Killing Them Softly

[1der]

Hey,
Has anybody ever heard the OTHER version of Killing Me Softly that was (probably) called 'killing them softly'.
The lyrics were changed around to tell the story of how they (the Fugees) got signed. (".....and so they came to see us, and listen for a while,...strumming their pain with our fingers, singing their lives with our words.. etc")
Its a much better cersion than the usual one and i am just wondering if anybody knows of somewhere that i might be able to find it.
The song was around in 1996 and I only ever heard it on the radio.

[1der]

*version

[Big-D]

Welcome to the board,I have Killing Me Softly With His Song (Sound Barrier Remix),is this one that you need?

[fugeesuk]

dont think thats what he means, around the time of killing me softly there was a big thing made about them having changed the lyrics to 'killing them softly with these guns', when the song was leaked roberta flack heard it and refused to allow them to use it, so they had to change it to the was it is now, if i remember rightly though there is a hook from the original on the album version of it that was on one of the 2 cd singles that were released in the uk, might dig it out and take a listen

[1der1]

anybody know of anywhere i can get that song.

[papdx]

Alright, I came to this forum, because I was looking for info on that version. I did not believe that there was next to nothing about it on the internet. The thing is I DO have that version. For a while I thought that this was the only version that existed. So here's by story:
24 year ago, in 1996 I bought the second CD single of "Killing Me Softly" in London. It said "LP Version With Intro". I didn't buy the first CD single. Later that summer, when I returned to Greece, I noticed that all the clubs were playing a version that went "Killing Me Softly" instead of "Killing Them Softly". So, I thought that this was the first CD single and bought it as well. In fact, I remember someone at Our Price Records in Bayswater, London wanting to return his single because, as he was saying, "The lyrics are wrong"!
However, the album version on "The Score" only has a bit of "Killing Them Softly" on the intro and the rest is "Killing Him Softly". The version on my second CD single is "Killing Them Softly" throughout, not just a hook on the intro. So it wasn't really leaked, it was legally available. I don't know if that was a mistake in the pressing.
The particular CD single I am referring to is this:
www.discogs.com/Fugees-Killing-Me-Softly/release/737670

The "Killing Them Softly" version on my CD single is this:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UG1FWW6jFVw


The "Killing Him Softly" version on the other CD single is this:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6df3ROUacGI

[Moderator]

It’s one of my favourite Fugees tracks so thank you for sharing!

[promoguy]

Thanks for the info Papdx...mind blown...just found out about this now.  Can I buy/trade a WAV rip of that particular version from you?  I'm working on a Fugees mixtape, and I'd like to include that version.

I can either PayPal you, or I could trade you a particular track you're looking for?  I have most of the Fugees CD singles in FLAC with the other remixes, or I could send you a version of Killing Me Softly that I'm working on where I mix in the original Roberta Flack version.  I'm trying to record this mix as soon as possible, so if you could email me at [e-mail] I'd appreciate it

Peace

Sept 20, 2020 0:13:33 GMT 1 papdx said:

Alright, I came to this forum, because I was looking for info on that version. I did not believe that there was next to nothing about it on the internet. The thing is I DO have that version. For a while I thought that this was the only version that existed. So here's by story:
24 year ago, in 1996 I bought the second CD single of "Killing Me Softly" in London. It said "LP Version With Intro". I didn't buy the first CD single. Later that summer, when I returned to Greece, I noticed that all the clubs were playing a version that went "Killing Me Softly" instead of "Killing Them Softly". So, I thought that this was the first CD single and bought it as well. In fact, I remember someone at Our Price Records in Bayswater, London wanting to return his single because, as he was saying, "The lyrics are wrong"!
However, the album version on "The Score" only has a bit of "Killing Them Softly" on the intro and the rest is "Killing Him Softly". The version on my second CD single is "Killing Them Softly" throughout, not just a hook on the intro. So it wasn't really leaked, it was legally available. I don't know if that was a mistake in the pressing.
The particular CD single I am referring to is this:
www.discogs.com/Fugees-Killing-Me-Softly/release/737670

The "Killing Them Softly" version on my CD single is this:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UG1FWW6jFVw


The "Killing Him Softly" version on the other CD single is this:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6df3ROUacGI

[MrViVi]

Just want to say a big thanks to papdx for his post! I discovered that exact track a few days ago, on a collection of Japanese MiniDiscs I purchased off eBay. The disc it's on has a hand-written track list and appears to be a collection of random songs as opposed to an actual compilation album. Whilst skipping through it I came across this track and, since it's a classic, had to listen. I was surprised to find that it was different to the regular version I know and love, having replaced all of the male specific words with neutral words, changing up the verses, and slightly altering the vocal flourish towards the end of the song. The more I tried to dig up info on this track, the more I was convinced that I had some sort of "unicorn", something that shouldn't exist, with no idea of why it does or how it got there... until I came across your post. So, thank you for solving the mystery for me! And thank you for taking the time to respond to a post from over 14 years ago with new info, because if you hadn't, I'd be wondering about it for some considerable time to come.