It’s one of those moments many will always remember – where you were, what you were doing – when you heard that the “Queen of Soul” and cultural and civil rights icon, Aretha Franklin, had passed.
Arguably, Memphians are among the most grieved; this is the city where Aretha lived as a child. Before Detroit ever saw the Franklin family, Aretha called Memphis home. Here is where she began to hone her skills on the piano as a self-taught prodigy and gospel phenom. Memphis is where the dream of stardom took root.
On stages in myriad parts of the country and the world, Memphis songbirds have thrilled audiences with sultry renditions of Franklin’s parade of hits – “Natural Woman,” “Something He Can Feel,” “Chain of Fools,” “Dr. Feelgood,” “You Send Me,” “I Never Loved a Man,” “Respect,” “Call Me” and more.
Four homegrown female vocalists, iconic and emblematic in their own right, shared their reflections about the star that has so greatly inspired their performances.
‘Queen Ann’ Hines…
Fans of Etta James, Dorothy Moore, and, of course, Aretha Franklin can catch Queen Ann Hines and the Memphis Blues Masters in Beale Street nightspots.
“I’d Rather Go Blind,” “All I Could Do Was Cry,” “Chain of Fools,” “Dr. Feelgood” – Hines takes royal license to come off the stage and sing to male patrons, whether they have a date or not. It’s all in good fun, and Queen Ann routinely packs the house.
She lived in Italy for a number of years in a little city called Pabullo. Hines developed an adoring fan base while there, and she ran her own tour company called Queen Ann European Tours. Performers used her agency all the time. In 2000, she arranged for Aretha Franklin to perform for the Pope at the Vatican.
Hines and Dionne Warwick were there with the Pope. The traveling agency was challenged with an unusual circumstance, a detail that threatened the planned and promised performance. While still in the early days of performing, Aretha Franklin swore off flying after a flight she was on flew into some frightening turbulence.
Her normal mode of transportation to concerts and appearances was mostly by tour bus and cars, according to Ann. Warwick flew to the venue for a live performance. At the behest of Franklin’s agent at the time, Carl Hunter of the Ruth Bowen Agency, arrangements were coordinated for her performance to be delivered via satellite.
“It was a touching performance by Aretha and the Harlem Gospel Choir,” Hines recalled. “Dionne and I enjoyed the singing immensely. And I doubt that the Pope could forget the presentation of traditional, black gospel music. That night, Miss Franklin definitely delivered.”
Hines has her own discography of Franklin favs: “Chain of Fools,” “Natural Woman,” “Respect,” and “Dr. Feelgood.”
“We’ve lost a great music legend, the world has. And for the rest of my career, for the rest of my life, I will always do Aretha’s songs. She will be honored, and she will be remembered in our stage performances from now on.”
Sandra Bray…
Cool jazz, soulful jazz, blues-fused jazz, all that jazz – Sandra Bray is dynamic.
“If you think you’re a singer, or if you are calling yourself anybody’s singer, you better have some Aretha Franklin songs in your repertoire,” Bray says.
She delivers innovative renditions of Franklin songs, all with the signature, swing rhythm of traditional, jazz standards.
“I was trying to learn ‘Dr. Feelgood’ and I was wondering, ‘How can I make that blues song a jazz number?’”
She did it, and now it is a fan favorite, along with other Bray-style Aretha Franklin performances – “Chain of Fools,” “Respect” and “Natural Woman.”
“What a lot of people don’t know is that when Aretha first started singing professionally, she was a jazz singer,” said Bray. “Her early work was gospel and then jazz, for that first year. But those who were managing her thought that she would be more commercially successful singing R&B, and that’s how she became the Aretha we all know and love.
“When I heard the news that she had gone on to be with the Lord, I was happy,” said Bray. “We grieve because we will miss her, but she was tired. And I believe she was ready to go.
Bray is also a gospel singer and minister.
Deborah Manning Thomas…
Thomas was watching a local news broadcast when she heard the somber news.
“I heard them say that Aretha Franklin had passed,” said Thomas. “I stopped what I was doing and just sat there. It was like losing an auntie or close relative. I was bedridden the rest of the day. I mean, I was sick. I am still grieving.”
Thomas and Franklin were both just young children when others discovered that they were extraordinarily gifted.
“When I was 12, my favorite album was ‘The Gospel Soul of Aretha Franklin,’ said Thomas. “She recorded that when she was still a teenager. She is the reason I do the runs and riffs with my voice. Aretha was just legend. Those old songs, ‘Never Grow Old’ and ‘Precious Lord,’ they are traditional standards in the black church. I wanted to sing like that, with the power and spirit in her voice.
“Aretha had a hard life. We know that her man was beating on her,” said Thomas. “But she was able to let it go through her singing. You could hear it in the soulfulness of her voice – the pathos, the pain, the beauty of her singing. Aretha was self-taught on the piano; she played by ear. She was never classically trained. Elton John said she was an extraordinary pianist. Coming from him, that really says something.”
Thomas has been a gospel and stage sensation in Memphis her whole adult life.
She also boasts two movie roles. Thomas played a maid in “The Firm” and was seen in “Hustle and Flow” as the fifth choir member. Both blockbusters were filmed in Memphis.
A few years back, Thomas suspended audiences in time, taking them back to a day when Mahalia Jackson comforted a nation of people marching against the tyranny of racism. Hattiloo Theater was the setting, and Thomas was Mahalia Jackson singing the favorite song of Dr. Martin Luther King, “Precious Lord, Take My Hand.”
“I did a short film over there at the house on Lucy Street where Aretha once lived as a girl,” said Thomas. “It was hallowed ground, standing there at that house. Aretha’s mother, Barbara Siggers, was a phenomenal singer, they say. I believe Barbara’s voice came through Aretha. We experienced Barbara’s singing through her daughter.”
Toni Green…
For years, Toni Green has been an international ambassador for the Queen of Soul. European audiences have experienced the music of Soul’s Queen, Aretha Franklin, through Toni’s performances.
Her repertoire is filled with both some of Franklin’s biggest hits as well as lesser-known work.
“I’ve just always loved her music,” said Green. “I loved watching her on television, the singing and her outfits. It was like watching a Barbie Doll sing.”
Aretha Franklin fever struck Green when she was in her early teens.
“I wanted that original album entitled, ‘It Won’t Be Long.’ I wanted it so badly that I cleaned an elderly lady’s home who lived a couple of doors down from us. I mean I worked hard, and when I finished, she gave me $4 or $5. I ran down to the record store, and I stayed there all day listening to her music.
“My mother didn’t know where I was. I was gone all day, and when I finally got home, I got a whipping. So I told Aretha’s people to tell her that she is responsible for making me get a whipping.”
Green is a serious student of Aretha’s music. She has listened to the extensive catalog, marveling over the music and the back vocals that created the Queen of Soul’s signature style.
“Those back vocals were dug in,” said Green. “They were not just there to make a dollar. The harmonies were tight. I love listening to her music, even now.
Toni starts to cry. She has been crying much of the day. But then, she reflects on the joy of singing Aretha’s music on Beale Street stages and around the world.
“When I sing ‘Giving Him Something He Can Feel,’ you can’t tell me I’m not the finest thing you ever saw,” said Green. “Aretha’s music is transforming. When I am singing, that is what I feel. I love the songs. My audiences love her songs. Being on stage is pure joy. Singing Aretha’s songs is just beyond joyous.”
Green will be back overseas soon. Singing Aretha’s songs – now that she has passed – will take on new meaning, she says.
“All of those songs of hers that I perform will affect me deeply, I know. A great era has passed with Aretha’s death. I feel lost.”
