Aretha FRANKLIN - "God Bless The Child" (1962)

[CARIBNATURALS]

wow

[4realpeepl]

Arethaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[MrFalconford]

from one queen to another thankyou for the tribute so many different perspectives and so little time

[NoSuchThingAsTrinity]

This is amazing.... wow. I love auntie ree ree

[LUckybones25]

OMG!! That has to be the BEST version of that song that I have EVER heard! I just shit my pants listening to it! SUPERB!!!

[773SleepyHollow]

I wouldn't call Aretha the greatest singer ever, because I don't believe in the concept... we NEED Aretha in our lives, we're grateful to have her, but we also need Billie, Dinah, Nina, Ella, Mahalia, and many more... they're all literally irreplaceable.

[MrPistolMason]

@773SleepyHollow Very well said!!

[lecha2344]

BEAUTIFUL 

[doaee1]

They both are amazing....Arteha this is wonderful! ;)

[DWSimmy]

I love that little instrumental bit at the beggining. 

[cjacja21]

A legend singing for a legend. I wonder what Billie would of thought of Aretha...

[amenic1894]

ARETHA...your voice makes me cry everytime I hear it...GOD bless you sister

[Cimone09]

Billie is such a timeless beauty. Simply flawless beauty.

[oldman66able]

The queen of soul.

[jungleVIP]

amazing! i love both versions!

[datboywitdemvocals06]

I can say this is the best version I HAV EVER HEARD!!! Thank you Lord for Starbucks MP3 PLAYLIST ;) #InMyIpod

[iwillliftupmyeyes]

I Just love Aretha singing this song i have this on the queen in waiting album for you guys who want to buy it .i love Billys version as well .So no arguments there .Aretha is and always will be one of the true greats  artists of our time .Thankyou for posting

[justplainpissed]

NEVER heard this before. Got the goose bumps. I love that early stuff by Areatha.

And what an absolutely beautiful picture of Billy. Thanks for posting this rare one.

[Getrealpeeps]

@justplainpissed

AMEN!

I've NEVER heard this version either... I got chills, too

[dgswilson]

@Getrealpeeps - little chills here too

[bungalowmo]

I have loved Aretha since I was a kid in Flint Michigan. Way back in the late 60's. The Queen of Soul! Get better gal...we miss you!

[1437andialwayswill]

@whatigot2say - You should be ashamed of yourself for disrespecting Aretha Franklin like you did. Only ignorant and small people talk like that. You are a hater, and the person that you hate the most is yourself.

[bubba198706]

LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bluesborn]

I think when we are talking about the Queen and the Lady,comparisons are pointless.Two incomparable artists who did what they did better than anybody else.

[FreddieWolf]

The voice of Aretha with the face of Billie is speechless... i'm in love <3

[mssusan1961]

Billie waz so beautiful...

[Tejano44]

Pure Joy !

[Thekeeper1106]

Maaaaaann!! Billie Holiday looks like my grandma back in the day....RIP Billie & Grandma "Honey" much love for Aretha, Grt Post!

[keith8462000]

baltimore own billie holiday bless you

[shanithurmon1]

Lovely!

[sharkolux]

önskar Karl grattis och lycka till, where ever you are...

[pnyc1969]

That voice! I love Aretha Franklin! If she hadn't signed with Atlantic and revolutionized R&B she would have been one of the best modern jazz singers, easily in the ranks of the great Dinah Washington.

[lindsay304]

I just heard the version of Billy holiday, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross and Whitney Houston. respect to the one who made, props to the one who sang it in the movie, thumb us to MIss franklin , but RESPECT to the one that OWNED with her voice MISS WHITNEY HOUSTON.

[TheQueenAretha]

@lindsay304 The only one that OWNS this song is Billie Holiday.

[jazzforrum]

Na fotografii jest Billie Holiday, a śpiewa Aretha Franklin

[meagalitious]

which one of Aretha'ss albums is this on??

[iwillliftupmyeyes]

@meagalitious I have this on/ A queen in waiting/ its a great double album with all her songs on .great buy .

[doveside1]

Aretha best singer in the world

[brelfan]

Seems when you see a picture of Billie Holliday nearly stripped of her clothings, and sometimes you do, she's miserable. As far as singing... huh. You have to admire Aretha and others like Whitney Houston. But Billie, well, people underestimate the power of simplicity and honesty. But it wins in the end.

[mpi4]

This is Billie Holiday on the picture

[yaskam]

@mpi4 YES, of course!" Cause, the Greatest SINGER Ever" pays homage to "The Greatest LADY Ever". Aretha and Billie.

[Tejano44]

@yaskam ,So true .

