It was late in 2015 when audiences across the country watched Aretha Franklin take the stage at The Kennedy Center Honors to salute honoree Carole King.  The undisputed Queen of Soul tore into King, Gerry Goffin, and Jerry Wexler’s “(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman” with blazing intensity and thrilling authenticity.  She had not just sung these lyrics but lived them.  Nearing the song’s finale, she simply but defiantly dropped her fur coat to the floor, creating an instant viral moment that elicited tears and cheers in equal measure.  That triumphant performance, in its audio debut, closes out the new 4-CD box set called Aretha which – after a delay from last year – is now scheduled for release on July 30 from Rhino.

While the late icon has been anthologized numerous times in the past, this set takes a different approach.  Its 81 tracks span her entire career – from her first single on JBV Records through her years on Columbia, Atlantic, and Arista – via hits, rarities, live tracks, and many previously unreleased cuts.  Aretha adds up to an alternative history of Franklin’s extraordinary career.

Following that first single from the teenaged gospel singer, Aretha proceeds in mostly chronological fashion.  The box covers Franklin’s Columbia years via 10 tracks including her first chart single (“Won’t Be Long”), early R&B hits (“Runnin’ Out of Fools,” “One Step Ahead,” and “Cry Like a Baby”), and standards (“Skylark”).  At Columbia, Franklin showed her mastery of jazz-inflected adult pop and also took her first steps as a pure R&B artist – a genre in which she would find full flower once she signed with Atlantic Records.

The Atlantic years (1967-1979) dominate the set, beginning with two previously unreleased demos which were furnished to producer Jerry Wexler: the classic “Try a Little Tenderness” (which she had previously recorded at Columbia with producer Robert Mersey) and an Aretha-ized spin on Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen’s Sinatra staple, “My Kind of Town,” refashioned to Detroit rather than Chicago.  The swinging demo (on which she’s supported by piano, bass, and drums) from the young artist on the cusp of superstardom is available today on all streaming/digital services.

Franklin had an unprecedented string of hit records on Atlantic, many of which are here in their famous original studio versions including “Respect,” “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “The House That Jack Built,” and “(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You’ve Been Gone.” But other classics are represented via unexpected and new-to-CD versions.  The set premieres alternates of “Call Me,” “Young, Gifted, and Black,” and the West Side Story anthem “Somewhere” as well as work tapes of “You’re All I Need to Get By,” “Brand New Me,” and “Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do),” and an unheard mix of “Spanish Harlem.”  The recording of “Somewhere” was produced by Quincy Jones, and two previously unreleased outtakes also premiere from their collaboration including the Franklin composition “The Boy from Bombay.”  Note that this set also has numerous tracks from or related to Aretha’s final five Atlantic studio LPs, none of which have been officially released on CD to date.  Perhaps Rhino will address these albums in full in the future.  Today, the Queen of Soul’s previously unreleased 1978 cover of “You Light Up My Life” hit streaming services including YouTube and Spotify.  Debby Boone’s heartfelt recording became the U.S.’ biggest-selling single of the 1970s and set a record for the most weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100.  Franklin reinvents the ballad from the ground up, transforming it into a tour de force of deeply felt orchestral soul.  While she performed it on television and in concert, this marks the first appearance of her studio rendition.

Aretha continues with a taste of her Arista years (1980-2007) which reinvented her sound for a new generation.  Working under the aegis of Clive Davis, Aretha returned to rule the charts anew with such era-defining hits as “Freeway of Love,” “Jump to It,” and duets with George Michael (“I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” and Eurythmics (“Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves”).

Those aren’t the only duets here.  Franklin’s deep-soul reinvention of Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “I Say a Little Prayer” was a top 10 Pop smash in 1968; Aretha premieres her Solid Gold duet with the song’s originator, Dionne Warwick.  She joins with Tom Jones on his variety show for “See Saw” in a medley with his hip-shakin’ “It’s Not Unusual,” and her longtime friend Smokey Robinson on his Motown standard “Ooo Baby Baby.”  Also featured are Mavis Staples, Lou Rawls, Ron Isley, and Ray Charles (but not George Benson, Whitney Houston, Michael McDonald, Four Tops, Elton John, or James Brown, with all of whom she shared chart successes at Arista).

The anthology also rounds up rarities and one-offs like her Blues Brothers performance of “Think,” her take on Donny Hathaway’s “Someday We’ll All Be Free” from the Malcom X soundtrack, “The Makings of You” from a Curtis Mayfield tribute album, and another late-period and her stunning reading of Puccini’s aria “Nessun Dorma.”

Aretha arrives in anticipation of the August 13 release of Respect, the biopic starring Jennifer Hudson as Franklin.  The box features new liner notes by Rochelle Riley, director of Arts and Culture for the city of Detroit, and SoulMusic.com founder David Nathan.  Makeba KEEBS Rainey has provided the eye-popping new artwork based upon a portrait by acclaimed photographer Neal Preston.  Also on July 30, Rhino will release 1-CD and 2-LP highlights versions.

