Question: "The Closer I Get to You" is a romantic ballad performed by African American jazz, soul, R&B, and folk singer-songwriter Roberta Flack and which  American jazz, blues, soul and gospel singer, songwriter, arranger and pianist, that signed with Atlantic Records in 1969?

"The Closer I Get to You" is a romantic ballad performed by African American jazz, soul, R&B, and folk singer-songwriter Roberta Flack and African American soul musician Donny Hathaway.  The song was written by James Mtume and Reggie Lucas, two former members of Miles Davis's band, who were members of Flack's band at the time.  Produced by Atlantic Records, the song was released on Flack's 1977 album "Blue Lights in the Basement", and as a single in 1978.  It became a major crossover hit, becoming Flack's biggest commercial hit after her success with her 1973 solo single, "Killing Me Softly with His Song".  Originally set as a solo-single, Flack's manager, David Franklin, suggested a duet with Hathaway, which resulted in the finished work. <SEP> Blue Lights in the Basement is the sixth studio album by American singer Roberta Flack released by Atlantic on December 13, 1977.  The album was a commercial success, peaking at number eight on the US "Billboard" 200, becoming her third consecutive top-ten album on the chart and reaching number five on the R&B albums chart.  On February 27, 1978, the album received a Gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments over 500,000 copies.  The album features the single "The Closer I Get to You", a duet with best friend and fellow soul musician Donny Hathaway, which became the biggest hit from the album, peaking at #2 on the "Billboard" Hot 100, and reaching #1 on the Hot Soul Singles chart.  The collaboration with Hathaway would be one of his final singles released in his lifetime before his death in 1979. <SEP> Black Jazz Records was a jazz record company and label founded in Oakland, California by pianist Gene Russell (December 2, 1932 - May 3, 1981) and percussionist Dick Schory.  The label was created to promote the talents of young African American jazz musicians and singers, and released twenty albums between 1971 and 1975.  Some of the more notable artists to record for Black Jazz Records were Cleveland Eaton, former bassist for Count Basie and Ramsey Lewis, and pianist Doug Carn, whose four albums were the most successful of any Black Jazz artist.  Carn's wife at the time, Jean Carn, sang on his albums; she changed her name to Jean Carne and went on to have a successful solo career as an R & B singer.  Singer Kellee Patterson gained notoriety as the first black Miss Indiana in 1971, before recording her debut album, "Maiden Voyage", with Black Jazz Records in 1973.  The label was distributed and financed by Ovation Records, a country and western label based in Chicago, which was also founded by Schory.  Black Jazz Records was considered at the time to be the first jazz label started by an African American since brothers John and Reb Spikes started Sunshine Records in 1921. <SEP>  Hathaway signed with Atlantic Records in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto", in early 1970, "Rolling Stone" magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music."  His enduring songs include "The Ghetto", "This Christmas", "Someday We'll All Be Free", "Little Ghetto Boy", "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know", signature versions of "A Song for You" and "For All We Know", and "Where Is the Love" and "The Closer I Get to You", two of many collaborations with Roberta Flack.  "Where Is the Love" won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1973.  At the height of his career Hathaway was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and was known to not take his prescribed medication regularly enough to properly control his symptoms.  On January 13, 1979, Hathaway's body was found outside the luxury hotel Essex House in New York City; his death was ruled a suicide. Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American jazz, blues, soul and gospel singer, songwriter, arranger and pianist.