one more look at the hat. just soak in its rays. and—hark—is that president bush, first lady bush, president clinton, and vice president gore in the background? one can only wonder what they were thinking about. it was probably aretha-related. her inauguration hat was the 21st-century equivalent of the white turtleneck suit al green wore on the i’m so in love with you cover, only better.
#518: arethan franklin - you make me feel like a natural woman (1968)
one year after president barack obama’s historic inauguration, it’s important to take a moment to pause and appreciate aretha franklin’s hat. say what you will about this troubled and imperfect presidency, but that hat is exactly the hat we thought it was on that fateful winter morning 12 months ago. and yet even millinery, like presidential performance, has its limits. when it comes right down to it, the great hat is not as cosmically tremendous as the concert aretha franklin played in stockholm in 1968—which is probably the best full concert available on youtube, considering, among other things, the bottomless baritone saxes on i never loved a man the way i loved you and the pharmacological lilt of dr. feelgood. here’s hoping that the country can reach the tremendous heights of natural woman’s last chorus.
#290: aretha franklin - rock steady (1972, soul train)
in honor of the truly amazing hat aretha franklin just wore in front of millions of people as she sang my country tis of thee, here she is funking to one of her funkiest funk songs, a tune with that funktified, low-down feeling. for this is a day to move your hips from left to right! to do that funky dance all night! america’s got the feelin’ and america don’t care! viva aretha! viva obama! viva us!
#273: aretha franklin - dr. feelgood (love is a serious business) (1968)
you know, i’m traveling (to here) later this week, so i’d like to talk to you right now about something my friend aretha franklin once said: “you know, traveling, i get laryngitis quite often, running in and out of clubs, and on and off planes and what have you. so i’d like to talk to you right now about a doctor that visited me…”
i was going to put up a time magazine cover of aretha franklin in june, 1968, but then i found this monstrously awesome image from two weeks earlier. the covers of major international mags should ask “CAN YOU TRUST ANYONE OVER 30?” more often these days. instead there’s just this pro-youth claptrap. these fucking kids these days! i tell you.
#93: aretha franklin - i never loved a man the way i loved you (1968)
the encyclopedia uses coloratura mezzo-soprano to describe aretha franklin’s voice, but betters words that come to mind are holy fucking shit, she can sing like a million saxophones harmonizing in heaven while jesus slowdances with god, or, she opens her mouth and happiness comes out.
at this 60s sweden show, her sweat glands were kicking and so was the brass section. everything was genuine—the sways, the shakes, the falsetto oh!s—but maybe not the eyebrows.
#92: aretha franklin - baby i love you (1967)
there are few people on earth who can be transfixing while wearing rainbow pants and strutting and clapping and arm-waving and lip-syncing down a new york street. aretha franklin was once one of those people.
nowadays she’s weirder.
#1: dusty springfield - son of a preacher man (1968)
the very first video was chosen because of dusty springfield’s blouse, the single best shirt ever worn on national television.
clothing choices aside, if that little move she does with her right arm before she starts singing doesn’t kill you, then you’re dead inside. and how about how those memphis horns? and how about her blue-eyed, bourbon-soaked voice? and how about that dip she does the first time she sings the chorus?
PS aretha franklin was offered this song by its writers, but she turned it down, only to record her own version after dusty’s became a hit. my dad thinks aretha’s is better. quentin tarantino likes dusty’s. god likes this video, He told me so Himself.
