"Freeway of Love" is a Grammy Award

Grammy Award

A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

-winning song released as the first single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 from Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin

Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...

's 1985

1985 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1985.-January–March:*January 1 - The newest music video channel, VH-1, debuts on American cable. It is aimed at an older demographic than its sister station, MTV...

 album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 Who's Zoomin' Who?

Who's Zoomin' Who?

Who's Zoomin' Who? is the ever first million-selling, Platinum-certified album by Aretha Franklin, originally released in the summer of 1985. It was the first of four Platinum records in Franklin's 50-plus year recording career....

. It was very successful in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, peaking at the #3 position of the Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 chart, and topping the Hot R&B Singles chart for five weeks (from July 27, 1985 to August 24, 1985). It went to #1 in Australia. In a remixed "rock" version, the song also topped the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, as well. This single became Aretha's fifteenth Top-10 pop hit in the United States and earned her twelfth Grammy Award

Grammy Award

A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

, for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

The song features a notable contribution from Clarence Clemons

Clarence Clemons

Clarence Anicholas Clemons, Jr. , also known as The Big Man, was an American musician and actor. From 1972 until his death, he was a prominent member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, playing the tenor saxophone. He released several solo albums and in 1985, had a hit single with "You're a...

, the saxophonist from Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

’s E Street Band

E Street Band

The E Street Band has been rock musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972.The band has also recorded with a wide range of other artists including Bob Dylan, Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, Air Supply, Dire Straits, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Nicks, Tom Morello, Sting, Ian...

.

Music Video

A music video was filmed at Detroit's Club Taboo on Woodbridge which Aretha co-owned.

Versions

• "Freeway of Love" (single version) 4:09
• "Freeway of Love" (LP version) 5:52
• "Freeway of Love" (Rock Mix) (available on 12" single) 4:40
• "Freeway of Love" (Extended Mix) (available on 12" single) 6:28

Chart positions

Chart (1985)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...	3
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles	1
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Hot Dance Club Play The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...	1

Cover versions

In 1986, "Weird Al" Yankovic

"Weird Al" Yankovic

Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...

 covered the song as part of his polka medley "Polka Party!."

The song was covered in 2009 by house music

House music

House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...

/dance singer Pepper Mashay

Pepper Mashay

Pepper MaShay is an Urban/Soul music, House music and Club/Dance singer-songwriter who has had success as a touring and studio performer.-Personal life:...

.