1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - #106. Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You (1967)

Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You (1967)

Label – Atlantic
Producer – Jerry Wexler
Art Direction – Uncredited
Nationality –USA
Running Time – 32:51

Track Listing (standout tracks listed in bold)
1. Respect
2. Drown In My Own Tears
3. I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)
4. Soul Serenade
5. Don't Let Me Lose This Dream
6. Try It Baby
7. Dr Feelgood
8. Good Times
9. Do Right Woman Do Right Man
10. Save Me
11. Change Is Gonna Come

The Queen Of Soul – Aretha Franklin. What a fantastic, soulful record. The inclusion of "Respect" which is her best know work and one of the greatest singles in pop music history, is enough to warrant a listen to “I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You” and give the record classic status, but this Aretha's Atlantic label debut is just a great piece of work from start to finish. With a fantastic Muscle Shoals backing band and great material to work with this record catapulted Aretha to the Queen of Soul. Granted, I haven’t heard a lot of her works – but this is easily the strongest record of her career with great vocal performances from her. There is of course “Respect” and the title track which is the records other best-known song, but there is much more here than that. A great cover of Ray Charles' "Drown in My Own Tears" and two covers of Sam Cooke - "Good Times" and "A Change Is Gonna Come" are as good as the originals. Truly a soul classic record.
"Respect" is one of several songs considered to have defined the 1960s. It has appeared in dozens of films, and still receives consistent play on oldies radio stations. In the 1970s, Franklin's version of the song came to exemplify the feminist movement. Although she had numerous hits after "Respect", and several before its release, the song has became Franklin's signature song and her best-known recording. This album was ranked eighty-third in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time in 2002. Two years later, "Respect" was fifth in the magazine's 500 Greatest Songs of All-Time. The song "Respect" is part of the The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list. It is highly recommended.


You can purchase the 180 gram vinyl LP here.

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Frank Beard of ZZ Top is 60; Donnie Van Zant of .38 Special is 57; Dan Lavery of Tonic is 40;

ON THIS DATE
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2002 Paul McCartney marries Heather Mills

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