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- Even people who haven't seen Super Fly recognize its theme song: A grooving, funky hit written by R&B star Curtis Mayfield, which became one of the most successful movie themes of the blaxploitation era.
Jun 13, 2018 · Carrying on the tradition of tying the story of a dealer trying to get out to a strong musical voice, Director X’s 2018 remake, Superfly, features a soundtrack produced by Future, who appears on...
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Sep 10, 2024 · A revolutionary accomplishment, his Super Fly soundtrack set the benchmark for Blaxploitation soundtracks and shaped the next generations of artists. Mayfield's reputation as a music icon was...
Aug 9, 2017 · 'Super Fly' is a 1972 blaxploitation crime drama film directed by Gordon Parks, Jr., starring Ron O'Neal as Youngblood Priest, an African American cocaine dealer who is trying to quit the...
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- Super Fly wasn’t Curtis Mayfield’s first work for film, nor was it his last. Before Super Fly, Mayfield wrote two songs for 1969’s volcano-themed disaster film Krakatoa, East of Java, a critical and commercial failure for many reasons, not least of which is that Krakatoa is west of Java.
- Mayfield understood the film from personal experience. “I didn’t have to leave my neighborhood to be surrounded by the things Super Flyis about,” he told Rolling Stone in 1973.
- The songs were recorded in four days. Sessions began at the end of 1971, when director Gordon Parks Jr. asked Mayfield and his band to appear in the film as a nightclub act performing behind the actors.
- Super Fly was the end of an era for Mayfield, marking his split with his second wife, his longtime arranger, and his manager and closest friend. During the recording Mayfield was in the middle of a separation from his second wife, Diane, mother of his second son, Todd, and his first daughter, Sharon.
- Issac Hayes, “Theme from Shaft” Film: Shaft (1971) Edd said: Clearly, this was the only choice for the top spot. I’m stating the obvious here, but this song IS blaxploitation in its purest form – a potent blend of soul and attitude; effortlessly cool with an edge of danger.
- Curtis Mayfield, “Superfly” Film: Super Fly (1972) Edd said: The crown jewel of the Super Fly soundtrack is, unsurprisingly, its title track. The opening guitar licks are instantly recognizable, and once those horns kick in, the journey begins.
- Willie Hutch, “Theme of Foxy Brown” Film: Foxy Brown (1974) Edd said: Willie has dominated this countdown, and for good reason. His sound has become synonymous with the blaxploitation movement.
- Rose Royce, “I Wanna Get Next to You” Film: Car Wash (1976) Edd said: Your mama n’ dem’s favorite love song! Rose Royce’s romantic staple has become a hallmark of R&B, and that legacy started all the way back on the Car Wash soundtrack.
Super Fly was part of a movie genre known as "Blaxploitation." When white people started leaving urban areas in the US for the suburbs, movie studios realized there was a large black audience near theaters, and began making films catering to them. Movies like Shaft and Foxy Brown were the result.
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Super Fly is the third studio album by American soul musician Curtis Mayfield, released on July 11, 1972, by Curtom Records. It was released as the soundtrack for the Blaxploitation film of the same name. Widely considered a classic of 1970s soul and funk music, Super Fly was a nearly immediate hit.
