''Lady Soul'' is the twelfth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American singer

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

released in early 1968, by

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

Background

''Lady Soul'' was Franklin's third R&B chart-topper and reached number two on the ''Billboard'' 200, tying with '' I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You'' for her highest-charting album on the pop chart. The album also included some of her biggest hit singles: "Chain of Fools" (#2 Pop), and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (#8 Pop), and "(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You've Been Gone" (#5 Pop). It eventually sold well over a million copies in the United States alone. The album was reissued on Rhino Records in a deluxe edition in 1995. Gospel/R&B singer

Cissy Houston Emily "Cissy" Houston ( ''née'' Drinkard; born September 30, 1933) is an American soul and gospel singer. After a successful career singing backup for such artists as Roy Hamilton, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, Houston embar ...

(mother of Whitney Houston) and her group the Sweet Inspirations are credited as background vocals on several tracks, along with Aretha's sisters Carolyn and Erma Franklin.

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

, at the time a member of the band Cream, is credited as the guitarist on the track "Good to Me as I Am to You". ''Lady Soul'' peaked at #1, #2 and #3 on ''Billboard'''s Black Albums, Pop Albums and Jazz Albums charts respectively. The single "Ain't No Way" – B-Side of "Since You've Been Gone (Sweet, Sweet, Baby)" – peaked at #9 on the Black Singles chart and #16 on the Pop Singles chart.

Legacy

The album was included in the book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''. In 2003 the TV network

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Commun ...

named ''Lady Soul'' the 41st greatest album of all time. In 2003 and 2012, it ranked at number 85 on '' Rolling Stone''s list " The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". It rose to number 75 in a 2020 reboot of the list. The album was rated the 29th best album of the 1960s by ''Pitchfork''.

Track listing

:All tracks produced by

Jerry Wexler Jerry may refer to: Animals * Jerry (Grand National winner), racehorse, winner of the 1840 Grand National * Jerry (St Leger winner), racehorse, winner of 1824 St Leger Stakes Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Jerry'' (film), a 2006 Indian fil ...

and Recording engineered by Tom Dowd. Notes * Chain of Fools (Unedited Version) was originally issued on the 1973

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

'' The Best of Aretha Franklin''.

Charts

Singles

Note: Numbers in italic (following original single release information) denote peak positions on ''Billboard'''s "Top/Best Selling R&B Singles" and "Hot 100" charts respectively - courtesy BPI Communications and Joel Whitburn's Record Research Publications.

Personnel

* Aretha Franklin – vocals, backing vocals, piano *

, Bobby Womack, Joe South, Jimmy Johnson – guitar * Tommy Cogbill – bass guitar * Spooner Oldham – piano, electric piano, organ * Bernie Glow, Joe Newman, Melvin Lastie – trumpet * Tony Studd – trombone * King Curtis – tenor saxophone *

Frank Wess Frank Wellington Wess (January 4, 1922 – October 30, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. In addition to his extensive solo work, Wess is remembered for his time in Count Basie's band from the early 1950s into the 1960s. Critic ...

, Seldon Powell – flute, tenor saxophone * Haywood Henry – baritone saxophone * The Sweet Inspirations - backing vocals * Carolyn Franklin – backing vocals *

– backing vocals * Roger Hawkins, Gene Chrisman – drums * Warren Smith – vibraphone

References

{{Authority control 1968 albums Aretha Franklin albums Albums produced by Jerry Wexler Atlantic Records albums Rhino Records albums Albums conducted by Ralph Burns Albums arranged by Arif Mardin