Dimples had a number of big hits during the 80s, but one of the most remembered by fans was the unique 1981 cut, “She’s Got Papers On Me.”  The song was the lament of a married man staring at the mirror, stuck with a wife but wanting his mistress. The six minute song hits a high point when the man’s wife (played by Betty Wright), overhearing the song, interrupts and rips through a 2 minute hilarious rant with her view of the situation.

Wright propelled “She’s Got Papers” into a soul radio staple, and provided the most memorable moment on any Dimples record.  It also led to the response record by Barbara Mason, “She’s Got the Papers (I Got the Man)” and Dimples’ own sequel, “Taking Applications.”

Take a listen to “She’s Got Papers on Me” below, and enjoy it all over again.

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