Songoftheday 5/6/12 - Here, close to our feelings, we touch again, we love again...

Roberta Flack - "Making Love"

from the album I'm The One (1982)

Billboard Hot 100 peak: #13 (three weeks)

weeks in the top-40: 11

Today's Song of the Day is the theme to the controversial and groundbreaking film Making Love, performed by R&B legend Roberta Flack. What made the film so new was that it was the first mainstream movie release that focused on a gay relationship in a romantic sense, as opposed to years of niche cinema and camp portrayals like Boys In The Band. Considering that just 30 years ago actors would shun such parts, but now consider it a badge of honor in their repertoire, it took courage for Michael Ontkean and Hatty Hamlin to take on roles of two men caught up in a love triangle with Ontkean's onscreen wife Kate Jackson. The movie wasn't any Citizen Kane, but it was real, the issues at hand were treated respectfully, and as a teen watching this as I did wide-eyed during its showing on HBO, gave an authentic experience in what many gay men (and lesbians) face. It's hard to describe what an impact it had, but a realistic take (heartbreaking at times) on what I was struggling with at the time was really reassuring.

The title song was sung by Roberta Flack, who was one of the most revered women soul singers in the 70's. She had previously had five top-ten hits, 3 of which were charttoppers - "The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly With His Song", and "Feel Lke Makin' Love". The delicate, pretty song was nominated for a Golden Globe, and remains a gem in Flack's catalog.

"Making Love" returned Roberta to the pop top-40 in June of 1982. The song also climbed to #7 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary (or "easy listening") radio chart, and peaked at #29 on their R&B list. Internationally, the single just missed the top-40 in Canada at #43.

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Here's Roberta performing the song live in concert...

Up tomorrow: Dutch medley meisters take on the 12-year-old-Genius.