Compared to What
| "Compared to What" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
"Compared to What" is a composition, with lyrics, by Gene McDaniels.[1] It was first recorded by Roberta Flack in 1969,[2] but became better known following a performance by Les McCann (piano and vocals) and Eddie Harris (tenor saxophone) at the 1969 Montreux Jazz Festival, which appeared as the opening track on their album Swiss Movement.[1] The album was certified Gold in sales in the United States.[3] The song has been covered by more than 270 artists, including Ray Charles.[2]
Contents
Composition
The lyrics contain a "topical rant against [President] Nixon and the Vietnam War",[4] and include the lines: "The president, he's got his war / Folks don't know just what it's for / Nobody gives us rhyme or reason / Have one doubt, they call it treason".[2] Popular American music critic B. Lee Cooper suggested that the song "of social criticism attacked a variety of social practices as being based on hypocritically 'unreal values'" and contrasted "the social myth of equality and the economic reality of poverty in the stratified American society."[5]
Roberta Flack version
Flack recorded the song for her 1969 debut album First Take and "Compared to What" was her first single.[6] Flack's manager that year was Les McCann.[7] A contemporary reviewer suggested that her singing was "in a fiery rhythmic way reminiscent of the throbbing motion heard during congregational singing at Southern Baptist churches."[8] Flack's version was included in the soundtrack for 1997 film Boogie Nights[citation needed] and the 2015 film The Man from U.N.C.L.E.[9]
McCann–Harris version
McCann and Harris had performed earlier at the Montreux Jazz Festival and agreed to play together on June 21, 1969, with Benny Bailey (trumpet), Leroy Vinnegar (bass), and Donald Dean (drums).[1] The song was the first of the McCann–Harris set, and opens with McCann and Dean playing together.[1] Vinnegar joins in, forming a trio that states the theme.[1] Harris then enters, complementing McCann's vocals.[1] After four verses, Bailey has a solo, then the band plays together until the last verse.[1] This is followed by solos from McCann and Harris, ending the performance.[1] Their version of the song appeared on the album Swiss Movement; the single sold over a million copies and reached No. 35 on Billboard's R&B chart.[10] The single also appeared on the U.S. Cash Box Top 100 for two weeks in January 1970, with a peak position of No. 96.[11]
The commercial success of the McCann–Harris version allowed McDaniels to stop singing in night clubs.[2] It was part of the soundtrack to Martin Scorsese's 1995 film Casino.[12]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Mednick, Avram (2013) Got Live Album If You Want It: 100 Live Recordings to Consider. p. 128. iUniverse. ISBN 978-1-4917-1373-0.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Williams, Richard (August 15, 2011) "Gene McDaniels Obituary". The Guardian.
- ↑ "Swiss Movement". RIAA. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
- ↑ Boraman, Greg (2004) "Les McCann & Eddie Harris Swiss Movement Review". BBC.
- ↑ Cooper, B. Lee (May 1, 1976) "Oral History, Popular Music, and Les McCann". Social Studies. 67/3. p. 116.
- ↑ Calloway, Earl (March 16, 2002) "Vocalist Roberta Flack Is Star of Musical Mosaics at Park West". Chicago Defender. p. 41.
- ↑ Casey, Phil (February 13, 1969) "A Joyous Performer". The Washington Post. p. B11.
- ↑ West, Hollie I. (August 23, 1970) "Roberta Flack: Her Soothing Singing Style Is Leading Her to Stardom". The Washington Post. p. F1.
- ↑ www.watertower-music.com Retrieved Aug 17, 2015
- ↑ Ertegun, Ahmet M. (2001) "What'd I Say?" – The Atlantic Story: 50 Years of Music. Welcome Rain. p. 538. ISBN 978-1-56649-048-1.
- ↑ Cash Box Top 100 w/o 01-17-70 Retrieved September 13, 2015.
- ↑ Kolker, Robert (2011) A Cinema of Loneliness (4th edition). Oxford University Press. p. 218. ISBN 978-0-19-973002-5.
