Aretha Franklin Tribute Mix Part 1

Neil Corcoran (Tantric Dex)

Part 2- https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/tantricdex/episodes/2018-09-09T06_06_49-07_00
Aretha Franklin is without question the most accomplished vocalist in popular music – the undisputed Queen of Soul. And although there have been many pretenders to the throne, she still reigns supreme, regularly cited as the greatest female singer of modern times. A titan, with a voice that turned every room into a Cathedral. Her cultural impact is immeasurable.
A child prodigy who began singing in her father’s church aged 12 and made her first record at 14. Ms. Franklin was a deeply reserved artist who spoke little about her art and shied away from revealing too much about her personal life. She once described her music as "me, with my hand outstretched, hoping someone will take it". Hers was a a life of heroism, heartbreak and hope and she articulated adversities and injustices that still exist today.
A motherless child who grew up in extremely difficult circumstances fighting her way with attitude, pride and the unyielding will of a performer who became a symbol for the civil rights movement. She was also a champion of the women's rights movement giving them one of their early anthems with her rabble-rousing rendition of Otis Redding's ‘Respect’.
Her ability to stimulate emotion is a talent few artists have ever been able to emulate. And her piano-playing prowess was unparalleled. Throughout her storied 60 year career she soulfully serenaded us with lush laments about love, loss and lust which will have a long lasting legacy.
Born in Memphis and raised in Detroit, a city steeped in musical history and famed for producing icons in the industry. Franklin passed up the opportunity to sign with the legendary Motown label. However, Motown's most famous artists from Diana Ross to Marvin Gaye and Michael Jackson were greatly influenced by her. It’s no coincidence that the Motown Museum laid out a book of condolence when the news of her death broke, playing nothing but her music all weekend. She spent most of her life living in Detroit, with the City celebrating her life by holding a 4 day event in memorial of her passing. A send off fit for a Queen.
Her impact as an artist is first and foremost attributable to her style and skill as a singer. Her vivacious voice – a glorious mix of gospel, jazz, blues and soul. There are no words that can properly describe it – the authenticity of it, the agony in it, the strength of it, the magic in it, the depth to it. It is utterly sublime, an ethereal instrument from an extraordinary woman. It’s difficult not to have some degree of physical or emotional response to her brilliant and impassioned voice as it swoops and soars with effortless intensity.
The ease with which she skips octaves in ‘You’re All I Need to Get By’, the force of the top notes she delivers in ‘Think’, the sassiness in the liberating cries of ‘Respect’, the velvety tone of her voice in ‘Day Dreaming’ and the playfulness of her inventive phrasing in ‘Jump To It’ have influenced generations of singers.
The late singer is also renowned for her ability to so inhabit someone else’s song that it became completely her own. So much so that fellow singers would simply stop singing them. Stevie Wonder is famously quoted as saying “If Aretha took your song, you weren’t getting it back”. But she was much more than an interpreter, she wrote songs too often with her sisters Carolyn and Erma (who had a hit with ‘Piece of My Heart’). Never one to shy away, she was fully invested in the craft of record-making and was fully involved in the production of her music. Working out the rhythm part, the piano arrangement and the vocal lines. She poured her heart and soul into each and every one of her tracks.
The fortitude of the blues, the sincerity of soul, the expressiveness of jazz and, above all, the spirituality of gospel are all apparent in her finest work. She is gone, but those songs will endure.
Make no mistake, we have lost one of the greatest voices to have ever graced this planet. Aretha has shuffled off this mortal coil, but her legacy, her ability to move people through her music, will remain well intact. Her place in history is secure. There is no one to fill her shoes because quite frankly she is incomparable.
The Queen is dead, long live the Queen!
Here’s a selection of my favourite cuts, on a down-tempo tip, from across her 6 decades as a recording artist. I’ll post Part II, which features the best examples of her uptempo work, in the coming days.
Image by Bill Sienkiewicz
*Also I'd like to say a special thanks to Jay Negron (AKA J*ski) who I contacted about his edit of Tom Moulton's mix of 'Since you've been gone' Jay re-edited it and sent it on to Tom who did some more work on it before he passed it on to me. This is a big deal for me as Tom Moulton is one of my heroes. So to know he did some work on a track on my behalf means a lot to me. If you're not familiar with Tom Moulton you can read about him here. He's the originator of remixes, amongst other achievements.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Moulton
All songs by Aretha Franklin unless specified.
00:00 You're all I need to get by (Take 1)
00:41 W/ The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra- you're all I need to get by
04:30 Try a little tenderness
07:38 Skylark
10:20 Angel
14:37 Call me
18:24 (You make me feel like) A natural woman
20:58 Don't play that song
23:46 Dr. Feelgood (love is a serious business)
26:57 Night Life
30:00 Soul Serenade
32:31 W/ Eric Clapton- Good to me as I am to you
36:20 I never loved a man (The way I love you)
38:59 Do right woman, do right man
42:10 Ain't no way
46:16 Baby, baby, baby
49:03 Baby I love you
51:36 Since you've been gone (Tom Moulton mix, J*ski edit)
55:23 Won't be long
58:24 Eleanor Rigby
01:00:51 Spanish Harlem
01:04:14 Don't let me lose this dream
01:06:23 Day Dreaming
01:09:34 That's the way I feel about cha
01:16:21 Something he can feel
01:22:32 The shoop shoop song (it's in his kiss)
01:24:49 Love is the only thing
01:27:23 It only happens (When I look at you)
01:31:24 Oh me oh my (I'm a fool for you baby)
01:34:52 Lean on me
01:39:20 Young, Gifted and black
01:42:44 A change is gonna come
01:46:24 W/ The Roots- People get ready (J.Period remix)
01:49:40 Neil Corcoran- Ms. Franklin (Supercut)**
01:55:10 Spirit in the dark
01:58:00 W/ Ray Charles- Spirit in the dark (reprise)(live)
02:06:12 W/ Lauryn Hill- A rose is still a rose
02:10:29 He'll come along
02:14:29 Willing to forgive
02:18:22 Until you come back to me (that's what I'm gonna do)
02:21:37 The fool on the hill
02:25:04 The long and winding road (Copycat re-edit)
02:29:17 Bridge over troubled water
02:34:06 W/ The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra- let it be
02:37:22 W/Mary J. Blige/The Harlem Boys Choir-never gonna break my faith
02:41:29 Nessun Dorma
02:44:40 W/ Frank Sinatra- what now,my love?
02:47:45 I say a little prayer (Dimitri from Paris re-edit)
**Neil Corcoran- Ms. Franklin (Supercut)=
Aretha Franklin- one step ahead
Mos Def- Ms. fat booty
Pete Rock- Aretha
Aretha Franklin- all night (HipHop remix)
Kanye West- school spirit (instrumental)