Vinyl Vault — Roberta Flack, “Quiet Fire”

The Vinyl Vault goes back to 1971 with Roberta Flack’s third album “Quiet Fire,” a release on the Atlantic record label. The album features one Flack original composition and the rest covers from a wide array of songwriters including Eugene McDaniels, Jimmy Webb, Sonny Thompson, and even the Bee Gees. Flack gives each her own unique treatment, taking pop songs and infusing them with gospel and soul to create new sounds from familiar ingredients.

Vinyl Vault is sponsored by Vinyl Me, Please

Like so many jazz and soul players, Flack grew up in the church and the influence comes through with a serious blues influence, calls for social justice, and subject matter dealing with life and death. The album was not a huge hit at the time of its release, being somewhat overshadowed by the resurgence of her first album on the strength of “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” which Clint Eastwood had used in his movie, “Play Misty For Me.” This album is another resurrected by Vinyl Me Please and made available to the Vinyl Vault.

The tracks “Go Up Moses” and “Sunday and Sister” add some funk to the session, aided in no small part by backing musicians such as drummer Bernard Purdie, guitarist Hugh McCracken, percussionist Ralph McDonald, organist Richard Tee, bassist Chuck Rainey, flutist Hubert Laws and even Les McCann on backing vocals. Throughout, Flack’s singing and piano playing show why she was one of the top artists of the 70s.

Join host Geoff Anderson for “Quiet Fire” on the Vinyl Vault, Tuesday, January 25, at 8:30 pm on KUVO JAZZ.

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