The artist Roberta Flack considered a “musical genius”
Roberta Flack was never someone who talked up some of her greatest achievements. As much as she was showered with praise, she knew that the true artistry came from someone who kept pushing themselves rather than the amount of trophies that they got from any one song she happened to sing. Then again, she knew when she was dealing with a true musical wonder whenever one walked into the studio to sing with her.
Before she even got her feet off the ground, though, Flack was already among the finest singers in R&B history. Clint Eastwood may have helped shine a spotlight on her music in the film Play Misty for Me, but going through her entire discography, her take on adult-oriented soul music is still some of the most effective emotion ever translated by the human voice.
Even when comparing her to the greatest soul belters of her day, Flack was always one notch above everybody else. Aretha Franklin may have broken down multiple doors for every black woman who stepped up to the mic after her, but even if Flack was singing something delicate like ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song‘, her strength is much more subtle. From the way she sang the chorus, she was clearly capable of doing more but was holding back for the sake of the tune.
While she could keep everything close to the chest musically speaking, Donny Hathaway was the perfect foil to her on some of her greatest tunes. ‘Where Is the Love’ may have been the clearest example of them working together, but even without her, Hathaway had already turned in some of the most masterful vocal takes on his Live record on tracks like ‘Everything is Everything’.
There are even a handful of moments where he gave seasoned pros a run for their money. Willie Weeks might be one of the greatest bassists who ever lived, but it’s not necessarily an accident that he made one of his most iconic bass breaks when working with Hathaway. Even though Flack’s relationship with Hathaway fell apart after he passed away, he knew he would never be forgotten.
“When he sat at the piano and sang for and with me, it was as if nothing was wrong”.
roberta flack
From her perspective, she had been in the presence of a musical genius whenever she worked with him, saying, “I loved Donny. I love Donny. Donny is a musical genius and I don’t use that word often or lightly. Donny had his struggles through the years, but when he sat at the piano and sang for and with me, it was as if nothing was wrong—he sang and played and created magnificently.”
There are even subtle hints of Hathaway’s style in how Flack worked on her later material. Although she already sounded heavenly singing standards towards the end of her career, hearing her take on The Beatles’ greatest hits could have easily been a callback to when Hathaway delivered his own iconic take on John Lennon’s ‘Jealous Guy.’
Still, it’s hard to imagine some of Flack’s greatest moments without Hathaway by her side. A song like ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’ is about as timeless as it gets, but listening back to what they could do in their prime, Flack and Hathaway were the kind of perfect vocal combination that hadn’t been heard since the days of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell.
