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On this day, April 29, 1967, Atlantic Records released Aretha Franklin's cover of "Respect."
Respect (song)
Single by Otis Redding from the album Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul
B-side: "Ole Man Trouble"
Released: 1965
Recorded: 1965
Single by Aretha Franklin from the album I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You
B-side: "Dr. Feelgood"
Released: April 29, 1967
Recorded: February 14, 1967
Studio: Atlantic, New York City
"Respect" is a song originally released by American singer-songwriter Otis Redding in 1965. The song became a 1967 hit and signature song for singer Aretha Franklin. The music in the two versions is significantly different, and through a few changes in the lyrics, the stories told by the songs have a different flavor. Redding's version is a plea from a desperate man, who will give his woman anything she wants. He will not care if she does him wrong, as long as he gets his due respect when he brings money home. However, Franklin's version is a declaration from a strong, confident woman, who knows that she has everything her man wants. She never does him wrong, and demands his "respect" - in the form of appropriate levels of physical attention. Franklin's version adds the "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" chorus and the backup singers' refrain of "Sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me...".
Franklin's interpretation was a landmark for the feminist movement, and is often considered one of the best songs of the R&B era, earning her two Grammy Awards in 1968 for "Best Rhythm & Blues Recording" and "Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female", and was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1987. In 2002, the Library of Congress honored Franklin's version by adding it to the National Recording Registry. It was placed number five on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It was also included in the list of "Songs of the Century", by the Recording Industry of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. Franklin included a live recording on the album Aretha in Paris (1968).
{snip}
Single by Otis Redding from the album Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul
B-side: "Ole Man Trouble"
Released: 1965
Recorded: 1965
Single by Aretha Franklin from the album I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You
B-side: "Dr. Feelgood"
Released: April 29, 1967
Recorded: February 14, 1967
Studio: Atlantic, New York City
"Respect" is a song originally released by American singer-songwriter Otis Redding in 1965. The song became a 1967 hit and signature song for singer Aretha Franklin. The music in the two versions is significantly different, and through a few changes in the lyrics, the stories told by the songs have a different flavor. Redding's version is a plea from a desperate man, who will give his woman anything she wants. He will not care if she does him wrong, as long as he gets his due respect when he brings money home. However, Franklin's version is a declaration from a strong, confident woman, who knows that she has everything her man wants. She never does him wrong, and demands his "respect" - in the form of appropriate levels of physical attention. Franklin's version adds the "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" chorus and the backup singers' refrain of "Sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me...".
Franklin's interpretation was a landmark for the feminist movement, and is often considered one of the best songs of the R&B era, earning her two Grammy Awards in 1968 for "Best Rhythm & Blues Recording" and "Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female", and was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1987. In 2002, the Library of Congress honored Franklin's version by adding it to the National Recording Registry. It was placed number five on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It was also included in the list of "Songs of the Century", by the Recording Industry of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. Franklin included a live recording on the album Aretha in Paris (1968).
{snip}
Sat Apr 29, 2023: On this day, April 29, 1967, Aretha Franklin's cover of "Respect" was released.
Fri Apr 29, 2022: On this day, April 29, 1967, Aretha Franklin's cover of "Respect" was released.
Thu Apr 29, 2021: On this day, April 29, 1967, Aretha Franklin's cover of "Respect" was released.
Hat tip, the now defunct This Day in Rock