[whatigot2say]

@yaskam gretest singer ever?? hardly. this is loud and brash. but then so is everything else she sings. you mikste loud for good singing. it isn't . she doesn't respect the songs form or genre. she's going to turn it tinto a gospel song rrespective of its form. but at least her voice had clarity during this period. it sounds like shhit toda clarity is gone and it's gruffy. the price of smoking cigarettes is a destroyed voice. or maybe its all the fat around her throat.

[DJDJANGO1]

Aretha Franklin when she was a Jazz and Blues singer. Before Soul music dropped in the mid 60's Aretha wanted to be like her idol Jazz Diva, Dinah Washington.

Aretha never forgot her Jazz, Blues & Gospel roots [without them there would be no Soul] when she signed with Atlantic. She would always include a Jazz or Blues tune on every LP. Between 1960 and 65 Jazz was her style on Columbia. Aretha tore it up as a Jazz diva! Aretha is really the Queen of Rhythm n Blues & all its many styles!!

[zankhe43]

My favorite version...

[DJDJANGO1]

Aretha Franklin when she was a Jazz and Blues singer. Before Soul music dropped in the mid 60's Aretha wanted to be like her idol Jazz Diva, Dinah Washington.

Aretha never forgot her Jazz, Blues & Gospel roots [without them there would be no Soul] when she signed with Atlantic. She would always include a Jazz or Blues tune on every LP. Between 1960 and 65 Jazz was her style on Columbia. Aretha tore it up as a Jazz diva! Aretha is really the Queen of Rhythm n Blues & all its many styles!!

[oaklandonthecomeup]

@zankhe43 I also love Lou Rawl's version. This is what I call the theme song of my life. God bless the child that can stand up anywhere and say I've Got My Own.

[paz1969]

Aretha = extraordinary!

[EretzLaAm]

That's not Aretha...

[yaskam]

This is ARETHA, oh yesssss! The best singer in the musical history.

[yaskam]

"The Greatest SINGER Ever" pays homage to "The Greatest LADY Ever". Aretha to Billie.

Picture: BILLIE

Voice: ARETHA.

[EretzLaAm]

It''s not her voice, or her accent.

[BlakeBarbieDoll]

@yaskam Great comment. I LOVE Bilie's version, but this is better, I think. Who knew?

[yaskam]

OK OK OK :) This is Elvis PRESLEY!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SexyProfess]

. . . BEST version I've ever heard. ;-)

[nubianqueen04]

God bless the child that's got his own...including, opinions!

[rosesredvioletsblue]

beautiful.

ty

[MrBlackman4ever]

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The beautiful words in this song says it all.

[TheSlyStone]

How true is this song, I'm finding this out for myself. Funny how when you're down on your luck that "your friends" are nowhere to be seen. As Billie wrote.... "empty pockets don't make the grade". I think this song is a lesson for all of us. Good luck to you all during this recession.

[civicplayer]

This is amazing!!!

[PrettyVillan]

I've heard Aretha sing Jazz standards before the Atlantic era and some of those she did better than the original artist, "Only The Lonely" originally by Frank Sinatra was transformed into a song with the elements of longing and regret...Aretha's interpretation of that song is unparalleled! This one she could have done without but oh well.

[viktordelaplace]

oh que oui!

[TALBROZMAN]

straus your crazy or white..

[strausd02]

Well it shows that she is young here.  She sang this song as if, she did not know it meaning. Her inflection and intonation is off. It was not appropriately intrepreted, I fear.

[devilmirror1]

You know, I wanted to disagree with you but couldn't. Her technique was great here but the emotion was not entirely shown.

Anyway, no one could beat Aretha in her prime EVER.

[strausd02]

I am neither....You know as well as I do, that this song is not Aretha. This lady really knows how to sing, but here she misses the true meaning of this song. She needs to bring it down a bit. Show the emotion that this song conveys...

[TheQueenAretha]

That is your opinion but to be she is an amazing job and didn't bring anything down.

[TheQueenAretha]

Who are you to say that this song is not Aretha. Aretha has lived a life of hardships and pain throughout her whole life. This is Aretha interpretation not Bille's or Diana's. And whether or not you like it or not has nothing to do with her great version. Her passion and her feeling is there. It has always been there and has never left Aretha. Diana i can't say that because Diana hasn't been through half of what Aretha's through and has never given me anything that brings you that feeling.

[missbirdsong]

Diana grew up poorer than Aretha in fact. Aretha's father was a celeb preacher with money. AF parents were divorced and she was preg 2x by 16 yrs. Diana's mother was quarrantined for TB when she was a girl. Her brother was beaten and jailed by racist cops in the south. Her brother was murdered and many other things. Aretha has had very hard times; Diana too. There is no measuring of people's pain. Ross and Retha sing with passion. Ross in pop and Ree in soul. Let's respect both talented ladies.

