Roberta Flack - With Her Songs, The Atlantic Albums 1969-1978 (8 x CDs)

ROBERTA FLACK

Roberta Flack - With Her Songs, The Atlantic Albums 1969-1978 (8 x CDs)

With Her Songs, The Atlantic Albums 1969-1978 gathers the first eight Atlantic albums by Roberta Flack into a single, unbroken listening arc, and it feels less like a career summary than an open door. Spanning 1969 through 1978, the set traces how a singular voice moved patiently through soul, jazz, folk, and pop without ever raising its volume to make a point. Everything here unfolds at its own pace.

It begins with First Take, still striking for its restraint and confidence. The performances feel close, almost private, as if the songs were allowed to breathe before anyone thought about charts or expectations. That sense of calm authority continues into Chapter Two and Quiet Fire, where familiar material is reshaped through phrasing and timing rather than dramatics. Flack’s gift as an interpreter shows up in the smallest details, a pause held just long enough, a lyric softened instead of emphasized.

The Donny Hathaway collaborations sit naturally at the center of the set. Their duets sound conversational rather than showy, two voices meeting on equal ground. As the sequence moves into the mid-1970s albums, the productions grow fuller and the songs more widely known, but the emotional focus never shifts. Killing Me Softly and Feel Like Makin’ Love carry their cultural weight lightly, revealing how intimacy can survive inside mainstream success.

The later albums, especially Blue Lights in the Basement and the 1978 self-titled release, close the box with reflection rather than nostalgia. There is no attempt to reinvent, only a quiet confidence in craft and tone.

With Her Songs works best when approached slowly, album by album, letting each chapter reveal itself. It does not argue for importance or legacy. It simply lays the music out, patiently, and leaves space for curiosity to do the rest. (B)

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Track lists

CD1

01 Roberta Flack - Compared to What 5:16

02 Roberta Flack - Angelitos Negros 6:57

03 Roberta Flack - Our Ages or Our Hearts 6:10

04 Roberta Flack - I Told Jesus 6:10

05 Roberta Flack - Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye 4:09

06 Roberta Flack - The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face 5:22

07 Roberta Flack - Tryin' Times 5:08

08 Roberta Flack - Ballad of the Sad Young Men 7:06

CD2

01 Roberta Flack - Reverend Lee 4:32

02 Roberta Flack - Do What You Gotta Do 4:09

03 Roberta Flack - Just Like a Woman 6:15

04 Roberta Flack - Let it Be Me 4:59

05 Roberta Flack - Gone Away 5:16

06 Roberta Flack - Until It's Time for You to Go 4:58

07 Roberta Flack - The Impossible Dream 4:41

08 Roberta Flack - Business Goes on as Usual 3:29

CD3

01 Roberta Flack - Go Up Moses 5:23

02 Roberta Flack - Bridge Over Troubled Water 7:17

03 Roberta Flack - Sunday and Sister Jones 5:01

04 Roberta Flack - See You Then 3:44

05 Roberta Flack - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow 4:09

06 Roberta Flack - To Love Somebody 6:44

07 Roberta Flack - Let Them Talk 3:55

08 Roberta Flack - Sweet Bitter Love 6:08

CD4

01 Roberta Flack - I 5:04

02 Roberta Flack - You've Got a Friend 3:26

03 Roberta Flack - Baby I Love You 3:28

04 Roberta Flack - Be Real Black for Me 3:33

05 Roberta Flack - You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' 6:39

06 Roberta Flack - For All We Know 3:40

07 Roberta Flack - Where is the Love 2:46

08 Roberta Flack - When Love Has Grown 3:27

09 Roberta Flack - Come Ye Disconsolate 4:53

10 Roberta Flack - Mood 7:04

CD5

01 Roberta Flack - Killing Me Softly With His Song 4:50

02 Roberta Flack - Jesse 4:03

03 Roberta Flack - No Tears 4:59

04 Roberta Flack - I'm the Girl 4:57

05 Roberta Flack - River 5:04

06 Roberta Flack - Conversation Love 3:43

07 Roberta Flack - When You Smile 3:44

08 Roberta Flack - Suzanne 9:47

CD6

01 Roberta Flack - Feelin' That Glow 5:47

02 Roberta Flack - I Wanted it Too 2:51

03 Roberta Flack - I Can See the Sun in Late December 12:46

04 Roberta Flack - Some Gospel According to Matthew 2:39

05 Roberta Flack - Feel Like Makin' Love 2:55

06 Roberta Flack - Mr. Magic 3:57

07 Roberta Flack - Early Ev'ry Midnite 5:53

08 Roberta Flack - Old Heartbreak Top Ten 4:23

09 Roberta Flack - She's Not Blind 5:27

CD7

01 Roberta Flack - Why Don't You Move in with Me 4:53

02 Roberta Flack - The Closer I Get to You 4:40

03 Roberta Flack - Fine, Fine Day 4:50

04 Roberta Flack - This Time I'll Be Sweeter 4:26

05 Roberta Flack - 25th of Last December 4:31

06 Roberta Flack - After You 3:53

07 Roberta Flack - I'd Like to Be Baby to You 4:40

08 Roberta Flack - Soul Deep 2:24

09 Roberta Flack - Love is the Healing 3:44

10 Roberta Flack - Where I'll Find You 3:12

CD8

01 Roberta Flack - What a Woman Really Means 4:48

02 Roberta Flack - You Are Everything 4:35

03 Roberta Flack - Independent Man 4:55

04 Roberta Flack - If Ever I See You Again 3:36

05 Roberta Flack - And the Feeling's Good 3:08

06 Roberta Flack - Knowing that We Are Made for Each Other 3:35

07 Roberta Flack - Come Share My Love 3:44

08 Roberta Flack - Baby I Love You So 4:53

09 Roberta Flack - When It's Over 3:28

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Music weaves itself into the fabric of our emotions, dances through the corridors of memory, and whispers to the soul of who we are. Sharing these stories deepens the connection, turning the experience into something timeless and profound.

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