Aretha Franklin has long been my all time favorite vocalist. There just is no one else even close. When she sang the heaven's opened up. Her voice a window to her soul. Somehow you can hear ever single sell in her body coming together and pushing those big notes out. She was and always will be the undistributed Queen of Soul. That being said. This is the album that gave her that title. There is no other recording that I am aware of that equals the depth and heart of this record. as much of a fan of Aretha's that I was, I never had an album. I had her box set and numerous singles on various compilations. For some reason, I thought it was all told there, in the hits. Thanks again to this project, I have been exposed to another great album.
This is the first album Aretha made with Jerry Wexler of Atlantic records. It also featured the early version of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, which later became The Swampers. There is not a lot that can be said about this album that hasn't been said already by people far more articulate that I am. All I can say is that it is impossible to overstate the greatness of this album. I think it is frequently overlooked. even here it is all the way down on the list at 84. It truly is far better than that. This is one recording that never fails to bring goosebumps. It is what great music should be and what every soul album aspires to.
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