This was written by Ewan McColl for Peggy Seegar, unfortunately he seems to have hated Roberta Flack’s version.
McColl was quite good at love songs, despite his reputation wor writing in the political genre, another one was “You and I” from “Hot Blast” which used to be on a much used cassette in the JKT control room. Unfortunately he has gone out of fashion, possibly because some strange people don’t like his politics, and his work is quite hard to obtain, probably only available direct from Folkways.
Yes, the version that appears on the single is available on Youtube, but I posted this one because it brought back memories of seeing it on TV all those years ago. Her voice is great in this live performance recorded on Top of the Pops, and definitely not mimed.
[…] the sad news of the death at the age of 88 of the wonderful singer Roberta Flack. Many years ago I posted my favourite song of hers (performed live on Top of the Pops way back in 1972) but it seems the link I used is now broken so […]
In the Dark 
June 14, 2012 at 10:24 pm
This is awfully good. Damn you.
June 14, 2012 at 10:29 pm
I remember seeing this on Top of the Pops in 1972. Forty years later it’s still beautiful.
June 15, 2012 at 7:37 am
This was written by Ewan McColl for Peggy Seegar, unfortunately he seems to have hated Roberta Flack’s version.
McColl was quite good at love songs, despite his reputation wor writing in the political genre, another one was “You and I” from “Hot Blast” which used to be on a much used cassette in the JKT control room. Unfortunately he has gone out of fashion, possibly because some strange people don’t like his politics, and his work is quite hard to obtain, probably only available direct from Folkways.
June 15, 2012 at 10:55 am
A classic. This isn’t the single version and presumably was recorded live, not mimed.
Another favourite love song is Crossroads by Don McLean, from the American Pie album. It’s less immediate but equally deep.
June 15, 2012 at 11:53 am
Yes, the version that appears on the single is available on Youtube, but I posted this one because it brought back memories of seeing it on TV all those years ago. Her voice is great in this live performance recorded on Top of the Pops, and definitely not mimed.
February 24, 2025 at 5:21 pm
[…] the sad news of the death at the age of 88 of the wonderful singer Roberta Flack. Many years ago I posted my favourite song of hers (performed live on Top of the Pops way back in 1972) but it seems the link I used is now broken so […]