Top Ten Songs by Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin is one of those few.
Born in 1942 in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Aretha Franklin is considered by many to be the Queen of Soul. Since 1960, Aretha Franklin has had over sixty top 20 hits on the US Hot 100 and US R&B charts. Aretha Franklin has also won an amazing 18 Grammy Awards, the most recent in 2006 for Best Traditional R&B Vocal. And, in 1987, Aretha Franklin became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Aretha Franklin has also made a few film appearance. In 1980, she appeared in The Blues Brothers. And, in 1998, she appeared in The Blues Brothers 2000.
Aretha Franklin has had over sixty top 20 hits in her career. Here is a list of her top ten hit songs.
1. Respect
Released: 1967
Chart Success: #1 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts, #10 in the UK
2. I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
Released: 1987
Chart Success: #1 in the US, #1 in the UK
3. Spanish Harlem
Released: 1971
Chart Success: #2 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
4. Chain of Fools
Released: 1967
Chart Success: #2 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts
5. Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)
Released: 1973
Chart Success: #3 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
6. Freeway of Love
Released: 1985
Chart Success: #3 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
7. Baby I Love You
Released: 1967
Chart Success: #4 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
8. (Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You’ve Been Gone
Released: 1968
Chart Success: #5 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
9. Day Dreaming
Released: 1972
Chart Success: # on the US charts.
10. Bridge Over Troubled Water
Released: 1971
Chart Success: #6 on the US charts, #1 on the R&B charts.
Song Trivia
* “Respect” was written by Otis Redding. He also recorded the song in 1965. His version reached #35 in the US.
* In 1968, “Respect” won the Grammy awards for Best Rhythm And Blues Recording and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
* “Respect” won the first ever Grammy given in the Best Female R&B Performance category. Aretha Franklin went on to win in the category in the next seven years.
* In Otis Redding’s version of “Respect,” the speaker is a man begging his woman to respect him. But Aretha Franklin’s version of the “Respect”, in which a female speaker demands respect from her man, became a feminist anthem.
* Rolling Stone has “Respect” at #5 on their “500 Greatest Songs of All-Time” list.
* In 1969, “Chain of Fools” won the Grammy award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
* In 1972, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
* “Bridge Over Troubled Water” was written by Paul Simon, and originally recorded by Simon and Garfunkel. Released in 1970, the Simon and Garfunkel version stayed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for six weeks, before finally being knocked out of the top spot by the Beatles’ song “Let It Be.” This version of the song won the Grammy for Song of the Year in 1971.
* “Bridge Over Troubled Water” has also been covered by Johnny Cash and Fiona Apple, Elvis Presley, LeAnn Rimes, The Jackson 5, Whitney Houston and CeCe Winans, BeBe Winans and CeCe Winans, Charlotte Church, Anne Murray, and Clay Aiken, among many others.
* In 1988, Aretha Franklin and George Michael won the Best R&B Vocal By Duo Or Group Grammy for the song “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me).”
