Song:Feel Like Makin' Love
Album:Softly With These Songs: The Best Of Roberta Flack
It's likely that if Smooth Jazz had existed in the 70s, classically trained pianist Roberta Flack would have been a best selling jazz singer. But just when it looked like she was going nowhere in the early 70s, one of Hollywood's top stars and directors who also happens to be a big jazz nut used one of her recordings and she would ride that for the next two decades. She was born Feb. 10, 1937 in Black Mountain, NC and grew up in the Washington, DC suburb of Arlington, VA. Her mom was the church organist. Roberta grew up singing in church and became such a classical piano prodigy that Howard University gave her a full scholarship at age 15. She became a music teacher in Washington but performed in clubs on weekends. In 1968, she was performing at a benefit headlined by jazz pianist and singer Les McCann. He took her to Atlantic Records producer Joel Dorn and before long, her debut album First Take was released. Despite critical acclaim, her albums weren't selling. That includes her first duet album with Donny Hathaway. Roberta's big break came when Clint Eastwood used The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face on his 1972 directorial debut Play Misty For Me. It topped the pop charts for six weeks and was the biggest song of 1972. And it was all because Eastwood is a huge jazz nut and loves her music. Her duet with Donny Hathaway Where Is The Love reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Her 1973 album Killing Me Softly reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was certified 2XPlatinum. The title song also topped the charts and so did Feel Like Makin' Love in 1974. Feel Like Makin' Love was written by Gene McDaniels who had a top 5 hit with A Hundred Pounds Of Clay in 1961. He also wrote the Les McCann hit Compared To What. Leon Pendarvis and Roberta Flack wrote the arrangement. Roberta continued to have success with Donny Hathaway until he committed suicide in 1979. Obviously Roberta was devastated but she soon had success recording with R & B singer Peabo Bryson and they had a top 20 hit with Tonight, I Celebrate My love in 1982. Her final chart appearance was the top ten duet with Maxi Priest Set The Night To Music in 1991. Since leaving Atlantic in 1994, Roberta hasn't recorded much but she still tours. This budget CD has all her hits. She performed Where Is The Love with Maxwell on the 2010 Grammy telecast. Here's Roberta Flack performing Feel Like Makin' Love at BET in Washington 2001. It's from her DVD Roberta Flack In Concert.
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