Aretha Franklin

A truly excellent two-CD guide to Franklin's hits from the late 1960s through the early '70s. The album hangs together stylistically, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a clunker, even among lesser-known numbers. All the obvious hits are here ("Think," "Respect," "A Natural Woman") but the gorgeous numbers "Wholy Holy" and "Day Dreaming" give the release texture.

Even after Aretha's dramatic comeback in 1985, some questions lingered about how long it
would last. Was Who's Zoomin' Who? truly redemptive or merely a fluke? Could Aretha
assume enduring relevance for a generation of listeners not yet born when "Respect" came
out? The answers come in two new releases: Aretha, which finds her still comfortable in
contemporary settings, and 30 Greatest Hits, which cut for cut stands with the b... More >