Nur das Beste ist gut genug, 14. Dezember 2007

Aretha ist die Queen of Soul, ohne Zweifel! Und mit dieser Doppel-CD wird Aretha's Schaffen entsprechend angemessen gewürdigt. Auch wenn sich Aretha während ihrer Karriere wie so mancher andere Künstler einiger Covers bedient hat, so bleiben doch ihre Interpretationen dieser Titel auf ihre eigene Art und Weise einzigartig und unvergleichlich! Ganz besonders herauszuheben sind ihre Interpretationen von Simon & Garfunkels "Bridge over troubled water" oder Dusty Springfields "Son of a preacher man"! Unvergesslich bleiben sicher auch die Titel "Think" und "Respect" welche einen an die beiden Kult-Streifen Blues Brothers und Blues Brothers 2000 erinnern! Aretha hat mit ihrer kräftigen souligen Stimme die Musikszene der 60er, 70er und 80er-Jahre massgebend beeinflusst und mitgeprägt. Eine Frau die aus diesem Business schlicht nicht mehr wegzudenken und für unzählige Musiker zum Vorbild geworden ist! Diese Compilation gehört zweifelsohne in jede (bis dahin noch unvollständige) CD-Sammlung!!

       Queen of soul, 1. März 2005

Aretha's best work, showcased here, proves that she has justly earned her title as Queen of soul despite some ups downs in her long career. Aretha took a long time to establish herself but once signed to Atlantic, she found a producer (Jerry Wexler) who was able to make the most of her distinctive talents.

Aretha has had many major hits in America although she has not been particularly successful in the British singles charts. During her time with Atlantic, Aretha had two UK top ten hits (Respect, I say a little prayer) and two other UK top twenty hits (Don't play that song, Spanish Harlem). All those hits are included here, together with many of Aretha's other classic recordings for Atlantic, some of which were minor UK hits but all of which did much better as singles in America. These classics include Think, You make me feel like a natural woman, I never loved a man they way I loved you, Chain of fools, Do right woman do right man, Angel, Since you've been gone and Until you come back to me.

With Aretha's distinctive voice and delivery, her cover versions are always interesting. Surprisingly, Satisfaction (Rolling Stones) is omitted, but Bridge over troubled water (Simon and Garfunkel), Oh no not my baby (Maxine Brown) and Let it be (Beatles) are among those included.

Aretha eventually left Atlantic, joining Arista in 1980. This rejuvenated her career although she never quite achieved the level of success that she had in her early years with Atlantic. However, she had two major international hits via duets - Sisters are doing it for themselves (with the Eurythmics) and I knew you were waiting for me (with George Michael), the latter becoming a number one hit in Britain (where it remains her only number one hit) and America. She also just missed the UK top ten with Who's zooming who - but most of her UK hits in the eighties were minor hits, just as they had been in her Atlantic years.

This compilation, spanning several decades of Aretha's music, clearly shows why she is regarded as the Queen of soul. There are many Aretha compilations to choose from, but if you want one covering her whole career, this is as good as you are likely to find.

       Ein Muß für jeden Menschen mit gutem Geschmack, 6. Januar 2005

In der ewigen Bestenliste der erfolgreichsten Rhythm&Blues Sänger rangiert Aretha Franklin hinter James Brown an zweiter Stelle. Und in der Tat ist sie und nicht Whitney Houston oder Janet Jackson die gröste Frau im Bereich Black Music.
Aretha Franklin hatte ihre größten Hits schon in den 60'er und 70'er Jahren, jeder kennt "Think", "Son of a Preacher Man", "Spanish Harlem" oder "Natural Woman". Als dann in den 80'ern die Discowelle kam, hatte es Aretha natürlich nicht einfach, aber erstaunlicherweise konnte sie ihren Erfolg dank meisterhafter Duette halten. Als Beispiele nenne ich: "Sisters are doin' it for themselves" mit den Eurythmics und "Through the Storm" mit Elton John.
Diese Doppel-CD beinhaltet wirklich die besten Werke der Künstlerin und ist damit ein Muß für jeden Menschen mit gutem Musikgeschmack. Und das schreibt hier einer, der mit Black Music eigentlich nicht allzuviel anfangen kann, sondern Bands wie U2, Led Zeppelin oder Queen bevorzugt. Aber Aretha Franklin hat auch mich begeistern können. Ich glaube, sie gehört zu den Künstlern, die so gut sind, dass sich Fans aller Genres für sie begeistern.

       Awesome Collection, 14. April 2003

This excellent collection amply demonstrates the major contribution the Queen of Soul made to popular music over almost forty years. On Disc One, my personal favourites include her amazing interpretation of Spanish Harlem which was a huge hit in 1971, the vocally innovative Chain Of Fools, the urgent Don't Play That Song, and the lovely lilting You're All I Need To Get By. Disc Two kicks of with her assertive Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves, the powerful duet with Annie Lennox which saw her re-establishing herself in the middle 1980s and includes the catchy Freeway Of Love from the same period. It also contains her beautiful versions of The Beatles' Let It Be and Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water from the early 70s. In the sixties, Aretha's soul was more rootsy than Motown, in other words, you had to work a little bit harder to fully appreciate it, but when Disco arrived in the mid 70s, her star faded a bit since she never really had consistent commercial success in that era. But her return in the eighties saw some great music again, like the album from which Freeway Of Love was drawn. This is a comprehensive compilation of her greatest hits and always a pleasure to listen to.