"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by
Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It was inspired by Lori
Lieberman's response to having seen a performance by Don
McLean. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably
by Roberta Flack, whose version topped the U.S. pop singles
charts, and won a Grammy Award.
After singer/songwriter Lori Lieberman saw Don McLean
singing his composition "Empty Chairs" in concert, she wrote a
poem titled "Killing Me Softly with His Blues". It became the
basis for the song written by Norman Gimbel and Charles
Fox.
Lori Lieberman was the first to record Fox and Gimbel's
song, in 1971. It became a bigger hit when covered by Roberta
Flack in 1973. Her version won three Grammy Awards: Song of the
Year, Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a
Female Performer and it was number one on the Billboard Hot 100
for 4 weeks. It was replaced by "Love Train" by The O'Jays,
then returned to the top of the U.S. charts for another week.
In 1999 Flack's version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of
Fame.
Hip hop group The Fugees covered the song in 1996 on their
album
The Score, with Lauryn Hill singing the lead vocals.
Their version, titled "Killing Me Softly," became a hit,
reaching number two on the U.S. airplay chart, and had similar
success in the UK, reaching number one, becoming 1996's best
selling single in the country. The version sampled the 1990
song "Bonita Applebum" by
A Tribe Called Questfrom their debut album
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm.
ATCQ themselves had sampled the riff from the song "Memory
Band" found on the self-titled album of a little-known 1960s
psychedelic soul Chicago band called Rotary Connection. The
Fugees single was so successful that the track was 'deleted'
and thus no longer supplied to retailers whilst the track was
still in the Top 20 so that attention could be drawn to the
next single 'Ready or Not'. Propelled by the success of the
Fugees track, the version by Flack was remixed in 1996 and
topped the Hot Dance Club Play chart. In 2008, it was ranked
number 25 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop and #44 on its
list of the "100 Greatest Songs of the 90s".
The Fugees version was released on 2 CD singles in the
UK.
Other major artists to cover the song include Blossom
Dearie, Al B. Sure!, Carole King, Herb Alpert, Engelbert
Humperdinck, Tori Amos, Alison Moyet, Eva Cassidy, Perry Como,
Harry Connick, Jr., The Jackson 5, Mina, Anne Murray, Sérgio
Mendes & Brasil '77, Luther Vandross, Susan Boyle, Toni
Braxton, Alicia Keys, Jaco Pastorius, The Plain White T's, The
Youngblood Brass Band, Shirley Bassey, John Holt, Frank
Sinatra, Vicki Lawrence, Usha Uthup, Gene Pitney and Allison
Iraheta. Versions performed by male artists reverse the gender
pronouns (with the exception of Luther Vandross).
In 1975, an instrumental version of "Killing Me Softly"
served as the main musical theme of the film
The Drowning Pool, starring Paul Newman. Charles Fox
received credit as composer and conductor.
R&B artist Al B. Sure was the next to cover the song in
1988 on his debut album
In Effect Mode...and experienced some success with it.
He was voted the top new Male R&B solo artist in 1989.
A live instrumental version was recorded by Kermit Ruffins
and the Barbecue Swingers in 1998.
In 1999, Susan Boyle, an amateur singer that quickly rose to
fame on the internet and news media after her appearance on
Britain's Got Talentin 2009, used "all her savings" to
pay for a professionally cut demo tape, which she later sent to
record companies, radio talent competitions, local and national
TV and which has now been released on the Internet. It
consisted of "Cry Me a River" and her version of "Killing Me
Softly with His Song". Boyle gave away a few copies to her
close friends.
The song was prominently featured in the 2002 film
About a Boyin which the boy of the title, Marcus, is
ridiculed by classmates for singing the song, a favourite of
his mother's, at his school talent show because of its feminine
associations and its romantic, emotional lyrics.
In 2006 the song became a popular football chant with Irish
football club Shelbourne F.C. with the lyrics changed to
"Dillon Me Softly with His Song" regarding former defender Sean
Dillon. The chant has since followed Dillon to his new club
Dundee United F.C..
Flack's version ranked #360 on
Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All
Time.
Flack's version also ranked at #82 on
Billboard's Greatest Songs of all time.
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