With the passing of Aretha Franklin on August 16, 2018, at age 76, djrobblog is paying tribute with a series of articles.
Few people have contributed as much to music as Queen of Soul and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Aretha Franklin did in her lifetime. And few ever will.
With that in mind, we’re rerunning a special ranking of her 50 Greatest Crown Jewels – the 50 Greatest Songs of Aretha Franklin, in countdown order from No. 50 to No. 1.
The list was created in 2017 using the following criteria: chart performance (which was based on the song’s sales and airplay), endurance, influence, award recognition and overall quality (the latter two being subjective factors, admittedly).
Conspicuously absent from these rankings are songs from Aretha’s 1972 classic album, Amazing Grace. While it included spiritually powerful songs like “Climbing Higher Mountains” and the title track, none of them were radio hits that translated to singles chart success. However, those songs are included in the special playlist below.
As for the countdown, each entry includes a brief story or trivia fact about the song, along with a video or audio link of Queen Aretha performing it.
So enjoy the special countdown at the bottom of this article, folks, as we continue to celebrate the life and legacy of the one and only Aretha Franklin! Oh, and you can vote the songs up or down and/or provide comments either in the countdown slide show as you scroll through, at the bottom of the article or on our Facebook page.
A personal tribute to Aretha Franklin
Rest in Heaven to our soul queen. Your legacy lives on in song.
DJ Rob
Owner
Aretha began her chart career with Columbia Records and this was her first of 73 Hot 100 singles in early 1961.
Thanks for the musical buffet. There will never be another like her. (To me) her voice is indescribable but if I had to (describe it), I would say it encompasses every gospel voice there has ever been. RIP Queen ?