Killing Me Softly with His Song

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"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel, which has become a pop standard. The song was inspired by a poem by Lori Lieberman, "Killing Me Softly with His Blues", which she wrote after seeing a then-unknown Don McLean perform the song Empty Chairs live.

[edit] Song and cover versions

Lieberman was the first to record Fox and Gimbel's song, in 1971, but it became a bigger hit when covered by Roberta Flack in 1973, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 4 weeks. It was replaced by "Love Train" by the The O'Jays. "Killing Me Softly" returned to the top of the U.S. charts replacing "Love Train".

R&B artist Al B. Sure was the next to cover the song in 1988 on his debut album In Effect Mode... and experienced some success with it. He was voted the top new Male R&B solo artist in 1989. Hip-hop group The Fugees covered the song in 1996, with Lauryn Hill singing the lead vocals. Their version reached number two on the U.S. airplay chart, and had similar success in the U.K., reaching number one and selling over a million copies. Propelled by the success of the Fugees track, the version by Flack was remixed in 1996 and topped the Hot Dance Club Play chart.

Other major artists to cover the song include The Plain White T's, Engelbert Humperdinck, Frank Sinatra, Tori Amos, Eva Cassidy, Perry Como, Aretha Franklin, Anne Murray, Luther Vandross, Toni Braxton, Alicia Keys, Jaco Pastorius, The Youngblood Brass Band, and Shirley Bassey.

The song was prominently featured in the 2002 film About a Boy in which the boy of the title, Marcus, is ridiculed by classmates for singing the song, a favourite of his mother's, at his school talent show because of its feminine associations and its romantic, emotional lyrics.

[edit] Cover versions in other languages

Country	Artist	Title	Translated title	Lyrics by
Sweden	Lill Lindfors (1973), Lotta Engberg (1997)	"Sången han sjöng var min egen"	"The song he sang was my own"
Norway	Inger Lise Rypdal	"Sangen han sang var min egen"	"The song he sang was my own"
Denmark	Sanne Salomonsen	"Søgte mit indre"	"Sought my innermost"
Denmark	Shu-Bi-Dua	"Kylling med Soft Ice"	"Chicken with softice" (parody)
Denmark	Clemens	"Flammende Oprør" (Rap containing samples from Sanne Salomonsen "Søgte mit indre")	"Flaming Rebellion"
Italia	Marcella Bella (1973), Lara Saint Paul (1973), Ornella Vanoni (1973)	"Mi fa morire cantando"	"He kills me singing"
Estonia	Els Himma (1974)	"Millest sa elad ja hingad"	"Of what you live and breathe"	Vally Ojavere
Brazil	Joanna (1991)	"Morrendo de amor"	"Dying of love"
Mexico	Pandora	"Mátame muy suavemente"	"Kill me softly"
Japan	Mariko Takahashi
Argentina	Sergio Denis	"Mátame suavemente"	"Kill me softly"
Czech Republic	Helena Vondráčková (1974)	"Dvě malá křídla tu nejsou"	"Two little wings are not here"	Zdeněk Borovec
Finland	Päivi Paunu (1973)	"Jokainen päivä on liikaa"	"Every day is too much"

[edit] References

Preceded by "Crocodile Rock" by Elton John	Billboard Hot 100 number one single (Roberta Flack version) February 24, 1973 — March 17, 1973	Succeeded by "Love Train" by The O'Jays

Preceded by "Love Train" by The O'Jays	Billboard Hot 100 number one single (Roberta Flack version) March 31, 1973	Succeeded by "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia" by Vicki Lawrence

Preceded by "How Do U Want It" / "California Love" by 2Pac featuring K-Ci and JoJo / Dr. Dre	RIANZ (New Zealand) number one single (Fugees version) 31 May 1996	Succeeded by "Tha Crossroads" by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Preceded by "Three Lions" by Baddiel & Skinner & The Lightning Seeds	UK Singles Chart Number 1 single (Fugees version) June 2, 1996 for 5 weeks	Succeeded by "Forever Love" by Gary Barlow