"Respect", by Aretha Franklin, from USA, in 1967
Kate and Aretha battled it out for the #1 position. Aretha held it from a few days into voting, then Kate surged ahead to keep it for about 9 days in the middle. In the last 3 days though, Aretha came back and held her ground. With 7% more votes than "Wuthering Heights", "Respect" - a song written about how men deserved more respect from women - came to win the poll for the best female-performed song of all time.
Not bad.
This version is from a while back, and is faster than the version from the Blues Brothers you (like myself) may be familiar with. I quite like this, as it's nice and boppy and keeps moving along.
Sorry, but isn't that a song about how women deserved a little more respect from men? Slip of the keyboard there,perhaps?
ReplyDeletenope, it was originally an otis redding song about men wanting respect from women.
ReplyDeletehmmmmmmmmm backfired a bit, didn't it! :)
Well done N! A worthy winner!!!
ReplyDeleteGreat playlist but I was a bit disappointed not to see something from Concrete Blonde or Ladytron in there.
ReplyDeleteJohnette Napolitano is such an amazing singer-love her smoky voice. She will be out here in Aus. in early October if anyone is interested...
Hey - great list, fantastic number 1. Thanks so much. Was hoping - because it was my choice of no.1 and because it's just pure genius - but how great that 40 years after Aretha's version fo this song was released it endures in the collective memory so powerfully.
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ReplyDeleteWell, with all due respect(forgive the uninetional pun)it might be boppy, but it's more ballsy and it certainly ain't "nice". It's the sound of revolution - political, personal and musical (and my memories of it aren't from from The Blues Brothers).
ReplyDeleteFantastic list! Thanks so much for taking the time to compile it in counterpart to the rife sexism/misogyny of JJJ's list. I feel just a little better about the world now.
ReplyDeleteOh, COOL result for number 1. I love this song, and it's a very fitting riposte to JJJ's voters.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for organising this event, Naomi Eve. Can we look forward to another countdown in 2010? :)
Sarah