Music Banter - Aretha Franklin

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- - Aretha Franklin (https://www.musicbanter.com/soul-funk/59908-aretha-franklin.html)

Okay, this is a leftover from The Virgin's days as a primadonna troll. Despite his atrocious music tastes and generally skewered views on music, he did make one valid point - why is there no thread on Aretha?

Without the Queen of Soul, you probably won't have divas such as Beyonce and Mariah today.

I got her first five albums and they're all ace. I heard some of her later albums, and they're not as good, though some songs are enjoyable.

So I'll be the first to make a toast to her here...

(although I much preferred Bomb the Bass' "I Say a Little Prayer" to hers)

No Aretha thread?! What an outrage. One of the greatest singers ever. Ever heard her rendition of "The Weight" featuring Duane Allman on slide guitar? It's really great.

This s the one occasion I agree with Rolling Stone magazine. They rated her the best singer of all time. Here's the review:

Quote:

You know a force from heaven. You know something that God made. And Aretha is a gift from God. When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her. She is the reason why women want to sing.

Aretha has everything — the power, the technique. She is honest with everything she says. Everything she's thinking or dealing with is all in the music, from "Chain of Fools" to "Respect" to her live performances. And she has total confidence; she does not waver at all. I think her gospel base brings that confidence, because in gospel they do not play around — they're all about chops, who has the vocal runs. This is no game to her.

As a child, I used to listen to Aretha's music because my mom played "Do Right Woman" and "Ain't No Way" every single day. I would see my mother cry when she listened to those songs, and I'd cry too. Then I discovered her on my own with the Sparkle soundtrack. I must have played "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" 30 times in a row; eventually, I connected the dots to that voice my mom was listening to.

Even the way she pronounces words is amazing: In "Giving Him Something He Can Feel," when she sings, "Many say that I'm too young" — the way she says "I'm," you can almost see her saying it, like she's all in your face, but you're still right with her. You can really visualize her hands when she sings, "You're tying both of my hands," on "Ain't No Way" — it's the powerful way she hits the word "both."

When you watch her work, you can see why Aretha is who she is. When we did the song "Don't Waste Your Time" on my album Mary, she just went in there and ate that record like Pac-Man. She could be doing a church vocal run, and it would turn into some jazz-space thing, something I never encountered before. You'd say, "Where did that come from? Where did she find that note?"

It's beautiful to see, because it helps people with a lack of confidence in their ability, like myself. I look at her and think, "I need a piece of that. Whatever that is."

I could see why there would be no Aretha thread. The reason is that sadly many people do not care for Aretha Franklin. She is one of the greatest singers that I ever heard of. But the truth is that the music scene is falling apart because of fools like Kesha, Whaka Floka Flame, and Lady Gaga.

But I am happy to see some people know the importance of Aretha Franklin. She has been in the music scene since 1960s. She has made some powerful songs especially the song RESPECT. She is someone who has a powerful voice. I can say that because I have listented to her closely and she sounded so soulful. I love that Aretha remained original. But as usual, we don't apperciare great artists like Aretha Franklin.

People like Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, and Mary J. Blige owe their careers to the queen of soul Aretha Franklin. They were all influenced by this legend. Aretha Franklin is a great singer and I will always remember this legend. I will for years to come.

The difference between Lady Gaga and Aretha Franklin is that Aretha will be a long living legend while Gaga is a just another person.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Franco Pepe Kalle (Post 1139920)

I could see why there would be no Aretha thread. The reason is that sadly many people do not care for Aretha Franklin. She is one of the greatest singers that I ever heard of. But the truth is that the music scene is falling apart because of fools like Kesha, Whaka Floka Flame, and Lady Gaga.

But I am happy to see some people know the importance of Aretha Franklin. She has been in the music scene since 1960s. She has made some powerful songs especially the song RESPECT. She is someone who has a powerful voice. I can say that because I have listented to her closely and she sounded so soulful. I love that Aretha remained original. But as usual, we don't apperciare great artists like Aretha Franklin.

People like Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, and Mary J. Blige owe their careers to the queen of soul Aretha Franklin. They were all influenced by this legend. Aretha Franklin is a great singer and I will always remember this legend. I will for years to come.

The difference between Lady Gaga and Aretha Franklin is that Aretha will be a long living legend while Gaga is a just another person.

i am still undecided whether that's a good or bad thing, though

Quote:

Originally Posted by Il Duce (Post 1139924)

i am still undecided whether that's a good or bad thing, though

That is a good question. I have no idea.

Aretha Franklin is one of the great Soul/R&B artist. Chaka Khan has always been another favorite. ;)

Howard The Duck makes some good points here.

A quick word on the first 5 lp's. I'm 999% sure he is talking about her classic era on Atlantic Records; Aretha Arrives, Aretha Now, Aretha:Lady Soul, Aretha Live and Aretha-Soul 69. These are 5 "must haves" in anyones music collection.

Her career goes before 1967 though. She was discovered by famed talent scout John Hammond, and from 1961 to late 1966 she recorded ten albums on Columbia. Surprisingly, no top 10 songs came out of this part of her career. But when "I Never Loved A Man" was released after switching labels, that started a string of one powerhouse hit after another.

Now here is trivia at it's ____ (fill in the blank). Her most collectible lp? According to Goldmine Magazine Rare Record Price Guide, an album was released by Aretha on the legendary Checker label (Checker 10009) It was only recorded in mono and not stereo and was re-issued a few years later. The pricebook I'm working on is volume 4 from 2003 and has a $500. price on it. The title of the lp is called "Songs of Faith" and the front cover has a picture of Aretha sitting at the piano.

I can agree that her output on Arista doesn't match what she did at Atlantic but there are still some material there worth seeking out.

The Queen Of Soul. The name fits her like a glove. Simply one of the great singers of any musical genre of any era.

With today's http://www.musicbanter.com/games-lis...litz-game.html randomly selected thread, I think I'm as much animated by the posters themselves as by Aretha Franklin.

Howard The Duck was a frequent and popular poster here until he died a few years ago. Luckily, afaik, he is still the only MB member who we know to have died while still an active MB member.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blastingas10 (Post 1130318)

No Aretha thread?! What an outrage. One of the greatest singers ever. Ever heard her rendition of "The Weight" featuring Duane Allman on slide guitar? It's really great.

^ blastingas10 was a fellow fan of the Allmans, and we regularly compared notes on albums we both liked, so I can double up on his rec here. (The track is on a Duane Allman Anthology album.)

Salami was an enthusiastic poster who, I'm sorry to say, was treated pretty badly by MB at a time when we had quite a few snarky members. That's how I remember things anyway.

In his honour, I'm going to read his post and see why Aretha Franklin is so highly regarded...

One word, R-E-S-P-E-C-T