“This Masquerade” is a song written by American singer and musician Leon Russell. It was originally recorded in 1972 by Russell for his album Carney and as a b-side for the album’s hit single “Tight Rope”. Russell’s version starts off with a somewhat extended instrumental intro and then features his uniquely soulful – if rather rough and gruff – voice and, presumably, his piano work.
The song was then covered on Helen Reddy’s 1972 album, I Am Woman. Her version features her delightful and distinctive vocal with maybe a little more string accompaniment than one would expect for a jazz oriented song like this. It was then recorded by American vocal duo, the Carpenters, for their 1973 album Now and Then and as the b-side of the Carpenters’s single “Please Mr. Postman”. In addition to Karen’s vocal she also played the drums on the recording. And the song also included the highly tasteful instrumental solos of Richard on piano and Bob Messenger on electric flute. Their runs to almost 5 minutes:
In 1976, “This Masquerade” was a top-ten pop and R&B hit for jazz guitarist/vocalist George Benson, who recorded it on his signature album Breezin’. Benson’s version, featuring Jorge Dalto on piano, was released as a single and became the first big hit of his career. The version that appeared on Breezin’ ran over eight minutes. A disc jockey from New Orleans named Ty Bell made a tidy edit of the track that ran under four minutes.
Benson’s rendition is the only charting version of the song in the U.S. It reached number 10 on the Billboard and number three on the Hot Soul Singles chart. On the Cash Box Top 100 it reached number 12. “This Masquerade” was most successful in Canada, where it reached number 8 on the Pop Singles chart as well as the Adult Contemporary chart. In 1977, Benson’s version won a Grammy Award for Record of the Year, while it was nominated for Song of the Year.
Leon Russell’s original version is part of the soundtrack for The Exorcist director William Friedkin’s psychological thriller film Bug. The Bug Soundtrack was released in May 2007. It also appeared in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. The Carpenters’ version was also performed on TV by Ella Fitzgerald; the medley in which it was sung was subsequently released on the compilation As Time Goes By.