You’ll find the track listing below as well as discography and Amazon links.  All versions are also available directly from Rhino!  Look for Aretha on July 30, and check out Respect in theatres beginning August 13.

Aretha Franklin, Aretha (Atlantic/Rhino, 2020) (Amazon U.S. Link TBD / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. “Never Grow Old”
2. “You Grow Closer”
3. “Today I Sing The Blues”
4. “Won’t Be Long”
5. “Are You Sure”
6. “Operation Heartbreak”
7. “Skylark”
8. “Runnin’ Out Of Fools”
9. “One Step Ahead”
10. “(No, No) I’m Losing You”
11. “Cry Like A Baby”
12. “A Little Bit Of Soul”
13. “My Kind Of Town (Detroit Is)” – Demo *
14. “Try A Little Tenderness” – Demo *
15. “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”
16. “Do Right Woman – Do Right Man”
17. “Respect”
18. “A Change Is Gonna Come”
19. “Chain Of Fools” – Alternate Version
20. “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” – U.K. Single Version
21. “(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You’ve Been Gone”
22. “Ain’t No Way”
23. “My Song”
24. “You Send Me”
25. “The House That Jack Built”
26. “Tracks Of My Tears”

CD 2

1. “Baby I Love You” – Live
2. “Son Of A Preacher Man”
3. “Call Me” – Alternate Version *
4. “Let It Be”
5. “Young, Gifted And Black” – Alternate Longer Take *
6. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” – Long Version
7. “It’s Not Unusual/See Saw” – with Tom Jones (originally broadcast on This Is Tom Jones, October, 9, 1970) *
8. “You’re All I Need To Get By” – Work Tape *
9. “Brand New Me” – Work Tape *
10. “Spanish Harlem” – Alternate Mix *
11. “Rock Steady” – Alternate Mix/Take
12. “Day Dreaming”
13. “Share Your Love With Me” – Live
14. “Don’t Play That Song” – Live
15. “Dr. Feelgood” – Live
16. “Spirit In The Dark” (Reprise with Ray Charles) – Live
17. “How I Got Over” (Single Edit) – Live
18. “Master Of Eyes (The Deepness Of Your Eyes)”

CD 3

1. “Somewhere” – Alternate Version *
2. “Angel” – Work Tape *
3. “The Boy From Bombay” *
4. “Til It’s Over” – Demo *
5. “Oh Baby” (a.k.a. “There’s Something Magic About You”) – Demo *
6. “Until You Come Back To Me” – Work Tape *
7. “I’m In Love” – Alternate Vocal
8. “Without Love”
9. “Mr. D.J. (5 For The D.J.)”
10. “You”
11. “Something He Can Feel”
12. “Look Into Your Heart”
13. “Break It To Me Gently”
14. “When I Think About You”
15. “Almighty Fire (Woman Of The Future)”
16. “Ladies Only” – Short Version
17. “You Light Up My Life” *
18. “Ooo Baby Baby” – with Smokey Robinson (Originally Broadcast On Soul Train, December 1, 1979) *
19. “Amazing Grace” (Originally Broadcast On Royal Variety Performance, November 23, 1980) *

CD 4

1. “Think” (Blues Brothers Version)
2. “I Say A Little Prayer” – with Dionne Warwick *
3. “United Together”
4. “Jump To It”
5. “The Wind”
6. “Freeway Of Love”
7. “Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves” – Eurythmics & Aretha Franklin
8. “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) – Aretha Franklin and George Michael
9. “Oh Happy Day” – with Mavis Staples (Live at New Bethel Baptist Church, Detroit, MI – July 1987)
10. “A Rose Is Still A Rose”
11. “Someday We’ll All Be Free”
12. “The Makings Of You”
13. “Nessun Dorma” – Live
14. “At Last” – with Lou Rawls (Originally Broadcast on American Soundtrack: Rhythm, Love And Soul, March 2003) *
15. “You’ve Got A Friend” – Ronald Isley featuring Aretha Franklin
16. “Rolling In The Deep” (The Aretha Version)
17. “My Country ‘Tis Of Thee”
18. “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” – Live (Originally Broadcast on The 38th Annual Kennedy Center Honors, December 19. 2015) *

