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JazzDigger Home > F - Jazz Artists > Roberta Flack > Item 64
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I'm the One
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by Roberta Flack
Price:$2.99
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Album Details
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1. I'm the One
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2. Till the Morning Comes
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3. Love and Let Love
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4. Never Loved Before
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5. In the Name of Love
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6. Ordinary Man
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7. Making Love
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8. Happiness
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9. My Love for You
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Listener Reviews & Comments
In her heyday, Roberta Flack was one of those few artists who can make even pedestrian material sound good (with other singers, it would only make their shortcomings more apparent). In the case of 1982's I'M THE ONE, she had not much material worthy of her talents, but still did what she could. Roberta was already a legend in 1982, so it was safe to not expect another classic like "Killing Me Softly With His Song" or "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" & just go with it. Her albums from FIRST TAKE (1969) to BLUE LIGHTS IN THE BASEMENT (1977) were the highlights of Roberta's career (as well as all soul music) & remain such even now. After that, Roberta began taking a more leisurely pace to her recording career, doing it only when the spirit moved her (it had been 4 years since her last album, 1978's ROBERTA FLACK). That's what seemed to be missing from I'M THE ONE: the heart that went into her legend-making classics. MAKING LOVE was a controversial movie back in 1982, its homosexual love triangle storyline rather daring for its time. But while the movie may have made headlines, it wasn't a big success at the box office. Nevertheless, the title theme by Roberta was probably enough for it to stand on its own & it was. Peaking at #13 in 1982, it was her biggest hit in nearly 5 years & somewhat well-deserved. The lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager were quite beautiful in their simplicity, especially with a line like "There's more to love, I know/than making love". The melody, on the other hand, by Sager's then-husband Burt Bacharach, left a lot to be desired. His better days were behind him by now, so it's understandable why his work on this song was not up to snuff. His melody is so light & transparent, it's barely there. But Roberta's delivery makes up for it, creating one of her most underrated songs & a song that should have reached higher on the charts. There's no doubt that "Making Love" is the highlight of I'M THE ONE, which is that rare thing from Roberta Flack: a mixed bag. This time, she seems at the mercy of her material, which is certainly not up to the level of her classics. songs like "'Til The Morning Comes", "Love & Let Love", "In The Name Of Love" & "Never Been Loved Before" sound almost identical, the quasi-soft rock arrangements further rendering them almost anonymous. The main theme of those songs is almost the same, as well: "Let's forget what our friends say, we're in love & that's all that matters". But the remaining songs are actually quite good, it's just that production-wise, they're nearly sunk by the AC-ready sound of all of them that shows little variety. The title track is rather brash with Roberta saying she's the best when it comes to showing love, but then again, if a man was singing it, it'd be considered posturing & self-serving. With Roberta, it actually sounds inviting. "Ordinary Man", "Happiness" & "My Love For You" are other songs that manage to rise above the worn-out sentiments of love songs, if just barely. But with such songwriters (and Quiet Storm regulars) like Bobby Caldwell, Peabo Bryson & Brenda Russell contributing, you gotta wonder if they were giving Roberta their bottom-drawer material. I don't normally give albums a three-star rating because by my standards, that's quite harsh. Plus, an album has to really sound uninspired from my ears to warrant such a response. But if an artist has created some truly great music & then turns around has an off-day, three stars is more than fair. With Roberta Flack & I'M THE ONE, the situation calls for this. Before she recorded this album, the music she made was nothing less than phenomenal & was really some of the best soul music ever recorded. With I'M THE ONE though, her keen eye for good material was just not as present as it once was. We could only hope that next time, Roberta kept her eyes open for music that was worthy of her talent.
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I'm the One
by Roberta Flack
Price:$2.99
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