ROBERTA FLACK - FIRST TAKE

Roberta Flack’s debut LP, First Take, was recorded in a single 10-hour session in February 1969 and released June 20, 1969 via Atlantic Records  . A seamless fusion of jazz, soul, folk, gospel, and political protest, the album opens with “Compared to What,” a bold cover that predated Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On by two years  . It also features reflective interpretations of Leonard Cohen (“Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye”) and Ewan MacColl (“The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”), the latter earning her a Grammy and propelling the album to No. 1 after being featured in Clint Eastwood’s Play Misty for Me in 1971  . Critics praised Flack’s depth, calling First Take “one of those rare albums that has the power to enlighten the emotional content of one’s life”  .

🎵 

Tracklist (Vinyl)

Side A

• Compared to What

• Angelitos Negros

• Our Ages or Our Hearts

• I Told Jesus

Side B

• Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye

• The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

• Tryin’ Times

• Ballad of the Sad Young Men