Super Fly (soundtrack)
1972 soundtrack album by Curtis Mayfield / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Super Fly is the third studio album by American soul musician Curtis Mayfield, released on July 11, 1972 on Curtom Records. It was released as the soundtrack for the Blaxploitation film of the same name. Widely considered a classic of 1970s soul and funk music, Super Fly was a nearly immediate hit. Its sales were bolstered by two million-selling singles, "Freddie's Dead" (number 2 R&B charts, number 4 Pop charts) and the title track (number 5 R&B, number 8 Pop). Super Fly is one of the few soundtracks to out-gross the film it accompanied.[15]
Super Fly | ||||
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Soundtrack album / studio album by | ||||
Released | July 11, 1972 | |||
Recorded | December 1971 – May 1972 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Cinematic soul[4] | |||
Length | 36:58 | |||
Label | Curtom | |||
Producer | Curtis Mayfield | |||
Curtis Mayfield chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Singles from Super Fly | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [5] |
Billboard | (favorable)[6] |
Christgau's Record Guide | A−[7] |
Los Angeles Times | [8] |
Pitchfork | 9.1/10[9] |
Q | [10] |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) 1972[11] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | 2004[12] |
Sputnikmusic | [13] |
Vibe | (favorable)[14] |
Super Fly, along with Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971), was one of the pioneering soul concept albums, with its then-unique socially aware lyrics about poverty and drug abuse making the album stand out.[16][17] The film and the soundtrack may be perceived as dissonant, since the film holds rather ambiguous views on drug dealers, whereas Curtis Mayfield's position is far more critical. Like What's Going On, the album was a surprise hit that record executives felt had little chance at significant sales. Due to its success, Mayfield was tapped for several film soundtracks over the course of the decade.