The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

Last updated

"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face by Roberta Flack US vinyl.png
Side A of the US single
Single by Roberta Flack
from the album First Take
B-side "Trade Winds"
ReleasedMarch 7, 1972 (1972-03-07)
RecordedFebruary 1969
Genre
Length
Label Atlantic 2864
Songwriter(s) Ewan MacColl
Producer(s) Joel Dorn
Roberta Flack singles chronology
"Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow"
(1972)		"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
(1972)		"Where Is the Love"
(1972)
Audio
"Roberta Flack - The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" on YouTube
Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg
"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" from First Take
Problems playing this file? See media help.

"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" is a 1957 folk song written by British political singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl for Peggy Seeger, who later became his wife. At the time, the couple were lovers, although MacColl was still married to his second wife, Jean Newlove. Seeger sang the song when the duo performed in folk clubs around Britain. During the 1960s, it was recorded by various folk singers and became a major international hit for Roberta Flack in 1972, winning Grammy Awards for Record of the Year [1] and Song of the Year. Billboard ranked it as the number-one Hot 100 single of the year for 1972. [2]

Contents

History

There are two differing accounts of the origin of the song. MacColl said that he wrote the song for Seeger after she asked him to pen a song for a play she was in. He wrote the song and taught it to Seeger over the telephone. [3] Seeger said that MacColl, with whom she had begun an affair in 1957, used to send her tapes to listen to while they were apart and that the song was on one of them. [4]

Peggy Seeger has said that MacColl had been challenged to write a love song (given that his repertoire was largely political) and this song was his response.[ citation needed ]

The earliest recording of the song was in 1960 by Bonnie Dobson, released in 1961 on her debut album She's Like a Swallow and Other Folk Songs. The song entered the pop mainstream the following year when it was released by the Kingston Trio on their 1962 hit album New Frontier and in subsequent years by other pop folk groups such as Peter, Paul and Mary, the Brothers Four, Joe and Eddie, the Chad Mitchell Trio, and by Gordon Lightfoot on his debut album Lightfoot! (1966).

MacColl made no secret of the fact that he disliked all of the cover versions of the song. His daughter-in-law wrote: "He hated all of them. He had a special section in his record collection for them, entitled 'The Chamber of Horrors'. He said that the Elvis version was like Romeo at the bottom of the Post Office Tower singing up to Juliet. And the other versions, he thought, were travesties: bludgeoning, histrionic, and lacking in grace." [5]

Roberta Flack version

Roberta Flack on "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
It's a perfect song. Second only to "Amazing Grace, I think... [6] "It's the kind of song that has two unique & distinct qualities: it tells a story, & it has lyrics that mean something....Because of [its meaningful lyrics] the [song] can be interpreted by a lot of people in a lot of different ways: the love of a mother for a child, for example, or [that of] two lovers." [7] "I wish more songs I had chosen had moved me the way that one did. I've loved [most] every song I've recorded, but that one was pretty special." [6]

The song was popularised by Roberta Flack in a version that became a breakout hit for the singer in 1971/1972, albeit as a sleeper hit more than three years after its original 1969 release on her album First Take , due to being included in Clint Eastwood's 1971 directorial film debut Play Misty for Me , ultimately topping the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972 more than three years after it was recorded. It is possibly the only sleeper hit to accomplish this feat.

Flack knew the song from the Joe & Eddie version which appeared on that folk duo's 1963 album Coast to Coast (as "The First Time"), Flack's friend singer Donal Leace having brought the track to Flack's attention. [8] Having taught the song to the young girls in the glee club at Banneker High School (Washington D.C.), Flack would regularly perform "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" in her set-list at the Pennsylvania Avenue club ("Mr Henry's") where Flack was hired as resident singer in 1968. In February 1969, Flack would record the song for her debut album First Take. Flack's rendition was much slower-paced than Seeger's original, with Flack's take running more than twice the two-and-a-half minute length of Seeger's.[ citation needed ] Flack would recall that when she made her studio recording of "The First Time...", she felt the loss of her pet cat, which had been run over by a car. [7] [9]

