There's something about Aretha Franklin's voice which means it's impossible to get bored of her. I've probably listened to 'I Say A Little Prayer' more than any song ever, and even though it's obvious Aretha, it still does it every time. Which is why I was thrilled to be given a copy of the new Rare and Unreleased Recordings from the Golden Reign of the Queen of Soul by a fellow Franklin fiend. Chuck away all those articles and books about her Atlantic years or the sessions for Lady Soul - these two CDs are as close you'll get to being in the studio with her. My own personal 'in the studio' moment came when I worked on the Red Bull Music Academy in Rome in 2004. One of the guest lecturers was Aretha's musical director and drummer, Bernard 'Pretty' Purdie, who was overflowing with excellent stories.
One of his many tales concerned the recording of 'Rock Steady', during the sessions for 1972's Young, Gifted and Black album. 'We were in the studio and the music, her lyrics fell off the piano,' he said. 'She liked the groove so much she told us to keep going. Then the four bar break happened.... but no one knew where we were and I continued - and that four bars was to keep the music going so she could pick up the music off the floor.'
As well as being a cute if well-worn story, it's a good example of how an accident can launch an entire genre - in this case the breaks that fed and shaped early hip hop. The version of 'Rock Steady' on the reissues album is a four-and a-half-minute outtake from the original sessions that gets into a seriously funky groove before winding down, eventually half-speed, to a halt.
You really have to get this album, if only to hear her trying out the first 42 seconds of 'You're All I Need To Get By' before stopping. 'Are you taping this, Jerry?' she asks producer Jerry Wexler, before counting in her band for another lovely take. Talk about being zoomed to her side.
