ROBERTA FLACK - QUIET FIRE VINYL

By 1971, rising music star Roberta Flack was hard at work on her third studio effort in three years, Quiet Fire. While her music had already made an impact on black radio and the charts, she was still seen as an up and comer in mainstream circles.

Interestingly enough, that would all change in the fall of 1971, when actor/director Clint Eastwood chanced upon Flack's single, "Every Time I See Your Face," from her 1969 debut, First Take, which he was eager to include in his directorial debut, Play Misty for Me, which debuted on U.S. movie screens in October 1971.

As Eastwood's movie became a critical hit, it did well enough at the box office for "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" to suddenly become a major hit record across radio formats, and begin to charge up the charts.

Flack released Quiet Fire in November 1971, followed by lead single, a beautiful ballad rendition of the Shirelles' recording of Carole King's "Will You Love Me Tomorrow." The track made a moderate impact on the Hot 100, peaking at #76 in February 1972.

It was around the same time--February 1972--when the exploding popularity of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" was enough for Atlantic Records to release an edited version of the 1969 song as a new single. The song soared up the charts to snatch the #1 spot on the Hot 100 in April 1972, a position it would hold for six weeks.

Some say at the unexpected popularity of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" hindered the success of Quiet Fire as new fans got up to speed on Flack's music; the album peaked at #18 on the Billboard 200 in January 1972, three months before "The First Time..." hit #1.