Flack's slow and sensual version was used by Clint Eastwood in his 1971 directorial film debut Play Misty for Me to score a love scene featuring Eastwood and actress Donna Mills. Flack would recall how Eastwood, who had heard her version of "The First Time..." on his car radio while driving down the LA Freeway, [10] phoned out of the blue to her Alexandria (Virginia) home: (Roberta Flack quote:)"[Eastwood said:] 'I'd like to use your song in this movie...about a disc jockey [with] a lot of music in it. I'd use it in the only part of the movie where there's absolute love.' I said okay. We discussed the money. [Eastwood would pay $2000 to use Flack's "The First Time..."] He said: 'Anything else?' And I said: 'I want to do it over again. It's too slow.' He said: "No, it's not.'" [11]

Flack also recalled that during the First Take sessions, her producer Joel Dorn had suggested re-recording "The First Time..." with a slightly faster tempo and lyric edit to trim its running time, but Flack did not agree: (Roberta Flack quote:)"Joel said: 'Okay you don't care if it's a hit or not?' I said: 'No sir.' Of course he was right for three years, until [after] Clint got it." Flack's version of "The First Time..." exploded in popularity following the November 1971 release of Play Misty For Me. This persuaded Atlantic Records to issue the track as a single—trimmed by a minute—in February 1972: the track became a smash hit single in the United States, reaching No. 1 for six weeks on both the Billboard Hot 100 and easy listening charts in the spring of 1972, with a No. 4 R&B chart peak. [12] Reaching No. 14 on the UK Singles Chart, [13] Flack's "The First Time..." was No. 1 for three weeks on the singles chart in Canada's RPM magazine. [14]

"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" was played as the wake-up music on flight day 9 to the astronauts aboard Apollo 17 on their last day in Lunar orbit (Friday, December 15, 1972) before returning to Earth, thus ending the last human explorations of the Moon. The use of the song was most likely a reference to the "face" of the Moon below the spacecraft. [15]

Chart history

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ewan MacColl</span> English folk singer-songwriter (1915–1989)

James Henry Miller, better known by his stage name Ewan MacColl, was an English folk singer-songwriter, folk song collector, labour activist and actor. Born in England to Scottish parents, he is known as one of the instigators of the 1960s folk revival as well as for writing such songs as "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Dirty Old Town".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberta Flack</span> American singer (born 1937)

Roberta Cleopatra Flack is a retired American singer who topped the Billboard charts with the No. 1 singles "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly with His Song", "Feel Like Makin' Love", "Where Is the Love" and "The Closer I Get to You", the latter two duets with Donny Hathaway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peggy Seeger</span> American folk singer (born 1935)

Margaret "Peggy" Seeger is an American folk singer and songwriter. She has lived in Britain for more than 60 years and was married to the singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl until his death in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing Me Softly with His Song</span> 1971 song by Lori Lieberman and covered by Roberta Flack

"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a song composed by Charles Fox with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. The lyrics were written in collaboration with Lori Lieberman after she was inspired by a Don McLean performance in late 1971. Denied writing credit by Fox and Gimbel, Lieberman released her version of the song in 1972, but it did not chart. The song has been covered by many other artists.

<i>Touch Me in the Morning</i> (album) 1973 studio album by Diana Ross

Touch Me in the Morning is the fourth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on June 22, 1973, by Motown Records. The arrangements were by Gene Page, Tom Baird, Michael Randall, James Anthony Carmichael, Deke Richards, Gil Askey and Ross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockin' Robin (song)</span> 1958 rock and roll single

"Rockin' Robin" is a song written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas, and recorded by American singer Bobby Day in 1958. It was Day's biggest hit single, becoming a number two hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and spent one week at the top of the R&B sales chart. Michael Jackson recorded his own version of the song in 1972, which also achieved success.

