The Great Aretha Franklin: The First 12 Sides

AMG Review of The Great Aretha Franklin: The First 12 Sides

Myles Boisen
All Music Guide

This overlooked classic, a compilation of Aretha Franklin's first singles, is often overshadowed by her parade of late-'60s hits on Atlantic. Only the rollicking first cut ("Won't Be Long") was chartbound, but on purely musical terms, this set stands up to anything she has done since. The program is solidly bluesy, and it's obvious that she didn't get ALL her schooling in Rev. C.L. Franklin's church. Her earliest gospel recordings were done there for Chess, but by 1960 she had come fully into her own, sounding every bit as sassy as Nina Simone or Esther Phillips, and playing that seductive blend of churchified soul pursued by future labelmate Ray Charles. This is simply superb, with top-notch accompaniment by R&B/jazz vets Ray Bryant, Al Sears, Warren Lucky, Milt Hinton, and more.