Search - Curtis Mayfield :: Superfly (1972 Film)

Curtis Mayfield's Triumph

John P. Morgan | Beautiful San Dimas, CA | 04/29/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"God Bless you, Curtis Mayfield.



Okay, so I'm a 41 year old white male, big deal...you think I know nothing about soul...about funk...about groove? Think again. I grew up on this kind of stuff and I still find myself going back to it again and again not out of pure nostalgia, but because to me, it's "real music".



Curtis Mayfield was a genius. It seems like everytime you turn around now somebody who hasn't even paid his/her dues is being called a genius or a diva which is kind of a sad commentary, because those people that they are calling geniuses cannot even hold a candle to Curtis Mayfield. You think Snoop Dog is going to hold up to the test of time? You really think in 30 years you're gonna pull out your Eminem Cds and tell your grandkids, "Oh, yeah...now that was music..." I don't think so...



Mr. Mayfield struck a true chord with this recording. Without being obscene or vulgar he captured the sorrows, the joys, the ups, and the downs of not just people who lived on the city streets, but the everyday ups and downs of just being human and to me, that's a triumph in itself.



I love this CD. You really have to sit and be with it and just allow it to seep into your psyche and know that what affects one affects the whole and what affects the whole affects the one. That's empathy. That's pathos. That's soul. That's life.



God Bless you, Curtis Mayfield...thank you for all you left behind."

SUPERFLY!!!

WILLIE A YOUNG II | Houston, TX. | 07/26/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This classic LP (which I recently aquired on vinyl in mint condition!) not only made the movie soundtrack a viable commercial enterprise, but it raised the bar for creativity in popular music. Using grandiose orchestral backings, horns and a FUNKY rhythm section, the late great Curtis Mayfield created a masterpiece of modern black music that teaches but never preaches, cautions but never panders, and scolds but leaves the choices up to the listener. Everything about this album works, from the music and arrangements (tell me you don't want to cry when you hear the moaning strings that close "Little Child Runnin' Wild") to the detailed and cutting lyrics ( the brilliant "Pusherman" comes to mind). You all know the hits "Freddie's Dead" (will this song ever sound less than cool?), "Superfly" (what guy can't resist 'gettin' his gangster lean on' when this comes on the radio!) and "Gimme Your Love(Love Song)", THE love ballad of the 70's. The sustained strings and jazzy feel of "Eddie You Should Know Better" is perfect background, chill-out music, and "Junkies Chase" is one of the best instrumental pieces Mayfield ever composed, it's so evocative, you can actually picture the chase scene from the movie while it's playing. This man was a genius. "Superly" is that rare 70's concept album that doesn't sound embarrassing or dated and taken on it's own, without the film it plays as a great cautionary tale to people living the drug/hustler lifestyle. Not a wasted note or word. Essential Listening. P.S. Curtis Mayfield, you are sorely missed. R.I.P."

As fine a seventies album as you could want.

Eric V. Moye | New York, by way of Dallas | 10/08/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I guess the only thing to argue is whether Superfly or Shaft was the better album soundtrack from the era of blaxploitation films. Either way, this is a great piece of music. Curtis Mayfield had a musical career which spanned decades, and moved from the gospel roots of the Impressions to the soundtrack of a movie which glorified drug dealing. Social sensibilities aside, it is hard to say anything bad about this music. Curtis' voice was sweet and plaintive in songs like "Eddie, you Should've Known Better", and "Little Child, Running Wild". Of course, he is like a one man Greek Chorus, as his songs tell of the strife which the movie characters face with their life's choices. Songs like "Superfly" and of course Freddie's Dead let us know via the radio what was happening on the screen. This album is still as fresh today as it was 25 years ago."