[TheQueenAretha]

You are right Aretha grew up in a quite wealthy home where as Diana, who lived just a block away live in poverty in the project of Detroit.

[TheQueenAretha]

My point was that Aretha is able to express her feelings better.

[Tejano44]

@missbirdsong ,100 % Correct !

[TheQueenAretha]

Nothing is off but your understanding. This is her interpretation. Her inflections and intonation are perfectly suited for her arrangement.

[strausd02]

I think this is a bit loud. It takes some of the feeling out of the song. Yes, Aretha can sing, but I don't think this is her song. Her register seems a bit high. Oh well, to each his own. However, I think Diana does a better job. Aretha's version doesn't convey the sadness that is in this song.

[swso2000]

Diana fan here. Damn, Miss Areatha sang the hell out of this song.

[SoulSir]

Ree, sounds sensational.

[EMCEMITCH]

fom billie to aretha to jennifer hudson---marvelous---she should play aretha if they make a movie---i think ms. franklin would approve

[ceekher]

Just Listen to this lady's voice. She is so bad!!! There is no one who can float a note out of their mouth like Queen Aretha Franklin. Queen of Soul you are and forever will be the best!!!

[strausd02]

You call this floating a note....I call it a note out of control. She might be the Queen of Soul, however, she is no Queen of Jazz. As far as I am concerned she completely misses the mark. I love most of her work, but on this one, she shows her lack of maturity....."Living and loving, in the world of hard knocks...Sometimes, if you haven't lived it or experienced it, you cannot convey it.

[TheQueenAretha]

Out of control! Get yourself together. Before Aretha was a major star she was singing jazz and has tons of amazing interpretation from this time. She hasn't missed anything. She did an amazing version. This is Aretha and whether you like it or not this is her interpretation and Ross by no mean is the interpreter Aretha is. If anyone know what living a hard life, it's Aretha. At this time in her career she possessed the same feeling she does now.She's lived throught trouble and heartaches.

[Strausd2]

Hey TheQueenAretha, why don't you compare Aretha's version with the original's..Lady Day? Personally, I think Diana's version or interpretation is more closely related to Billie's version. Again, I think Aretha's version is sang in too higher of a register. Everything does not have to be screamed, to convey its effect.

[TheQueenAretha]

Because you are comparing Diana's version to Aretha. Aretha isn't trying to copy Billie. She is doing her own interpretation. If you knew anything about Aretha or her as interpreter, you would know that Aretha isn't about high note, she is about getting her point across. Aretha is not a screamer, she is a singer. She is soaked with passion and feeling. So don't come on here trying to tell an Aretha fan anything about conveying and effect because Aretha could right a book about it.

[Strausd2]

The reason I said to compare Aretha's interpretation to the Original...Lady Day, you will see that she does not sing in a very high register. It is rather smooth and mellow...Personally, I think that Aretha's version is just too high...Well the Queen of Soul, isn't the Queen of Jazz. It is my opinion, that she does not convey the true meaning of the song. It isn't about screaming...

[TheQueenAretha]

That is your opinion, I am not on here saying that Aretha's version is better than Billie, but i am not going to say that it is too high. Aretha has sung jazz, broadway, gospel,. blue, pop, you name it. She is able to cross genres. You are failing to get that. This is Aretha's interpretation, not Billies. Also if you knew anything about Aretha you would know that Aretha purpose when doing a cover is to convey her the meaning. Aretha doesn't scream, she sings.

[ahkielove]

damn stausd your a real hater. i bet your a fat slob in a wheel chair on Youtube all day criticizing people.

[Strausd2]

Damn Ahkielove, so you consider a person that gives his or her opinion a hater..interesting. In addition, if that isn't good enough, you try to personally attack someone you have never seen. What does that say about you? I am glad I live in America, where one can express his or her opinion without fear. That is called Freedom of Speech. Personally I don't hate anyone, especially someone I have never met. However, I stand by my opinion of Aretha's interpretation of this song.

[Strausd2]

Oh by the way Ahkielove,  I am 5'10", 175 lbs. I have a 32" waist 44" chest and a muscular tight physique. Unlike Aretha and perhaps you. I've tried to keep myself fit. So thinking about what you said about my physical appearance man/woman, You sound like the hater. I truly think Aretha sang that song too loudly, and it lack the feelings of someone who had experienced life. Whether you agree with what I have said, that is up to you. It is my opinion.

[raymondi1234567890]

damn she wails

[venus3003]

Love it love it love it!

[SexyProfess]

Beautiful, beautiful song!! Nobody can do it like Aretha. ;-)

God bless the child that's got his/her own...

[luke2thab]

except billie....

[pjlove76]

Thanks for posting this song! Damn, this is a beautiful song

[davidt1066]

never heard this before...im confused now. hey ill just like the both of them.

[oneloveatatime]

I love this, thanks for posting

[bonjour100]

excellently described!

