Curtis Mayfield – Superfly (Vinyl LP)

Curtis Mayfield‘s border-transcending Superfly is much more than a soundtrack to a cutting-edge blaxploitation film. Recorded in 1972 to coincide with Gordon Parks, Jr’s movie about a dealer attempting to divorce himself from the urban underworld, Mayfield’s brilliantly orchestrated set ignited an entire genre, expanded the scope of R&B, and spurred dialogues surrounding significant social issues ranging from the unvarnished consequences of hustling to the realities of African-American lives in America. Rightly deemed by Rolling Stone “Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On at a street level” and named the 69th Greatest Album of All Time by the magazine, Superfly endures as an astonishing master stroke of boundary-crossing soul, lyrical smarts, and vital commentary. Mobile Fidelity’s reissue brings it – and its of-the-moment contents – to life like never before.

As skillful as Mayfield’s words remain, the music blows them away. Superfly works on multiple levels – a record whose deep grooves and avalanche of funk-derived riffs express basically everything that needs to be said. Each song inhabits its own geographical and personal landscape, their lasting appeal a testament to the album becoming one of the few soundtracks to out-gross its accompanying film. Shortly after release, Superfly spent four weeks as at the top of the Billboard Pop charts and yielded a pair of two-million-selling singles, “Freddie’s Dead” and the title track, both pregnant with the powerful imagery and tell-it-straight approach that define every moment of the record. Mayfield’s direct connection to the material remains evident.

1. Little Child Runnin’ Wild
2. Pusherman
3. Freddie’s Dead
4. Junkie Chase
5. Give Me Your Love (Love Song)
6. Eddie You Should Know Better
7. No Thing on Me (Cocaine Song)
8. Think
9. Superfly