Curtis Mayfield – Little Child Runnin’ Wild

Album

Super Fly is the third studio album by American soul musician Curtis Mayfield, released in July 1972 on Curtom Records. It was released as the soundtrack for the Blaxploitation film of the same name. Widely considered a classic of 1970s soul and funk music, Super Fly was a nearly immediate hit.

Its sales were bolstered by two million-selling singles, "Freddie's Dead" (number 2 R&B charts, number 4 Pop charts) and the title track (number 5 R&B, number 8 Pop). Super Fly is one of the few soundtracks to out-gross the film it accompanied.

Super Fly, along with Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971), was one of the pioneering soul concept albums, with its then-unique socially aware lyrics about poverty and drug abuse making the album stand out. The film and the soundtrack may be perceived as dissonant, since the film holds rather ambiguous views on drug dealers, whereas Curtis Mayfield's position is far more critical.

Like What's Going On, the album was a surprise hit that record executives felt had little chance at significant sales. Due to its success, Mayfield was tapped for several film soundtracks over the course of the decade.

Artist

Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. He first achieved success and recognition with The Impressions during the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and 1960s, and later worked as a solo artist.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Mayfield started his musical career in a gospel choir. Moving to the North Side, he met Jerry Butler in 1956 at the age of 14, and joined the vocal group The Impressions. As a songwriter, Mayfield became noted as one of the first musicians to bring more prevalent themes of social awareness into soul music.

In 1965, he wrote "People Get Ready" for the Impressions, which displayed his more politically charged songwriting. Ranked at no. 24 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, the song received numerous other awards, and was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll, as well as being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998.

After leaving the Impressions in 1970 in the pursuit of a solo career, Mayfield released several albums, including the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film Super Fly in 1972. The soundtrack was noted for its socially conscious themes, mostly addressing problems surrounding inner city minorities such as crime, poverty and drug abuse. The album was ranked at no. 72 on Rolling Stone's list of 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Paralyzed

Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after lighting equipment fell on him during a live performance at Wingate Field in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York, on August 13, 1990. Despite this, he continued his career as a recording artist, releasing his final album New World Order in 1996. Mayfield won a Grammy Legend Award in 1994 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.

He is a double inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of the Impressions in 1991, and again in 1999 as a solo artist. He was also a two-time Grammy Hall of Fame inductee. Mayfield died from complications of type 2 diabetes at the age of 57 on December 26, 1999.

Curtis Mayfield (Chicago, 3 giugno 1942 – Roswell, 26 dicembre 1999) è stato un cantante, chitarrista e compositore statunitense.

È stato un musicista afro-americano di soul, funk e rhythm & blues, noto specialmente per la colonna sonora del film Super Fly, principale film della cosiddetta blaxploitation.

Bambina, correndo selvaggiamente
Guarda un po'
Vedi che non sorride mai

Rotto a casa, padre andato
Mamma stanca, quindi è tutto solo
Un po 'triste, un po' pazzo
bambina del ghetto, pensando che sia stato avuto

Ma posso solo ascoltarlo
Nella parte posteriore della sua mente dicendo
Non doveva essere qui

Non dovevi amare per me
Mentre ero solo un bambino niente
Perché non potreste lasciarmi essere
Lasciami essere, lasciami essere, lasciami essere?

Bambina, correndo selvaggiamente
Guarda un po'
Vedi che non sorride mai

Rotto a casa, papà andato
Mamma stanca ed è tutto solo
Un po' triste, oh piccola, un po' pazza
bambina del ghetto, pensando che sia stato avuto

E posso solo sentirlo dire
Non dovevo essere qui
Non dovevi amare per me

Mentre ero solo un bambino niente
Perché non potevano semplicemente lasciarmi essere
Lasciami essere, lasciami essere, lasciami essere?

Non ho soldi
Devo giocare nei vicoli, non c'è orgoglio
Mi è bastato tutto, l'ho preso triste

Devo farcela da solo
Devo andare via da casa
Non c'è niente di divertente, la mia vita è appena corsa

Corri, corri bambina del ghetto
Corri bambina del ghetto (x3)

Stai correndo selvaggiamente
Guarda un po'
Vedi che non sorride mai
Il padre se n'è andato, va bene