SOD: Donny Hathaway "Jealous Guy"

In the words of Matty, "I hope you have a change of underwear."

This is downright, fuckin' nasty! Donny Hathaway is one of the most unbelievable singer/songwriter/pianists I've ever heard. And up until a little over a year ago, I had no idea who he was. Sure, I'd heard him before, but I didn't know him by any means. But, as with much other music, the Phillips brothers introduced me to Donny, and then saturated my itunes with it. And thank god they did because I couldn't imagine going through life not ever learning of this mans catalogue. 

Donny Hathaway had a long and prosperous collaborative career with Roberta Flack, who is one of my mom's all time favorite vocalists. She is truly a unique talent, and if you think you don't know her, well you're wrong. She's best known for her #1 singles (which I'm sure you've heard, or at least heard covers of) "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," "Killing Me Softly with His Song," and "Feel Like Makin' Love." That's in addition to "Where Is the Love" and "The Closer I Get to You" which were probably her most famous duets with Donny. "Where Is the Love" won the Grammy for best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group (w/ vocals) in 1973. 

I also learned from Matty that Cornell Dupree (founding member and half the guitar section for one of my all time favorite groups Stuff), can also be heard ripping away on this track. Remember how I said we were fascinated by the incestuous nature of great musicians and groups? There's another couple great examples right there.

But life rarely has fairytale endings, and poor Donny Hathaway is no exception. He suffered from severe bouts of depression, and it was later learned that he was also a paranoid schizophrenic (for which he regularly took some very heavy medication). Imagine suffering from all that, and still being able to make some of the most influential music of his day. That is simply impossible for me to grasp. Unfortunately, in 1979 Hathaway succumbed to his illness and committed suicide. A tragic loss of one of the truly great talents of his day, who remains largely unknown to people of my generation. I'm hoping we can change that.

Thanks to Matty for this amazing cover. Hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.