There is perhaps no other vocalist like Aretha Franklin. Now in her mid-70s, the Queen of Soul still sounds terrific. The above clip of Respect was captured during a show last May at NYCB Theatre at Westbury in Westbury, N.Y.
Respect was written by Otis Redding, who also first recorded and released the tune in 1965. But it was Franklin’s version from 1967, which became a major hit and her signature song when it appeared in April that year as the second single from her 11th studio album I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You.
Franklin is still performing, though in February 2017, she announced she would retire from touring at the end of last year. In August, Franklin told the Detroit Free Press she planned to open a nightclub where she would occasionally sing. Currently, her official website lists four scheduled shows for this year.
One of the gigs is coming up on March 25 at New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark. That’s way too close to my house not show her some r-e-s-p-e-c-t. Apparently, it was not too early to get tickets for what may be one of the last opportunities to see Franklin in the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut tri-state are. The show is almost sold out!
Sources: Wikipedia, Setlist.fm, Detroit Free Press, YouTube
I love Otis Redding and I do like his original version of “Respect” but Aretha sure does make the song her own! I hope you get to see her when she comes near your area!
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