This is why I love Aretha so much too! Ofcourse, i adore her gospel inflections, but for me, it was always her sense of melody and line that was fantastic. The way she changed the line and still made it fit with the music. Even the first word "THEM that's got", is just placed perfectly. Although it's a bit off topic, this is why i love Whitney Houston too - she is very good at phrasing :)

[acotw67]

a1d2h:

I prefer Aretha Franklin's arrangement. A Billie Holiday diehard wanted to kick my ass for saying so, but we were at work. The song of Billie's that no one can ever reporduce well, in my opinion, is "Fine and Mellow", accompanied by Lester Young. D. Washington's best is "Baby Get Lost", and the hilarious, naughty "Long John." Have you heard either?

[acotw67]

a1d2h:

Brilliant analysis. Very few singers have such exquisite phrasing matched by a voice of power, depth and passion. (Maria Calas did, but that's a different genre) When I became a jazz fan at 8, I was so awestruck by her voice & her gifts as a pianist that I began to prefer her earliest work, such as Trouble in Mind, Running Out of Fools, Muddy Water, Blue Holliday,and this one. Etta James' tribute to Holiday is great-but raw. The modern R & B singers overindulge in melisma, not Aretha.

[TheQueenAretha]

I also loved what Aretha did with Billie's Crazy He Calls Me. From her Soul 69 album.

[acotw67]

TheQueenAretha:

I actually have not heard that one. Thank you very much for the suggestion. Several things just occurred to me. There is a difference between a cover and a new arrangement; the terms are NOT interchangeable but does everyone know or care? Jazz and blues classics become so when they are well-composed. After the song is validated by time, the challenge is for the singer. Aretha Franklin, like Sinatra, ALWAYS rose to the occassion. Her jazz arrangement of "Trouble in Mind" SWINGS!

[TheQueenAretha]

You would love it. Like i said before it is from her Soul 69 which is a album of covers. With Aretha singing mostly jazz tunes. Like Gentle On My MInd, Crazy He Calls Me, I'll Never Be Free, and many others.

[lewistevena]

@TheQueenAretha I agree! Her version of "Crazy He Calls Me" is one of the best things that she has ever recorded. She takes you there. Only a true fan would cite that recording. Simply phenomenal!!

[TheQueenAretha]

@lewistevena Well thank you!

[MercedesSantiaga]

This song is almost unrecognisable. Aretha can sing, we all know that. But this is OVER-sung. Billie, diana, etc were very understated in their approach and works much better. In this version the focus is more on the voice and not on the powerful and haunting lyrics of the songs.

[TheQueenAretha]

This is not over sung. Aretha took the sung and made it hers. She changed the arrangement and turned it into her own work of art. And i don't too much care for Billies version or Diana's as well. Aretha is not just about her power that just comes natural. But her phrasing is very dominant.

[GILLYRUTH]

Billies version is Portland sea level,all the rest are just transfered levels,up and down,but never improved on.

[TheQueenAretha]

Well i like Aretha's version a little bit better. I felt that her interpretation was more evoked a little more emotion. But if you like Billie's version by all means. I have no problem with that.

[GILLYRUTH]

Yes your spot on.For a sympathetic cover,try and catch Sam Cooke s version.

[yaskam]

acotw67:

Right!

"Among a mainstream and white consumer public, Franklin was arguably the most popular black woman artist since Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday and was clearly more accessible to these audiences than Smith and Holiday. Like Smith and Holiday, Franklin infused public narratives of black and militancy, with nuanced demands for human respect and human decency".

Marc Anthony NEAL, What Music said..., (1998).

[dirtyfrenchie]

yes i completely agree i was wrong you were right that's i told you maybe it' s my poor english anyway the fact is billie holiday sang hits at each time in a peculiar way so i did'nt recognize ir sang by aretha sorry

[dirtyfrenchie]

it's not god bless the child i think and there are stinky back violins but she's great of couse

[TheQueenAretha]

No he was right . The name of the song is god bless the child.

[dirtyfrenchie]

it is definitely  nobody's perfect!

[TheQueenAretha]

No it's not the name of the song is GOD BLESS THE CHILD. That is a fact. Look it up it was written by Billie Holiday.

[mormi27]

She is singing by heart and by soul! It takes my breath away!

[Cissyskin]

Perfection!!! God bless Aretha and her amazing voice!!!

[pirategrl87]

this is amazing!!!

[wahnano]

Baby you can sing it..

Peace.

[TheAremo]

Wow Perfection............A Pop Idol Detox !!!!

[bemaniac2]

shes showing out lol

[TheQueenAretha]

This is a amazing cover, and Aretha always showed that She was the queen of soul.

[Darneloh]

Her rendition is very bluesy mixed with alot of Gospel.