by David Ritz
Today I imagine her walking through her sprawling home in the woodsy suburbs of Detroit. There is the ever-present larger-than-life photograph of her father, young and vibrant, reminding her of the spiritual community where her artistry was born. I see her looking at the pictures of her beloved siblings—Erma, Cecil, Carolyn, Vaughn—all gone. Memories absorb her. In her own fashion, she passes over bad memories and replaces them with good ones. In looking for comfort, she walks over to the grand piano, sits on the stool, and runs her fingers over the keys. Then she closes her eyes and sings. The comfort comes. She hears her voice as clean and clear. Her voice may be shakier with age, but it is immortal, deeply and perfectly her own.
Gospel poster from the 1950s (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Cleveland, Ohio)
Aretha’s Columbia Days, the early 1960s
With John Hammond (Don Hunstein. Sony Music Entertainment)
With Bob Mersey (Don Hunstein. Sony Music Entertainment)
Clyde Otis and Aretha (Don Hunstein. Sony Music Entertainment)
With Ted White (Sony Music Entertainment)
Young Aretha (Sony Music Entertainment)
The Atlantic Years
Jerry Wexler and Aretha, 1969 (GAB Archive/Redferns/Getty Images)
Duane Allman (standing), from right end of board to left: Tom Dowd, Arif Mardin, and Jerry Wexler, 1969 (Stephen Paley/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Donny Hathaway and Aretha, 1973 (Estate of David Gahr/Premium Archive/Getty Images)
With Glynn Turman, 1978 (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Ruth Bowen in Ebony, 1974 (David Ritz Collection)
The Siblings
Erma Franklin, 1960s (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Carolyn Franklin, 1970s (Gilles Petard/Redferns/Getty Images)
With Cecil Franklin in Jet, 1976 (David Ritz Collection)
The Amazing Grace sessions, January 1972
Aretha in the pulpit (Alan Elliott)
Reverend C. L. Franklin, with James Cleveland looking on (Alan Elliott)
Reverend James Cleveland (Alan Elliott)
Clara Ward, seated next to C. L. Franklin (Alan Elliott)
Father wiping his daughter’s brow (Alan Elliott)
The Arista Years
With Luther Vandross, 1980 (Afro Newspaper/Gado/Archive Photos/Getty Images)
Narada Michael Walden, Aretha, and Whitney Houston, 1989 (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
With Clive Davis, 1990 (Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty Images)
With Luciano Pavarotti, 1998 (HENNY RAY ABRAMS/AFP/Getty Images)
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Roberta Ritz and Aaron Cohen toiled mightily to provide critical research. I am deeply grateful to them both.
Gratitude to Michael Pietsch, my superb editor John Parsley, my superb agent David Vigliano, Malin von Euler-Hogan, my many interviewees—especially Earline Franklin, Brenda Corbett, and Sabrina Owens—as well as Dick Alen and Alan Elliott.
Much love to my family—Roberta, Alison, Jessica, Charlotte, the Nins, James, Isaac, Henry, Jim, Esther, Elizabeth, and all nieces and nephews.
Much love to my dear friends Alan Eisenstock, Harry Weinger, Herb Powell, and everyone in the Tuesday-morning crew.
Thanks to David Freeland, whose work with Ruth Bowen greatly deepened my understanding of her complex and brilliant personality.
Thank you, Jesus.
ALSO BY DAVID RITZ
Biography
Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye
Faith in Time: The Life of Jimmy Scott
Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Final Year (cowritten with Tavis Smiley)
Autobiography
Brother Ray (cowritten with Ray Charles)
Inside My Life (cowritten with Smokey Robinson)
Blues All Around Me (cowritten with B.B. King)
Rage to Survive (cowritten with Etta James)
The Brothers (cowritten with the Neville Brothers)
Rhythm and the Blues (cowritten with Jerry Wexler)
Aretha: From These Roots (cowritten with Aretha Franklin)
Howling at the Moon (cowritten with Walter Yetnikoff)
Guillaume: A Life (cowritten with Robert Guillaume)
Reach! (cowritten with Laila Ali)
Inside Power (cowritten with Gary Sheffield)
Grace After Midnight (cowritten with Felicia “Snoop” Pearson)
Journey of a Thousand Miles (cowritten with Lang Lang)
Rickles’ Book (cowritten with Don Rickles)
Rickles’ Letters (cowritten with Don Rickles)
Hound Dog (cowritten with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller)
We’ll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives (cowritten with Paul Shaffer)
The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash (cowritten with Grandmaster Flash)
What I Know for Sure (cowritten with Tavis Smiley)
Brother West (cowritten with Cornel West)
I Was Born This Way (cowritten with Carl Bean)
Love Brought Me Back (cowritten with Natalie Cole)
True You (cowritten with Janet Jackson)
Not Dead and Not for Sale (cowritten with Scott Weiland)
A Moment in Time (cowritten with Ralph Branca)
Soulacoaster (cowritten with R. Kelly)
A Woman Like Me (cowritten with Bettye LaVette)
Sinner’s Creed (cowritten with Scott Stapp)
When I Left Home (cowritten with Buddy Guy)
Balance (cowritten with Nik Wallenda)
Glow (cowritten with Rick James)
Rocks (cowritten with Joe Perry)
Fiction
Search for Happiness
The Man Who Brought the Dodgers Back to Brooklyn
Blues Notes Under a Green Felt Hat
Barbells and Saxophones
Family Blood
Take It Off! Take It All Off!
