1967 Rolling Stone Aretha Franklin

slow ballads begin to drag after who doesn't listen to a lot of soul . BY JON LANDAU “Soul Serenade.” Also, “Don’t music this reliance on shouts Let Me Lose This Dream” showed a while, especially bc^pause there is so little attempt at doing any screams can be very excitmg, but The record business is a well her off as a fine songwriter, and to people more accustomed to the again her very subtle rhythmic thing distinctive with some of known drag. Even if it isn’t a them. On the first album this idiom, it is likely to weiu* vep^ drag for everybody, up until re sense predominates. The verses thin The only soul star who are almost Latin. The main bang- problem was particularly evident cently it has certainly, been, a on Aretha’s thin attempt at re knows how to handle the t«h- drag for Aretha Franklin. Six up with the album as a whole nique consistently is Ray Charles. was the lack of versatility on the creating Ray Charles’ gorgeous . years ago she made the mistake “Drownin My Own Tears.” On Even James Brown can get to be • of signinga longterm contract part of the sidemen. 'Hie drums a drag whenhe overdoesthat weren’t hard enough, the guitar, the new album there is too much”, with a label that didn’t know of.stufflike"NeverLet Me Go,” kind of thing, which lately he whattodo withher— Columbia- was weak, .and the production lacked polish. which fits into this category of hasn’t. — and for five years she strug On the new album, Aretha Ar uninspired slow stuff. So much for the hang-ups. The gled with material like "Rock-A- rives, these problems are com- A cut like “Prove It,” or rest of what is happening here Bye Your Baby” and “Try A Lit- plet^y removed. Most of the “Change’s Gonna Come,” on the is first rate all the way. On side tie Tenderness.” She did the best one Aretha turns in a knockout she could with it, and some of “Satisfaction.” (dig the drums) her recordings were extremely and a solid remake of Charles’ good, butdt obviously wasn’t her “You Are My Sunshine.” She is a scene. hundred per cent successful with It was only when the Columbia her vaguely comical “96 Tears,” contract expired that Aretha’s and “Prove It" is the best baUad luck began to change. In 196^ on the album, making the most she had the good fortune to en successful use of strings (m any counter an aspect of the music of the bands. Side two has most scene which is definitely not a of the real winners though. drag, namely Jer^ Wexler, the Leading off is a version of Vice-President of a non-drag la “That’s Life” which convinces bel, Atlantic Records. flRETHfl you that not only Aretha, but tiie Wexler has been largely re song as well, is great. “Going sponsible for the soul revival, Down Slow” is the best blues on and w^e he is certainly not the album and is very tough, averse to commercial success, he especially the ending, and the seems to have a high regard for riff that the band backs her with. the integrity of his artists. Un “Ain’t Nobody,” written by sister der his leadership Atlantic and Carolyn, is a gospel thing that its subsidiaries have been coming shows how well Aretha works up with thoroughly inspired and with those minor g(»pel chord revitalized soul music, in the progressions. The gospel shout- form of Joe Tex^ Otis Wilson, i.e., mg in the background is breath- the whole Stax-Volt thing. It tafeng. And finally there is the was imder Wexler that the old opus, by far the best cut on the Ray Charles records were done record. "Baby, I Love You." This which set a standard for modern cut smoulders eroticism, has blues artists. The importance of beautiful piano, fine rhythm gui Wexler in allowing Charles ar tar. great lyrics, great vocal back- tistic freedom can.be seen when - Aretha and her sisters, we compare the Atlantic Ray double tracked, and a perfect Charles to the ABC Ray Charles. lowdown dirty lead vocal. I think ABC simply did not know what I got it all. to do with the genius and as a Basically, Aretha Arrives is a result he never produced a satis high impact album in which fying album during his entire neither the sophistication nor tenure on that label. the subtlety of the musicians in When Aretha finally got away m volved gets in the way of the ba from Columbia Jerry moved in sic primitivism of Aretha’s music. and set her up with Atlantic’s The best cuts On the record hit regular soul sidemen and song with tremendous immediacy and writers. and in a very short time force, and do so in a totally ar she emerged as a super-star. Now tistic w’ay. The only hang-ups are she books for incredible sums of the occasional reliance on un money and her recent records necessary gimmicks, and the sell in incredible numbers. weakness of some of the material. The new Aretha is obviously her own girl with an easily iden [a natural woman] tifiable sound While Wexler him It will be interesting to see self produces her, it is obvious 4 where Aretha goes from here. that, as with Charles, his com The only single that she has re mercial and- artistic sen.se tells leased since this album is quite him that Aretha will do better distinct from anything else she left alone Let her do her things, has done for Atlantic. “A Nat after all. she’s the one with the I ural Woman " was written for talent. That’s the way to treat Aretha by the team of Coffin and an artist, Motown wouldn’t have King who do so much writing been good for Aretha because for big white groups like the iust like Columbia they would f, Righteous Brothers, the old Ani have tried to stick her with a mals, and the Monkees. They are sound that wasn’t her own. and songwriters who can write a song 4or Aretha it never would have to fit anyone’s style, and “A Nat worked. 4.4 ural Woman,” while it is an ex tremely commercial record, is [IK THE shadows] also a significant improvement Musically, Aretha is obviously over some of the material into gospel. She is the daughter Aretha’s b^n recording. The of a well known gospel singer production is more within the and she has listened to Alex people who do Wilson Pickett's first album, are both very in spired ballad performances,and mainstream of big pop produc Bradford and Marion Williams, sessions were brought in for the tion and makes far better use of although Aretha's style is more new job. and particularly crucial show fully Aretha’s capacity in stringsand hornsthanwas done i here was the use of drummer lowdown than either of theirs. on either of the two albums. She has also listened to B. B. Roger HawKins. He lunis the stuff takes up too much .space on King and other urban, gospel- whole thing into rock and roll Aretha Arrives and helps to de It is a good sign for the future oriented, blues vocalists. But which was what the first album stroy the continuity of the album of Aretha’s career because, even above all, standing behind her lacked. On four of the slow cuts as a whole. while taking her away from some Wexler tries out some ‘ strings of the more lowdown stuff she like a shadow, is Ray Charles. {the gospel shout] Aretha’s own synthesis of all and I think they work quite well. has already done, it gives her a these basically frenetic styles Aretha performance on Aretha’s other problem takes chance to work with the really first appeared on I Never Loved Aretha Arrives is not faultless. the form of a gimmick. It seems big sound her voice is capable A Man the Way That I Love You. On the contrary, she herself has whenever she gets into a weak of without sacrificing her iden (the album). On it, Aretha got two distinct hang-ups, both of spot in one of the arrangements tity, It shows that she can go into some very fine things. She which were present on the first she runs for the gospel shouts. beyond w^t she has already did a very nice job with the album, and both of which really She overuses two or three done. And when one has done rhythm on “Respect” and she begin to grate on the new one. phrases to the point of distrac as much as- Aretha already has. laid 4owh a very fine vocal on The first of these has to do with tion from whatever else is going that is no mean accomplishment. Kin^ Curtis’ old.. instrumental. ber choice of material. All these on duri^ the cut. To someone 'V ..

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