Aretha Franklin

American singer, songwriter, and pianist (1942–2018)

Aretha Louise Franklin (25 March 1942 - 16 August 2018) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin was also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Find out what it means to me…

Song lyrics

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Oh think (think)
Think about what you're tryin' to do to me.
Woo-hoo think (think)
Let your mind go let yourself be free.
~ "Think"
  • R-E-S-P-E-C-T
    Find out what it means to me

    R-E-S-P-E-C-T
    Take care … TCB
    Sock it to me, Sock it to me, Sock it to me.
    • Lines added among her 1967 alterations to the 1965 song "Respect", originally written by Otis Redding
  • Speak your name
    And I'll feel a thrill.
    You said I do,
    And I said I will.

    I tell you that I'll stay true,
    And give you just a little time.
    Wait on me baby,
    I want you to be all mine.
    I just get so blue.

    Since you've been gone, baby
    (why'd you do it? why'd you have to do it?)

  • People walkin' around everyday,
    Playin' games and takin' scores.
    Tryin' to make other people lose their minds.
    Well be careful you don't lose yours.

    Oh think (think)
    Think about what you're tryin' to do to me.
    Woo-hoo think (think)
    Let your mind go let yourself be free.

    You need me (need me)
    And I need you (don't cha know)
    Without each other
    There ain't nothin' we two can do.

  • I want to be what he wants when he wants it, and whenever he needs it
    And when he's lonesome and feelin' love starved
    I'll be there to feed it
    I'm givin' him a little bit for each day
    He turns me right on when I hear him say

    (Hey baby let's get away, let's go somewhere far)
    (Baby can we?)
    Well I don't care.

  • Step n' move your hips
    With a feelin' from side to side
    Sit yourself down in your car
    And take a ride.

    And while you're movin'
    Rock steady
    Rock steady baby.
    Let's call this song exactly what it is
    (What it is -what it is - what it is)

  • You walked in on the sly
    Scopin' for love
    In the crowd, I caught your eye
    You can't hide your stuff.

    You came to catch
    You thought I'd be naive and tame
    You met your match
    I beat you at your own game.

About Aretha Franklin

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  • In order to become Aretha Franklin you really have to be able to assess an inheritance and find yourself able to use it.
    • 1980 interview in Conversations with James Baldwin edited by Louis H. Pratt and Fred L. Standley (1989)
  • What made her talent so great was her capacity to live what she sang. Her music was deepened by her connection to the struggles and the triumphs of the African American experience growing up in her father’s church, the community of Detroit, and her awareness of the turmoil of the South. She had a lifelong, unwavering commitment to civil rights and was one of the strongest supporters of the movement. She was our sister and our friend. Whenever I would see her, from time to time, she would always inquire about the well-being of people she met and worked with during the sixties.

    When she sang, she embodied what we were fighting for, and her music strengthened us. It revived us. When we would be released from jail after a non-violent protest, we might go to a late night club and let the music of Aretha Franklin fill our hearts. She was like a muse whose songs whispered the strength to continue on. Her music gave us a greater sense of determination to never give up or give in, and to keep the faith. She was a wonderful, talented human being. We mourn for Aretha Franklin. We have lost the Queen of Soul.

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