Passion Flowers
Sanctified Blues (cowritten with Mable John)
Stay Out of the Kitchen (cowritten with Mable John)
Love Tornado (cowritten with Mable John)
Power and Beauty (cowritten with T. I. Harris)
Trouble and Triumph (cowritten with T. I. Harris)
Inspirational
Messengers: African American Ministers and Gospel Singers Speak
NOTES
1. Father and Daughter
Interviews
Bobby “Blue” Bland, Jesse Jackson, Marvin Gaye, James Cleveland, Carolyn Franklin, B.B. King, Cecil Franklin, Erma Franklin, Ruth Bowen
Books
Franklin and Ritz, Aretha: From These Roots
Heilbut, The Fan Who Knew Too Much
2. Instability
Interviews
Cecil Franklin, Anna Gordy, Smokey Robinson, Buddy Guy, Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, James Cleveland
3. Mothers and Fathers
Interviews
Ruth Bowen, Erma Franklin, Billy Preston, James Cleveland, B.B. King, Cecil Franklin
Books
Salvatore, Singing in a Strange Land
Ward-Royster and Rose, How I Got Over
4. The Sex Circus
Interviews
Ray Charles, Billy Preston, Ruth Bowen, Etta James, Jerry Wexler, Carl Bean, Vaughn Franklin, Erma Franklin, Cecil Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, James Cleveland, Johnnie Taylor
Books
Wexler and Ritz, Rhythm and the Blues
5. The Blood
Interviews
Jerry Wexler, Carolyn Franklin, Cecil Franklin, James Cleveland, John Hammond, Brenda Corbett, Erma Franklin
Recordings
Songs of Faith, Chess Records, 1956
Articles
“Blast on Gospel Singers’ Style Pits Baker Against Clara Ward,” Chicago Defender, November 26, 1955
“Disc by Detroit Minister on Top,” Chicago Defender, October 20, 1956
Books
Salvatore, Singing in a Strange Land
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br /> 6. Moving On Up
Interviews
James Cleveland, Ray Charles, Oscar Peterson, Erma Franklin, Johnnie Taylor, Cecil Franklin, Carolyn Franklin
7. The Biggest and Best
Interviews
Cecil Franklin, Phil Moore, Major Holley, Jerry Wexler, John Hammond, Harvey Fuqua, Carolyn Franklin, Carmen McRae
Recordings
Aretha, Columbia, 1961
Articles
Review of “Love Is the Only Thing” and “Today I Sing the Blues,” Billboard, September 26, 1960
Review of “Won’t Be Long” and “Right Now,” Billboard, December 26, 1960
Jack Maher, “Aretha Franklin Debs at Vanguard,” Billboard, October 17, 1960
8. Gentleman Pimp
Interviews
Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, Bettye LaVette, Etta James, Cecil Franklin, Harvey Fuqua, Joe Newman, Quincy Jones
Recordings
The Electrifying Aretha Franklin, Columbia, 1962
Articles
New York Beat, Jet, May 4, 1961
Franklin named top new-star female vocalist, Down Beat, August 3, 1961
“From Gospel to Jazz Is Not Disrespect for the Lord,” New York Amsterdam News, August 26, 1961
Books
LaVette and Ritz, A Woman Like Me
9. Water, Water Everywhere
Interviews
Carolyn Franklin, Erma Franklin, Bobby Scott, Jerry Wexler, Phil Walden, Cecil Franklin, Etta James, Sarah Vaughan
Recordings
The Tender, the Moving, the Swinging Aretha Franklin, Columbia, 1962
Laughing on the Outside, Columbia, 1963
Unforgettable: A Tribute to Dinah Washington, Columbia, 1964
Articles
Jack Maher, “Newport ’62 a Swinging Affair,” Billboard, July 21, 1962
Review of “Just for a Thrill” and “Try a Little Tenderness,” Billboard, August 11, 1962
People Are Talking About, Jet, November, 29, 1962
People Are Talking About, Jet, June 13, 1963
Books
Kelley, Thelonious Monk
Freeman, Otis!
