RIP, Mr. Hayes. Thanks for the music.
This reminds me of the uproar when "Shaft" won the Academy Award for Best Song in 1971, while “Bless the Beasts and Children†lost (not that that is such a great song, but it was the odds on favorite). It was also the year Jane Fonda won the award for Best Actress in "Klute".
Everyone knew "Shaft" was a PC pick. Fonda's win was a stick in the eye, too.
Right after the awards, Kaye Ballard (I think it was Kaye) appeared on "The Tonight Show". She did a dramatic reading of the lyrics to "Shaft", complete with tears and a hanky for its "beauty". It was very funny and terribly sarcastic. Kaye made her point.