"Someday We'll All Be Free" is a 1973 song by Donny Hathaway from the album '' Extension of a Man''. The song was released as the flipside to the single "Love, Love, Love." Though the song was only released as an uncharted A-side, it is considered an R&B standard, having been covered by many artists over the years.

Background

The lyric was written by Edward Howard, for and about the mental pain that Hathaway, who was diagnosed with

paranoid schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social w ...

when the song was written, was experiencing at the time. Edward Howard said: Years later, the song began to be interpreted as being written about black rights, primarily due to

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

featuring Aretha Franklin's 1992 version at the end of his biographical film ''

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of I ...

''. However, as Howard said: Donny Hathaway himself particularly loved the song and as Eulalah Hathaway stated: Although the song did not chart, the B-side of the single, "Love, Love Love," peaked at #44 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and #16 on the R&B charts

Personnel

* Donny Hathaway – lead vocals, Fender Rhodes electric piano, arrangements *

Cornell Dupree Cornell Luther Dupree (December 19, 1942 – May 8, 2011) was an American jazz and R&B guitarist. He worked at various times with Aretha Franklin, Bill Withers, Donny Hathaway, King Curtis and Steve Gadd, appeared on David Letterman,

– guitar *

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– guitar *Ray Lucas – drums *

Willie Weeks Willie Weeks (born August 5, 1947) is an American bass guitarist. He has gained fame performing with famous musicians in a wide variety of genres. He has been one of the most in-demand session musicians throughout his career. Weeks has also ...

– bass *

Marvin Stamm Marvin Louis Stamm (born May 23, 1939) is an American jazz trumpeter. Career Stamm was born in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Stamm began on trumpet at age twelve. He attended North Texas State University, where he was a member of the One ...

– trumpet

Covers

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on his self-titled 1975 debut for Elektra Records. *

Average White Band The Average White Band (also known as AWB) are a Scottish funk and R&B band that had a series of soul and disco hits between 1974 and 1980. They are best known for their million-selling instrumental track " Pick Up the Pieces", and their album ...

and

Ben E. King Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He is best known as the singer and co-composer of " Stand by Me"—a US Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later ...

on the 1977 album ''Benny and Us''. *

Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing gui ...

covered the song on his 1985 album of the same name. *

Regina Belle Regina Elaine Belle (born July 17, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter who started her career in the mid-1980s. Known for her singles " Baby Come to Me" (1989) and "Make It Like It Was" (1990), Belle's most notable for two hit duets, both with ...

on her 1989 album ''Stay With Me'' *

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on his 1989 album ''It's Real'' * Aretha Franklin covered the song in the soundtrack for the 1992 film ''

'' * Tom Browne on his 1999 compilation album ''R 'N' Browne'' also with Dianne Reeves did as vocals. *

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covered this song as a solo instrumental on his self-titled 2000 Blue Note album. *

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

during the America: A Tribute to Heroes telethon following the

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. *

Take 6 Take 6 is an American a cappella gospel sextet formed in 1980 on the campus of Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. The group integrates jazz with spiritual and inspirational lyrics. Take 6 has received several Grammy Awards as well as Dove ...

on their 2002 album ''Beautiful World'' (this version is a duet with Hathaway's daughter,

Lalah Hathaway Eulaulah Donyll "Lalah" Hathaway (born December 16, 1968) is an American singer. In 1990 Hathaway released her first album titled ''Lalah Hathaway''. After releasing another album, titled '' A Moment'' (1994), it debuted at number 34 on the To ...

). *

Deniece Williams Deniece Williams (born June Deniece Chandler; June 3, 1951) is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs " Free", " Silly", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle" and two ''Bil ...

on her 2007 album ''Love, Niecy Style'' *

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, play ...

on his 2009 album ''Songs and Stories'' *

Kirk Whalum Kirk is a Scottish and former Northern English word meaning "church". It is often used specifically of the Church of Scotland. Many place names and personal names are also derived from it. Basic meaning and etymology As a common noun, ''kirk' ...

on his 2010 album '' Everything Is Everything: The Music Of Donny Hathaway'' *

Ben Allison Ben Allison (born November 17, 1966) is an American double bassist, composer, producer, bandleader, educator. In addition to his work as a performer, he co-founded the non-profit Jazz Composers Collective and served as its Artistic Director for ...

on his 2011 album ''Action-Refraction'' *

Cory Henry Cory Alexander Henry (born February 27, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, organist, and record producer. A former member of Snarky Puppy, Henry launched his solo artist career in 2018 with ''Art of Love'', his first independent ...

on his 2012 album ''Gotcha Now Doc'' * Stéphane Belmondo on his 2013 album ''Ever After'' * Bilal during the Grand Performances series in Los Angeles with the Miguel Atwood-Ferguson Ensemble. *

Helen Baylor Helen LaRue Lowe (born January 8, 1954), known professionally as Helen Baylor, is an American singer–songwriter. Early life Born Helen LaRue Lowe in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Baylor is the oldest of seven, she has five brothers and one sister. Baylor ...

covers the song which was used in the season 2 finale of the '' Martin'' episode, "Martin's on the Move", and the song appears during the closing credits of the previous seasons. * Jay-Z sampled the song in the track "Legacy" from his album '' 4:44'' *John Legend did a cover of the song with team member Victor Solomon on The Voice Season 20 finale. *Ye, formerly known as

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

sampled Hathaway’s version on a 2022 song he released under the same title.

In popular culture

Hathaway's version was featured in an episode of AMC's '' The Walking Dead'', in the seventh-season finale " The First Day of the Rest of Your Life", as the character Sasha ingests a cyanide pill. Hathaway's version was also featured in Showtime's ''

The Chi ''The Chi'' ( ) is an American drama television series created by Lena Waithe about life in a neighborhood on the South Side, Chicago, South Side of Chicago. The pilot was directed by Rick Famuyiwa. It premiered on Showtime (TV network), Showti ...

'', in the second-season finale "The Scorpion and the Frog" (episode #10) as the closing music.

References

{{Aretha Franklin 1973 songs Donny Hathaway songs Songs about depression