10 Amazing Albums Turning 50 In 2022

10. Curtis Mayfield - Superfly

While the Blaxploitation genre has dated somewhat badly, much of the music that soundtracked the films has achieved a timeless quality. It doesn’t get much better than Curtis Mayfield’s third solo record, Super Fly, a collection of tracks more measured and thoughtful than the film of the same name which it scores.

Mayfield’s stock in trade was state of the union addresses, sincere pleas for unity and progression, buoyed by his sensational guitar work and compelling croon. He sets out his stall with the unforgettable “Pusherman”, a wry track sung from a dealer’s perspective that critiques the oft-glamourised drug culture without a shred of preachiness.

The menacing “Freddie’s Dead” makes brilliant use of Mayfield’s detached vocals across a stuttering funk bassline, and the title track is simply one of the coolest pieces of music ever put on record.

The album outshone the film by a wide margin and helped to cement Mayfield as one of the pre-eminent voices in funk and soul, that rare star who can infuse his every song with meaning and message without getting bogged down.