Lady Soul/Aretha Now (CD - 1995)

ARETHA NOW personnel: Aretha Franklin (vocals, piano); Tommy Cogbill, Jimmy Johnson, Bobby Womack (guitar); Frank Wess (tenor saxophone, flute); Charlie Chalmers, Andrew Love, Seldon Powell (tenor saxophone); Floyd Newman, Willie Bridges, Haywood Henry (baritone saxophone); Wayne Jackson, Bernie Glow, Melvin Lastie, Joe Newman (trumpet); Tony Studd (bass trombone); Spooner Oldham (organ, electric & acoustic piano); Jerry Jemmott (bass); Roger Hawkins (drums); Carolyn Franklin, The Sweet Inspirations (background vocals).

Recorded at Atlantic Studios, New York in December, 1967 and April, 1968. Originally released on Atlantic (8186) in 1968.

LADY SOUL personnel: Aretha Franklin (vocals, piano); Bobby Womack, Jimmy Johnson, Eric Clapton, Joe South (guitar); Frank Wess (flute, tenor saxophone); Seldon Powell (tenor saxophone); Haywood Henry (baritone saxophone); King Curtis (saxophone); Mel Lastie, Joe Newman, Bernie Glow (trumpet); Tony Studd (bass trombone); Spooner Oldham (electric piano, organ); Warren Smith (vibraphone); Tommy Cogbill (bass); Roger Hawkins, Gene Chrisman (drums); Carolyn Franklin, Cissy Houston, Erma Franklin, Ellie Greenwich (background vocals).

LADY SOUL was originally released in 1968.

Originally released as 2 separate LPs.

Personnel: Aretha Franklin (vocals, piano).

Aretha's two classic 1968 albums (it's not a stretch to call them her artistic peak) get the Mobile Fidelity remasterd gold-disc treatment here, and if the sound quality is only incrementally better than previous version, it's certainly convenient to have the two on one CD. Musically, of course, this stuff is soul heaven. The hits include the likes of "Chain of Fools," "Natural Woman," "Since You've Been Gone," and "Think," but the non-single cuts are uniformly as strong, particularly a gorgeous reading of Sam Cooke's "You Send Me" and a gospel-inflected version of Dionne Warwicke's "I Say a Little Prayer" that shreds the original. minimize