<i>Tropical Brainstorm</i> 2000 studio album by Kirsty MacColl

Tropical Brainstorm is the fifth and final studio album by Kirsty MacColl, released in 2000. It was inspired by her trips to Cuba, and many tracks include Spanish or Portuguese lyrics. The album was released with three extra tracks in the US.

"Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" is a romantic ballad written by lyricist Gerry Goffin with Michael Masser and recorded by Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack for their 1983 album of duets, Born to Love, issued as the lead single. The track—produced by Masser—became a million-selling international hit.

<i>First Take</i> (album) 1969 studio album by Roberta Flack

First Take is the debut album by the American soul singer Roberta Flack. It was released on June 20, 1969, by Atlantic Records. After a track from this album, "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", was included by Clint Eastwood in his 1971 film Play Misty for Me, and the song became a number-one hit in the United States, causing the album to reach number one on the Billboard album chart and Billboard R&B album chart; furthermore, the single topped the chart for the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972, possibly the only sleeper hit to accomplish this. In the 2020 edition of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, the album was ranked number 451.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Song Sung Blue</span> 1972 single by Neil Diamond

"Song Sung Blue" is a 1972 hit song written and recorded by Neil Diamond, inspired by the second movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto #21. It was released on Diamond's album Moods, and later appeared on many of Diamond's live and compilation albums. The song was a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States for one week, the week of July 1, and it spent twelve weeks in the Top 40. It also reached #14 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feel Like Makin' Love (Roberta Flack song)</span> 1974 single by Roberta Flack

"Feel Like Makin' Love" is a song composed by singer-songwriter and producer Eugene McDaniels, and recorded originally by soul singer-songwriter Roberta Flack. The song has been covered by R&B and jazz artists including Gladys Knight & the Pips, Lou Rawls, Isaac Hays, George Benson, Jeffrey Osborne, Larry Coryell, Johnny Mathis, and Marlena Shaw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Where Is the Love (Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway song)</span> 1972 single by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway

"Where Is the Love" is a popular song written by Ralph MacDonald and William Salter, and recorded by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway. Released in 1972 from their album, Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway. It peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and spent a week each at number one on the Billboard Easy Listening chart and R&B chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 58 song for 1972. The song won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

"I Gotcha" is a song by Joe Tex. Originally intended for King Floyd, instead Tex recorded it himself in the late 1960s, but did not release it at that time. He decided to re-record it in late 1971 and released it as the B-side of "A Mother's Prayer", the first single from his 1972 album "I Gotcha". Mostly spoken in the form of an early rap song, with few singing passages, "I Gotcha" has the singer admonishing a woman for playing with his affections: "You never shouldn't have promised if you weren't gonna do it".

<i>Roberta Flack</i> (album) 1978 studio album by Roberta Flack

Roberta Flack is a 1978 album release by American vocalist Roberta Flack: her eighth album release - including her 1972 Donny Hathaway collaboration - Roberta Flack was the parent album of the #1 Adult Contemporary hit "If Ever I See You Again" which also ranked in the Top 40.

<i>Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway</i> 1972 studio album by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway

The 1972 Atlantic release Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway is a million-selling duet album by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway produced by Joel Dorn and Arif Mardin.

<i>The Best of Roberta Flack</i> 1981 greatest hits album by Roberta Flack

The Best of Roberta Flack is Roberta Flack's first compilation album, released in 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirsty MacColl</span> English singer and songwriter (1959–2000)

Kirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and cover versions of Billy Bragg's "A New England" and the Kinks' "Days". Her first single, "They Don't Know", had chart success a few years later when covered by Tracey Ullman. MacColl also sang on a number of recordings produced by her then-husband Steve Lillywhite, most notably "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues. Her death in 2000 led to the "Justice for Kirsty" campaign.

