Aretha Franklin, The #26 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 Aretha released a successful double-sided hit that later appeared on her compilation album Aretha's Gold.  "The House That Jack Built" raced to #2 on the R&B chart and #6 Popular.

 Aretha's version of "I Say A Little Prayer" went Gold and hit #4 in the U.K. and #10 in the U.S.

Franklin released another single from Aretha Now, "See Saw", a song written by Don Covay and Steve Cropper which sold over one million copies despite peaking at #14.

 

Other artists can record songs, and do fine, but somehow when Aretha does it, she gives it "The Weight". 

 

"I Can't See Me Leaving You" from Aretha Now coasted to #3 on the R&B chart.

 

In 1969, Aretha released the albums Soul '69 and This Girl's In Love With You, followed by the 1970 albums Spirit in the Dark and Young, Gifted and Black.  Franklin received good airplay and hits on the smaller R&B format, and won Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Share Your Love With Me" and "Don't Play That Song".

Now that Franklin had found her groove, "Share Your Love With Me" became Aretha's seventh #1 R&B smash in just two years. It peaked at #13 overall.

 

Aretha wrote "Call Me" after she saw a young couple talking on New York's Park Avenue.  Before leaving each other, Franklin heard them say "I love you...call me."  Franklin played piano on the song with backing from the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.  The song also made it to the top of the R&B chart and reached #13 Popular.

 "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)" shot up to #1 R&B and #11 overall and sold over one million copies. her next 12 releases failed to catch on with the masses.  

 Aretha wrote "Spirit In The Dark" with backing from the Dixie Flyers.  It is a gem from the 1970 album of the same name.

In 1971, Franklin released the album Aretha Live at Fillmore West (recorded March 5-7 in San Francisco, California), which went Gold and went to #7. Aretha released her Greatest Hits compilation album in 1971, which included three new songs. 

 

It wasn't until her cover of the Simon & Garfunkel classic "Bridge Over Troubled Water" in 1971 that she revisited the Top 10. When Franklin won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Bridge Over Troubled Water", it was her fifth consecutive award in that category.  The single sold over one million copies. 

Aretha received help from Dr. John on keyboards for the #2 smash "Spanish Harlem", another Gold single that is part of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*.

Join us for Part Three of Aretha!