Killing 'Em Softly

Now that I've decided to strike a tone of reconcilliation, how about a soul classic originally written and performed by honkies, then covered by a brother? While Blood, Sweat and Tears is an otherwise forgettable blue-eyed soul revue, the band's eponymous first album was largely written and arranged by Al Kooper, who left before the band could cash in. (A leading theory among physicists is that the massive amounts of dark matter in the universe is actually the residue of Kooper's ego, which might explain why he could never stick with a band.)

Donny Hathaway, an accomplished writer-producer in his own right, is probably best known as the answer to the trivia question, "Who's the real-life inspiration for Roberta Flack's 'Killing Me Softly?'" His funk-forward pop-smash "The Ghetto" (which, as it happens, I have on 45) means he's generally regarded as a one-hit wonder. The album this track appears on, Extension of a Man, is texturally rich and rather eclectic, and exists as one of those overwrought producer projects generally doomed to relative obscurity (I'm looking at you, Bobby Digital).

I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know by Donny Hathaway

You can purchase this track, and album, on iTunes. But this also happens to be the only album I have in Quadrophonic Sound, which iTunes doesn't offer.