By 1967, Aretha Franklin had released more than 30 singles. Although not all of them charted, she did have moderate hits with songs like “Today I Sing The Blues”, “Won’t Be Long”, and more. She even had a No. 1 on the R&B chart, with “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”, out in 1967. But later that year, with “Respect”, the follow-up to “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”, Franklin scored her first No. 1 on the pop charts.
The success of “Respect” launched Franklin as a bona fide superstar. She followed “Respect” with several other hit singles, including “Baby I Love You”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “I Say A Little Prayer”, and others.
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Otis Redding is the sole writer of “Respect”. He also first released the song in 1965. But when Franklin decided to release “Respect”, she put her own spin on it, making it one of the most successful songs of her career.
What Aretha Franklin Said About “Respect”
Franklin passed away in 2018. For the remainder of her career, “Respect” became a mainstay in her live shows, not that she minded.
“I never get tired of singing it,” Franklin says. “I really love it. And I find new ways to just keep it fresh for me, without changing exactly what it is people heard on the record.”
“Respect says “I ain’t gonna do you wrong / While you’re gone / Ain’t gonna do you wrong / ‘Cause I don’t wanna / All I’m askin’ / Is for a little respect.“
Although the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member was a fan of the song, she falls short of crediting it with being part of any women’s liberation movement.
“I don’t think I was a catalyst for the women’s movement,” Franklin says. “As far as I know, that was Gloria Steinem’s role. But if I were, so much the better. Women did, and still do, need equal rights. We’re doing the same job; we expect the same pay and the same respect.”
Still, it remained one of her favorite songs, among her many, many hits.
“Well, I just love it,” Franklin says. “Of course, that became a mantra for the civil rights movement. ‘Respect’ is just basic to everyone: everybody wants it. … Everybody wants and needs respect. It’s basic to mankind. Perhaps what people could not say, the record said it for them.”
After “Respect”, Franklin didn’t hit No. 1 on the pop charts for 20 more years. In 1987, her “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” collaboration with George Michael also hit No. 1.
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