Cohodas, Queen
10. What a Difference a Day Makes
Interviews
Etta James, Ruth Bowen, Erma Franklin, John Hammond, Clyde Otis
Recordings
Unforgettable: A Tribute to Dinah Washington, Columbia, 1964
Articles
“The Swingin’ Aretha,” Ebony, March 1964
11. Fools
Interviews
Clyde Otis, Jerry Wexler, John Hammond, Carolyn Franklin, Cecil Franklin, Erma Franklin
Recordings
Runnin’ Out of Fools, Columbia, 1964
Articles
Roger Scott, Nashville Scene, Billboard, May 29, 1965
12. Never Loved
Interviews
Jerry Wexler, Jimmy Johnson, Ruth Bowen, Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, Roger Hawkins, Dan Penn, Rick Hall, Tommy Dowd, Cecil Franklin, Luther Vandross
Recordings
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You, Atlantic, 1967
Articles
Franklin signs exclusive contract with Atlantic, reported in Billboard, December 3, 1966
Books
Wexler and Ritz, Rhythm and the Blues
13. Keep Rolling
Interviews
Carmen McRae, Jerry Wexler, Earline Franklin, Cecil Franklin, Ray Charles, Ruth Bowen, Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, Joe South, Nat Hentoff
Recordings
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You, Atlantic, 1967
Aretha Arrives, Atlantic, 1967
Articles
Franklin recovering from broken arm, reported in Jet, May 18, 1967
Franklin appears at tribute to her father, reported in Time, June 29, 1967
14. Natural
Interviews
Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin, Carolyn Franklin, Erma Franklin, Ruth Bowen
Recordings
Lady Soul, Atlantic, 1968
Articles
Franklin recuperating from eye injury, reported in Jet, December 14, 1967
C. Higgins, reported in People Are Talking About, Jet, December 28, 1967
15. Year of Years
Interviews
Carolyn Franklin, Jerry Wexler, Cecil Franklin, Arif Mardin, Tommy Dowd, David Newman, Erma Franklin, Ruth Bowen, Carmen McRae
Recordings
Lady Soul, Atlantic, 1968
Aretha Now, 1968
Aretha Franklin: Soul ’69, Atlantic, 1969
Aretha in Paris, Atlantic, 1968
Aretha’s Gold, Atlantic, 1969
Articles
“Unsound Thing Happened to Aretha at the Forum,” Billboard, February 3, 1968
“Atlantic Signs Aretha to New Long-Term Pact,” Billboard, May 4, 1968
Franklin signs new long-term pact with Atlantic, reported in Jet, May 9, 1968
“Lady Soul Singing It Like It Is,” Time, June 28, 1968
Ed Ochs, “From Sermons on Sunday to All-Day Success,” Billboard, July 13, 1968
C. Higgins, People Are Talking About, Jet, August 22, 1968
Ed Ochs, “Soul Sauce,” Billboard, October 12, 1968
Franklin arraigned in traffic court for reckless driving and an expired driver’s license, reported in Jet, December 12, 1968
16. High Maintenance
Interviews
Dennis Edwards, Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, Jerry Wexler, Cecil Franklin, Brenda Corbett, Ruth Bowen
Recordings
Aretha Now, Atlantic, 1968
This Girl’s in Love with You, Atlantic, 1970
Spirit in the Dark, Atlantic, 1970
Articles
Franklin asked to write Carolyn Franklin’s liner notes, reported in Jet, April 3, 1969
Ed Ochs, Plans for “Soul Bowl ’69,” reported in Billboard, May 17, 1969
C. Higgins, Franklin’s whereabouts a mystery, reported in People Are Talking About, Jet, July 10, 1969
Franklin’s stay in Ford Hospital, reported in Jet, July 24, 1969
“Aretha Franklin Fined $50,” New York Times, July 26, 1969
“Aretha Franklin Forfeits Bond; Pays $50 Fine,” Jet, August 7, 1969
17. Spirit
Interviews
Carolyn Franklin, Jerry Wexler, Cecil Franklin, Earline Franklin, Joel Dorn, Ruth Bowen, Erma Franklin, Stan Getz, Billy Preston
Recordings
Aretha Franklin: Rare and Unreleased Recordings from the Golden Reign of the Queen of Soul, Rhino, 2007
Spirit in the Dark, Atlantic, 1970
Young, Gifted, and Black, Atlantic, 1972
Articles
“Sam Cooke’s Brother, Charles, Is Shot in Detroit,” Jet, January 15, 1970
“Aretha Falls Ill in St. Louis; Is Treated in New York,” Jet, July 16, 1970
C. Higgins, Franklin back from European tour, reported in People Are Talking About, Jet, September 15, 1970
“Aretha Says She’ll Go Angela’s Bond If Permitted,” Jet, December 3, 1970
C. Higgins, Franklin family forming charitable foundation, reported in People Are Talking About, Jet, December 24, 1970
18. Right Reverend
Interviews
Carolyn Franklin, Erma Franklin, Ruth Bowen, Cecil Franklin, Jerry Wexler, Billy Preston, Brenda Corbett, Claude Nobs
Recordings
Young, Gifted, and Black, Atlantic, 1972
Let Me in Your Life, Atlantic, 1974
Articles
“Aretha Denies Being Told Not to Perform to Aid Angela Davis,” Jet, May 27, 1971
Ian Dove, review of Franklin’s Apollo Theater Concert, Billboard, June 12, 1971
“Soul Queen Fumes Over Treatment by Italian Cops,” Jet, July 15, 1971
