The Score
One time. Two times.
Hi Son,
Two days ago Roberta Flack passed away at the age of 88. I admittedly have not listened to much of her catalog outside of the mainstream hits. The ones I can remember off of the top of my head without looking up are “Where Is the Love,” which was a duet with Donny Hathaway, “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love” another duet with Peabo Bryson and “Killing Me Softly With His Song.” I had heard the first two when I was younger without knowing the name of the female vocalist. It wasn’t until I heard “Killing Me Softly With His Song” that I could recognize her voice.
The first time I heard “Killing Me Softly With His Song” was not performed by Flack. I had gotten home from school and put on MTV and caught a music video of a group watching a movie in a theater and the main vocalist was sporting an anfo. That vocalist would be Lauryn Hill. The song had a great background beat and Hill’s voice was phenomenal. Then someone next to her chimed in during the refrain with “One Time” and then after “Singing my song with his words” he said “Two Times.” That individual would be Wyclef Jean. That literally was the only role Wyclef contributed vocally. It became infamous over time, especially with geeky men with deep voices (me being one of those geeks) could sing/say that part of the song to make it look like we were “singing along.” At the end of the music video a food fight started in the theater and captions came up.
“Praz went on to become C.E.O. of Sony Music Entertainment Inc.”
“Lauryn got married, has 13 kids and founded the third world order.”
“Wyclef went on to become a minister.”
That’s how I learned the names of the members of The Fugees. Especially Praz since he didn’t contribute vocally to “Killing Me Softly.” Also another thing to point out is that The Fugees did not include the entire name of the song that Flack did.
Their rendition of Flack’s song was huge. It was a more energetic, upbeat version that put The Fugees on the map. Even though, this was part of the second album the Fugees put out. This album was called The Score. I would argue this is the best modern rendition (I say with tongue and cheek because this came out 29 years ago!) of any mainstream hit ever. It is at the very least my favorite to date. Their next single was “Ready or Not” and it was another big hit. Not as popular as “Killing Me Softly,” but it more solidified The Fugees standing as a big up-and-comer not just in hip-hop, but all genres in the mid-90s. This album is easily in my top 5 hip-hop albums ever. Given the fact that I experienced it in real time, it possibly could be my all-time favorite hip-hop album. This album is solid. You would think listening to “Killing Me Softly” that Lauryn Hill was just a vocalist, but she could rap as well as Praz and Wyclef. She maybe was the best of the three. She would later come out with a solo album that many consider to be the best album released in 1998. Hill was a powerhouse.
I forgot to mention that “Killing Me Softly” was the second single released from The Score. “Fu-Gee-La” was the first and is one of the more intense tracks on the album. The fourth single released was a cover of Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry.” Wyclef’s vocals were featured on the track. It didn’t rise up the charts the way “Killing Me Softly” and “Ready or Not” did, but it’s still a very solid rendition of quite possibly the most renouned Raggae artist ever. I mentioned that Lauryn would eventually go on to put out a highly successful solo album, Wyclef would have a run as a solo artist as well. His first solo album “Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival” would be nominated for several awards in 1998. Pras would also have success as a solo artist, his biggest claim to fame was “Ghetto Supastar (That is What We Are)” in collaboration with Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Mya. It’s music was based off of “Islands in the Stream” that was performed by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. It would reach #1 on several charts around the world (only topped out at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100).
Now if you’re doing the math. The Score came out in 1996 and the solo albums all hit 1-2 years after. This would be the second and last album the group would release. I had mentioned in my note on “When We Were Kings” they had performed “Rumble in the Jungle.” That would be the last song The Fugees released. The Score had later been award a grammy for Best Rap Album and Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for “Killing Me Softly.” These guys literally broke up at the top of their game. All three of them were immensely talented and were an incredible force together. I know this isn’t The Beatles breaking up, but they may have been the Hip Hop version of The Beatles given the talent and versatility of each member. They just lacked the longevity of the Fab Four.
Love,
Dad