Aretha Franklin – 30 Greatest Hits (1985/2014) [FLAC 24bit/96kHz]

30 Greatest Hits zeroes in on Aretha Franklin’s prime recording period for Atlantic, from her breakout in 1967 with ‘I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)’ through the end of 1974, during which the Queen of Soul truly reigned over the charts she averaged over one pop hit every two months. This two-disc set delivers all of her classics (‘Respect,’ ‘Do Right Woman, Do Right Man,’ ‘(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,’ ‘Chain of Fools,’ ‘Think,’ ‘Spanish Harlem,’ ‘Rock Steady’), plus much more excellent material for those who won’t recognize much more than the songs (and there are quite a few) that have entered the cultural consciousness (‘I Say a Little Prayer,’ ‘The Weight,’ ‘Spirit in the Dark,’ ‘Day Dreaming’). It’s a great foundation to any collection that has yet to be equaled by a pair of Rhino sets, the two-volume Very Best of Aretha Franklin from 1994 and Aretha’s Best from 2001.

Tracklist:
01. I Never Loved A Man [The Way I Love You]
02. Respect
03. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man
04. Dr. Feelgood [Love Is Serious Business]
05. Save Me
06. Baby I Love You
07. [You Make Me Feel Like] A Natural Woman
08. Chain Of Fools
09. Since You’ve Been Gone (Sweet Sweet Baby)
10. Ain’t No Way
11. Think
12. I Say A Little Prayer
13. The House That Jack Built
14. See Saw
15. The Weight
16. Share Your Love With Me
17. Eleanor Rigby
18. Call Me
19. Spirit in the Dark
20. Don’t Play That Song
21. You’re All I Need To Get By
22. Bridge Over Troubled Water
23. Spanish Harlem
24. Rock Steady
25. Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You Baby)
26. Day Dreaming
27. Wholy Holy
28. Angel
29. Until You Come Back To Me [That’s What I Am Going To Do]
30. I’m In Love

Personnel:
Aretha Franklin, vocals, piano, background vocals
Cissy Houston, vocals
Ellie Greenwich, vocals
Chips Moman, guitar
Cornell Dupree, guitar
Jimmy Johnson, guitar
David Spinozza, guitar
Duane Allman, guitar
Eddie Hinton, guitar
Hugh McCracken, guitar
Jerry Weaver, guitar
Charlie Freeman, guitar
Don Arnone, acoustic guitar
Joe Farrell, flute, tenor saxophone
Hubert Laws, flute
King Curtis, brass
The Memphis Horns
Spooner Oldham, electric piano
Kenneth Lupper, organ
Richard Tee, organ
Donny Hathaway, keyboards
Jim Dickinson, keyboards
Mike Utley, keyboards
Barry Beckett, keyboards
Billy Preston, keyboards
Kenneth Bichel, synthesizer
Al Jackson, Jr., drums
Ray Lucas, drums
Rick Marotta, drums
Roger Hawkins, drums
Bernard ‘Pretty’ Purdie, drums
Sammy Creason, drums
Pancho Morales, congas
Ralph MacDonald, percussion
Dr. John, Robert ‘Pops’ Popwell, percussion
Erma Franklin, background vocals
The Sweethearts of Soul, background vocals
Carolyn Franklin, background vocals
The Southern California Community Choir, background vocals