<i>Alone Again (Naturally)</i> (album) 1972 studio album by Andy Williams

Alone Again (Naturally) is the thirtieth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in September 1972 by Columbia Records and mainly consisting of songs originated by other artists. For its release in the UK, the album was titled The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face), and three of the songs were replaced with the 7-inch single tracks "Who Was It?" and "Marmalade, Molasses & Honey" and a recording that was not released on vinyl in the U.S., "If You're Gonna Break Another Heart".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Making Love (song)</span> 1982 single by Roberta Flack

"Making Love" is a 1982 song written by Burt Bacharach, Bruce Roberts, and Carole Bayer Sager to serve as the theme song for the film of the same name in which, as recorded by Roberta Flack with Bacharach/ Bayer Sager producing, it played under the closing credits: a Top 20 hit single for Flack, "Making Love" was included on the singer's 1982 album release I'm the One.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">(Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep at All</span> 1972 single by The 5th Dimension

"(Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep at All" is a song written by Tony Macaulay and performed by The 5th Dimension with instrumental backing from L.A. session musicians from the Wrecking Crew. The song appeared on the band's album Individually & Collectively, produced by Bones Howe and arranged by Bill Holman. The song was a top 10 hit for the group in the U.S., and their sixth and final platinum record.

References

  1. ↑ "Record of the Year - The 15th Annual Grammy Awards (1972)". The Recording Academy. 1972. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Top 100 Hits of 1972/Top 100 Songs of 1972". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  3. ↑ Quarrington, Paul; Doyle, Roddy (2010). Cigar Box Banjo . Greystone Books. p.  89. ISBN   9781553656296 . Retrieved August 21, 2011. peggy seeger the first time ever i saw your face.
  4. ↑ Picardie, Justine (1995). "The first time ever I saw your face". In De Lisle, Tim (ed.). Lives of the great songs. London: Penguin. pp. 122–26. ISBN   978-0-14024957-6.
  5. ↑ Brocken, Michael (2003), The British Folk Revival, 1944–2002, Ashgate, p. 38, ISBN   978-0-7546-3282-5 : quoting MacColl's daughter-in-law, Justine Picardie.
  6. 1 2 Carson, Sarah (July 16, 2015). "Roberta Flack: 'Now's a good time to love music'". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  7. 1 2 The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky) 11 November 1983 "Blues pops singer Roberta Flack should be right at home in Arts Center's classical environs" by Elinor J. Precher p.7-8
  8. ↑ ""The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" - Roberta Flack". Superseventies.com. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  9. ↑ Shapiro, Gregg. "Roberta Flack takes on the Beatles' canon". Wisconsin Gazette. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Daly, Sean (January 27, 2012). "Feel the love with Roberta Flack". Tampa Bay Times . Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  11. ↑ de Yampert, Rick (January 20, 2012). "Roberta Flack serenades Daytona". The Daytona Beach News-Journal . GateHouse Media . Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  12. 1 2 Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 93.
  13. 1 2 "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. May 27, 1972. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  14. 1 2 "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. June 3, 1972. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  15. ↑ Fries, Colin (March 15, 2015). "Chronology of Wake-Up Calls" (PDF). Nasa.gov. NASA. pp. 6, 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 4, 2006. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Go-Set National Top 40, July 15, 1972". Poparchives.com.au. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. May 13, 1972. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Roberta Flack" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  19. ↑ "Roberta Flack – The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  20. ↑ "flavour of new zealand - search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  21. ↑ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989" . Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  22. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
  23. ↑ "Cash Box Top 100 5/13/72". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  24. ↑ "Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts - 1980s (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  25. ↑ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1972". Dutch Top 40 . Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  26. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1972". Single Top 100 . Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1972" . Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  28. ↑ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1972". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  29. ↑ "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  30. ↑ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. April 8, 2000. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  31. ↑ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. April 8, 2000. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  32. ↑ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. November 24, 2007. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  33. ↑ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. October 11, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.