Aretha Franklin To Release First Album In Eight Years
Bro. Patrick Cole
According to The Bellereport.com
Including Gospel Music
Aretha Franklin has announced her first album in eight years. With her mystery illness "resolved", the 69-year-old revealed that she will independently release Aretha: A Woman Falling Out of Love next week.
This is the third time Franklin is releasing a record called Aretha. But unlike the self-titled albums of 1961, 1981 and 1986, this one is being made available through the singer's own label, Aretha Records, and she produced most of it herself. Despite reports that she was working with R Kelly, the only other production help comes from Franklin's sons, Kecalf and Eddie. "It's definitely going to take the boomers back," she said last month, "but it's also contemporary."
Franklin's 38th studio album is a welcome surprise after almost a year of health scares. She was forced to cancel a string of concerts last year, and though she didn't name her illness, the singer was reported to be suffering from pancreatic cancer. "The problem has been resolved," she claimed in January, after undergoing an operation.
Aretha: A Woman Falling Out of Love will be released on 3 May. For its first month, the album will only be available through US retailer Walmart; from 3 June, it will be available through digital services and other shops. The album features modern standards and familiar classics, including Theme from a Summer Place, gospel hymn His Eye Is On the Sparrow, and a version of BB King's Sweet Sixteen. The bonus track is a live recording of Franklin performing at Barack
Obama's presidential inauguration in 2009, singing My Country, 'Tis of Thee.
"Ladies, take a good look at the photo of me on this album," Franklin said. "This is how you're supposed to look when you're a woman falling out of love. Don't sit by the phone waiting for him to call you, girlfriend; I want you to listen very closely to the lyrics of the songs on this album and you'll hear a few good tips. Go out and have a ball!"
Franklin's last studio album, reached No 33 on the US charts.
Aretha Franklin To Release First Album In Eight…