CD 1, Tracks 1-2 from JVB single 47, 1956
CD 1, Tracks 3-5 from Aretha, Columbia LP CS 8412, 1961
CD 1, Track 6 from Columbia single 4-42157, 1961
CD 1, Track 7 from Columbia single 4-42874, 1963
CD 1, Track 8 from Runnin’ Out of Fools, Columbia LP CS 9081, 1964
CD 1, Track 9 from Columbia single 4-43241, 1965
CD 1, Track 10 from Columbia single 4-43333, 1965
CD 1, Track 11 from Columbia single 4-43827, 1966
CD 1, Track 12 rec. 1964 from the unreleased album A Bit of Soul, later issued on Take It Like You Give It, Columbia CS 9429, 1967
CD 1, Tracks 13-14; CD 2, Tracks 3, 5, 7-10; CD 3, Tracks 1-7, 17 & 19; and CD 4, Tracks 2, 14 & 18 previously unreleased
CD 1, Tracks 15-18 from I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You, Atlantic LP SD 8139, 1967
CD 1, Track 19 original version from Lady Soul, Atlantic LP SD 8176, 1968
CD 1, Track 20 from Atlantic (U.K.) single 584157, 1968
CD 1, Tracks 21-22 from Lady Soul, Atlantic LP SD 8176, 1968
CD 1, Track 23 from Atlantic single 45-2574, 1968
CD 1, Track 24 from Aretha Now, Atlantic LP SD 8186, 1968
CD 1, Track 25 from Atlantic single 45-2546, 1968
CD 1, Track 26 from Soul ’69, Atlantic LP SD-8212, 1969
CD 2, Track 1 from Aretha in Paris, Atlantic LP SD 8207, 1968
CD 2, Tracks 2 & 4 from This Girl’s in Love with You, Atlantic LP SD 8248, 1970
CD 2, Track 6 from Atlantic single 45-2796, 1971
CD 2, Track 11 and CD 3, Track 7 from Rare & Unreleased Recordings from the Golden Reign of the Queen of Soul, Atlantic/Rhino CD R2 272188, 2007
CD 2, Track 12 from Young, Gifted & Black, Atlantic LP SD 7213, 1972
CD 2, Tracks 14-15 from Live at Fillmore West, Atlantic LP SD 7205, 1971
CD 2, Tracks 13 & 16 from Live at Fillmore West: Don’t Fight the Feeling, Rhino Handmade RHM2 7890, 2005
CD 2, Track 17 original version from Amazing Grace, Atlantic SD 2-906, 1972
CD 2, Track 18 from Atlantic single 45-2941, 1973
CD 3, Track 8 from With Everything I Feel in Me, Atlantic LP SD 18116, 1974
CD 3, Tracks 9-10 from You, Atlantic LP SD 18151, 1975
CD 3, Tracks 11-12 from Sparkle, Atlantic LP SD 18176, 1976
CD 3, Tracks 13-14 from Sweet Passion, Atlantic LP SD 19102, 1977
CD 3, Track 15 from Almighty Fire, Atlantic LP SD 19161, 1978
CD 3, Track 16 from Atlantic promo single 3605, 1979
CD 4, Track 1 from The Blues Brothers: Original Soundtrack Recording, Atlantic LP SD 16017, 1980
CD 4, Track 3 from Aretha, Arista LP AL 9538, 1980
CD 4, Track 4 from Jump to It, Arista AL 9602, 1982
CD 4, Track 5 first issued on Dedicated to Soul, Expansion CD EXP 27, 2008
CD 4, Tracks 6-7 from Who’s Zoomin’ Who, Arista ARCD 8266, 1986
CD 4, Track 8 from Aretha, Arista ARCD 8442, 1986
CD 4, Track 9 from One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism, Arista A2CD-8497, 1987
CD 4, Track 10 from A Rose Is Still a Rose, Arista 07822-18987-2, 1998
CD 4, Track 11 from Malcolm X: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack, Qwest/Reprise 9-45130-2, 1992
CD 4, Track 13 from Ultimate Divas, Arista 07822-19066-2, 1998
CD 4, Track 15 from Mr. I, Def Soul Classics B0014750-02, 2010
CD 4, Track 16 from Aretha Sings the Great Diva Classics, RCA 88875022522, 2014
CD 4, Track 17 from A Woman Falling Out Love, Aretha’s Records 3711703132, 2011

Aretha Franklin, Aretha: Highlights from the Box Set (Atlantic/Rhino, 2020)

1CD: Amazon U.S. Link TBD / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. Link TBD / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

Side One

1. “Never Grow Old”
2. “Today I Sing The Blues”
3. “One Step Ahead”
4. “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”
5. “A Change Is Gonna Come”

Side Two

6. “Respect”
7. “Chain Of Fools” – Alternate Version
8. “Call Me” – Alternate Version *
9. “Rock Steady” – Alternate Mix/Take
10. “How I Got Over” (Single Edit) – Live

Side Three

11. “Master Of Eyes (The Deepness Of Your Eyes)”
12. “Until You Come Back To Me” – Work Tape *
13. “Something He Can Feel”
14. “You Light Up My Life” *
15. “Think”

Side Four

16. “Freeway Of Love”
17. “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) – Aretha Franklin and George Michael
18. “Someday We’ll All Be Free”
19. “A Rose Is Still A Rose”
20. “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” – Live (Originally Broadcast On The 38th Annual Kennedy Center Honors 12/19/15) *

(*) denotes previously unreleased track​​