‘American Masters’ honors music’s Roberta Flack
A new tribute to Roberta Flack comes at a bittersweet time for the celebrated singer-songwriter.
In November, an announcement made public the artist’s retirement from performing, necessitated by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ... known more commonly as Lou Gehrig’s disease. However, she has many accolades in which to take continuing pride, including mid-1970s Grammy Awards for record of the year in two consecutive years (for “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” and “Killing Me Softly With His Song”). Her life and career are traced in an “American Masters” profile Tuesday, Jan. 24, on PBS (check local listings).
Black Mountain, N.C., native Flack started as a piano accompanist for a church choir, with her musical talents earning her a full scholarship to Howard University, where she became associate director of the choir. She intended to pursue graduate studies musically, but family circumstances led her to teach music and English instead.
Performing in Washington, D.c.-area clubs brought Flack to the attention of pianist and singer Les Mccann, who set up an audition for her with Atlantic Records – which released her debut album, “First Take,” several months later. It included “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” which Clint Eastwood gave a boost by including it in the first movie he directed, the 1971 thriller “Play Misty for Me.”
Though Flack began recording often with Donny Hathaway (“Where Is the Love,” “The Closer I Get to You”), she maintained a solo career and continued to yield such hits as “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and (with Maxi
Priest) “Set the Night to Music.”
With a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Flack still was recording as recently as 2018, and her concert appearances notably included a tour of South Africa on which she performed for then-president Nelson Mandela. Her almost 20 albums have included one made up solely of covers of Beatles tunes, and she was anticipating doing a second volume.
Even if that doesn’t come to be, Roberta Flack has established a rich musical history, one that qualifies her to be the latest addition to the distinguished “American Masters” roster.