- Superfly (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) · 1972
- Move On Up (Single Edit) - Single · 1970
- Something to Believe In · 1980
- Keep On Keeping On: Curtis Mayfield Studio Albums 1970-1974 (Remastered) · 2019
- Superbad (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) · 2007
- Curtis (Expanded Edition) · 1970
- Curtis (Expanded Edition) · 1970
- Give, Get, Take and Have · 1976
- Superfly (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) · 1972
- Curtis (Expanded Edition) · 1970
- Superfly (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) · 1972
- Curtis (Expanded Edition) · 1970
- Curtis (Expanded Edition) · 1970
Essential Albums
- As the leader of The Impressions, R&B polymath Curtis Mayfield had been redefining the sound of Chicago soul for more than a decade by the time his debut, Curtis, arrived in 1970. It’s a landmark album from a transformative era in Black pop, released not long before Sly and the Family Stone’s There’s a Riot Goin’ On and Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. The seeds of Curtis were planted back in 1968, when Mayfield—in an effort to gain total creative freedom—launched his own record label, which he named Curtom. As the guiding force behind the company, Mayfield served as a songwriter and producer for such acts as the Five Stairsteps, Donny Hathaway, Baby Huey and Major Lance, all the while continuing to front The Impressions. But when the 1970s arrived, bringing with it the dawn of the singer-songwriter movement, Mayfield decided to go solo with Curtis, the album that would mark a dividing line in Mayfield’s life and music. Fully freed from the vocal and melodic template he’d established with The Impressions, Curtis allowed the singer to explore new musical and lyrical vistas. The album’s eight tracks are built on complex polyrhythms and dramatic guitar effects, and fed by the turbulence of the times: Mayfield had been inspired by the 1969 assassination of Chicago Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, and frustrated by what the singer saw as the engineered destruction of the urban ghetto due to drugs, violence and neglect. Nowhere is that sense of doom more powerful than on the album’s opening track, “(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going To Go”. As a female voice reads from the Book of Revelations, Mayfield warns of the coming social and spiritual apocalypse that will spare no one (despite the song's intensity, it became an R&B hit). But that's just one of several striking tracks on Curtis, which also includes “The Other Side of Town”—a study of social segregation—and the dramatic “We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue”, which examines inter-Black relations: “Shall we commit our own genocide/Before you check out your mind?” Mayfield asks at one point. Even as his message became more strident and focused, Mayfield moved the music in manifold directions, showcasing his total mastery—not just of soul, gospel and jazz, but of funk and psychedelia as well. Curtis also gets personal at times. Mayfield delivers a halting love song with “The Makings Of You”, celebrates Nubian beauty on “Miss Black America” and documents domestic alienation with “Give It Up”. The record’s largely foreboding feeling is countered by the epic “Move On Up”, a nearly nine-minute exploration of righteous optimism, which serves as the album’s emotional centrepiece. Curtis would kick off a run of remarkable solo LPs from Mayfield, which included 1971’s
Music Videos
Artist Playlists
- Angelic-voiced poet of the streets struck funk gold in the 1970s.
- Their original tunes have been the source material for some of modern music’s biggest hits.
- The legacy of soul's most committed social activist.
- The early soul and R&B stars who paved his way.
- He kept it real no matter what.
- Explore the full reach of the soul poet’s power.
Singles & EPs
- 2016
- 2012
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About Curtis Mayfield
A self-taught singer, guitarist, composer, and producer, Curtis Mayfield was a Chicago soul pioneer and a prominent voice of the civil rights movement. His greatest commercial success came with his 1972 Superfly soundtrack. • After learning from his mother how to play the piano, Mayfield taught himself how to play the guitar at 10 years old. • Four years later, he joined soul band The Impressions (originally The Roosters) as a songwriter and composer. He eventually became the group’s centerpiece. • The Impressions scored 15 Top 40 hits in the ’60s with Mayfield at the helm. These include ’60s anthems like 1964’s “Keep On Pushing” and 1965’s “People Get Ready”, which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. • Mayfield left the impressions in 1970 and topped Billboard’s R&B charts with his solo debut album, Curtis. Featuring the single “Move On Up”—a No. 12 hit in the UK—the album addressed sociopolitical issues impacting African Americans. • His soundtrack for the 1972 blaxploitation film Superfly reached No. 1 on Billboard’s pop and R&B albums charts. The album yielded two gold-selling hits: “Freddy’s Dead” and “Superfly”. • Following a 1990 stage accident, Mayfield became paralyzed from his neck down. He recorded the vocals for his 1996 album New World Order while laying on his back. • In 1999, Mayfield was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame, his final living achievements. • Mayfield died in December 1999 of type 2 diabetes complications. He was 57.
- HOMETOWN
- Chicago, IL, United States
- BORN
- 3 de junio de 1942
- GENRE
- R&B/Soul