No real quibbles about this one.
The undoubted Queen of Soul herself Miss Aretha Franklin!
We won’t say anything about her “taste” in hats, though!
Although it’s perhaps at first glance somewhat odd to see
Bob Dylan in the top ten Greatest Singers of All Time, his immense songwriting influence aside, one needs to consider the phenomenal impact his
singing has had on generations of singers – artists whose singing ability may not perhaps be technically exceptional but, thanks to Dylan’s inspiration, have gone on nevertheless to be powerful and impactful.
We’d also definitely have the sublime singing talent of Jackie Wilson in our top 10!
Of course, as always, there are a lot of so-called artists listed here that shouldn’t be anywhere near this list!
#1 Aretha Franklin
by Mary J. Blige
Born: March 25th, 1942
Key Tracks:
“(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Respect,” “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “Think,” “Chain of Fools”
Influenced:
Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, Aaron Neville, Annie Lennox
You know a force from heaven. You know something that God made. And Aretha is a gift from God. When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her. She is the reason why women want to sing.
Aretha has everything — the power, the technique. She is honest with everything she says. Everything she’s thinking or dealing with is all in the music, from “Chain of Fools” to “Respect” to her live performances. And she has total confidence; she does not waver at all. I think her gospel base brings that confidence, because in gospel they do not play around — they’re all about chops, who has the vocal runs. This is no game to her.
As a child, I used to listen to Aretha’s music because my mom played “Do Right Woman” and “Ain’t No Way” every single day. I would see my mother cry when she listened to those songs, and I’d cry too. Then I discovered her on my own with the Sparkle soundtrack. I must have played “Giving Him Something He Can Feel” 30 times in a row; eventually, I connected the dots to that voice my mom was listening to.
Even the way she pronounces words is amazing: In “Giving Him Something He Can Feel,” when she sings, “Many say that I’m too young” — the way she says “I’m,” you can almost see her saying it, like she’s all in your face, but you’re still right with her. You can really visualize her hands when she sings, “You’re tying both of my hands,” on “Ain’t No Way” — it’s the powerful way she hits the word “both.”
When you watch her work, you can see why Aretha is who she is. When we did the song “Don’t Waste Your Time” on my album Mary, she just went in there and ate that record like Pac-Man. She could be doing a church vocal run, and it would turn into some jazz-space thing, something I never encountered before. You’d say, “Where did that come from? Where did she find that note?”
It’s beautiful to see, because it helps people with a lack of confidence in their ability, like myself. I look at her and think, “I need a piece of that. Whatever that is.”
Playlist
1. (You Make Me Feel Like)
A Natural Woman |
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| 2. Respect |
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3. I Never Loved a Man
(The Way I Love You) |
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| 4. Think |
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| 5. Chain of Fools |
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| 6. Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do) |
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| 7. Rock Steady |
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| 8. Call Me |
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| 9. Do Right Woman |
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| 10. I Never Loved a Man |
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Aretha Franklin – I say a little prayer
The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time
1 | Aretha Franklin by Mary J. Blige
2 | Ray Charles by Billy Joel
3 | Elvis Presley by Robert Plant
4 | Sam Cooke by Van Morrison
5 | John Lennon by Jackson Browne
6 | Marvin Gaye by Alicia Keys
7 | Bob Dylan by Bono
8 | Otis Redding by Booker T. Jones
9 | Stevie Wonder by Cee-Lo
10 | James Brown by Iggy Pop
11 | Paul McCartney
12 | Little Richard
13 | Roy Orbison
14 | Al Green
15 | Robert Plant
16 | Mick Jagger by Lenny Kravitz
17 | Tina Turner
18 | Freddie Mercury
19 | Bob Marley
20 | Smokey Robinson
21 | Johnny Cash
22 | Etta James
23 | David Bowie
24 | Van Morrison
25 | Michael Jackson by Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy
26 | Jackie Wilson
27 | Hank Williams
28 | Janis Joplin
29 | Nina Simone
30 | Prince
31 | Howlin’ Wolf
32 | Bono by Billie Joe Armstrong
33 | Steve Winwood
34 | Whitney Houston
35 | Dusty Springfield
36 | Bruce Springsteen
37 | Neil Young
38 | Elton John
39 | Jeff Buckley by Chris Cornell
40 | Curtis Mayfield
41 | Chuck Berry
42 | Joni Mitchell
43 | George Jones by James Taylor
44 | Bobby “Blue” Bland
45 | Kurt Cobain
46 | Patsy Cline
47 | Jim Morrison
48 | Buddy Holly
49 | Donny Hathaway
50 | Bonnie Raitt
51 | Gladys Knight
52 | Brian Wilson
53 | Muddy Waters by Ben Harper
54 | Luther Vandross
55 | Paul Rodgers
56 | Mavis Staples
57 | Eric Burdon
58 | Christina Aguilera
59 | Rod Stewart
60 | Björk
61 | Roger Daltrey
62 | Lou Reed
63 | Dion
64 | Axl Rose
65 | David Ruffin
66 | Thom Yorke
67 | Jerry Lee Lewis
68 | Wilson Pickett
69 | Ronnie Spector
70 | Gregg Allman
71 | Toots HIbbert
72 | John Fogerty
73 | Dolly Parton
74 | James Taylor
75 | Iggy Pop
76 | Steve Perry
77 | Merle Haggard
78 | Sly Stone
79 | Mariah Carey
80 | Frankie Valli
81 | John Lee Hooker by Bonnie Raitt
82 | Tom Waits
83 | Patti Smith
84 | Darlene Love
85 | Sam Moore
86 | Art Garfunkel
87 | Don Henley
88 | Willie Nelson
89 | Solomon Burke
90 | The Everly Brothers
91 | Levon Helm by Jim James
92 | Morrissey
93 | Annie Lennox
94 | Karen Carpenter
95 | Patti LaBelle
96 | B.B. King
97 | Joe Cocker
98 | Stevie Nicks
99 | Steven Tyler
100 | Mary J. Blige
RS Contributors;
Brian Braiker, David Browne, Anthony DeCurtis, David Fricke, Brian Hiatt, Ashley Kahn, Mark Kemp, Alan Light, Austin Scaggs, David Wild, Douglas Wolk
