I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You) (song)
Encyclopedia
"I Never Loved a Man" is a 1967 soul
single released by American
singer Aretha Franklin
. It became a defining song for the Memphis
-born, Detroit
-raised musician, in that it became the first big hit of her career. The song peaked at number one on the Rhythm and Blues
charts and number nine on the pop charts. The B-side was "Do Right Woman". Up until then, Franklin placed two Top 40 singles on the pop chart during her modest tenure on Columbia Records
.
in 1966, producer Jerry Wexler
requested Franklin to record a blues
song (written by Ronnie Shannon) in the famed Alabama
music studio, FAME Studios
, with the legendary Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
. Franklin later says of her Atlantic tenure that "they just told me to sit on the piano and sing". Within minutes of Franklin's recording, Wexler knew he had a hit.
The song's recording was later marred because of a fight between Franklin's then manager and husband, Ted White, and a Muscle Shoals
session musician after the musician was seen flirting with Franklin forcing Wexler to move the recording of more songs with Franklin in their traditional New York
home studio where they had some members of the Muscle Shoals
Rhythm Section flown to New York to record the b-side, "Do Right Woman/Do Right Man" and a number of other tracks.
Wexler then issued the record to radio stations which rose to #9 on the Billboard Hot 100
and became Franklin's first #1 hit on the R&B charts. It was also the title of Franklin's star-making Atlantic Records debut
. Franklin would soon become a superstar after the release of this song. The song has since been called a pivotal moment in rock and roll
. It ranked #186 on Rolling Stone
's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
The creation of the song is related in the BBC documentary series Soul Deep, including interviews with the original personnel including Aretha Franklin, Ronnie Shannon (demonstrating the central riff on electric piano), and Jerry Wexler.
Swedish pop group Roxette
included the song in their MTV Unplugged
show, in 1993. The song was later covered by Aerosmith
as "Never Loved a Girl" on 2004's Honkin' on Bobo
a collection of old blues
and r&b songs. In 2006 Allison Crowe
recorded the song for release on her album, This Little Bird
. The song has also been performed on American Idol
by contestants Sabrina Sloan in season 6 and Alexis Grace in season 8. Both performances received much acclaim. Grammy Award winners Alicia Keys
, Kelly Clarkson
, and Jennifer Hudson
have also covered the song.
There are a number of renditions of this song on Youtube
including Aretha performing it on the Lady Soul special from 1968. A live recording featured on the album "Aretha in Paris
" (1968).
This song has been in many movies, such as the 1991 movie "The Commitments" and the 2007 movie "This Christmas" (starring Loretta Devine and Chris Brown).
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
single released by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer 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...
. It became a defining song for the Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
-born, Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
-raised musician, in that it became the first big hit of her career. The song peaked at number one on the Rhythm and Blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
charts and number nine on the pop charts. The B-side was "Do Right Woman". Up until then, Franklin placed two Top 40 singles on the pop chart during her modest tenure on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
.
History
At the request of signing with Atlantic RecordsAtlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
in 1966, producer Jerry Wexler
Jerry Wexler
Gerald "Jerry" Wexler was a music journalist turned music producer, and was regarded as one of the major record industry players behind music from the 1950s through the 1980s...
requested Franklin to record a blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
song (written by Ronnie Shannon) in the famed Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
music studio, FAME Studios
FAME Studios
FAME Studios are located at 603 East Avalon in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. They have been an integral part of American popular music from the late 1950s to the present...
, with the legendary Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, also known as The Swampers, are a group of American soul, R&B, and country studio musicians based in the town of Muscle Shoals, Alabama...
. Franklin later says of her Atlantic tenure that "they just told me to sit on the piano and sing". Within minutes of Franklin's recording, Wexler knew he had a hit.
The song's recording was later marred because of a fight between Franklin's then manager and husband, Ted White, and a Muscle Shoals
Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
The Muscle Shoals Sound Studio was formed in Muscle Shoals, Alabama,in 1969 when musicians Barry Beckett , Roger Hawkins , Jimmy Johnson and David Hood left FAME Studios to create their own studio...
session musician after the musician was seen flirting with Franklin forcing Wexler to move the recording of more songs with Franklin in their traditional New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
home studio where they had some members of the Muscle Shoals
Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.-Geography:Muscle Shoals is located...
Rhythm Section flown to New York to record the b-side, "Do Right Woman/Do Right Man" and a number of other tracks.
Wexler then issued the record to radio stations which rose to #9 on the 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...
and became Franklin's first #1 hit on the R&B charts. It was also the title of Franklin's star-making Atlantic Records debut
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You is the breakthrough 1967 album by Aretha Franklin. It went to number 2 on the Billboard album chart and number 1 on the magazine's Black Albums chart. It was certified Gold by the RIAA in 1967...
. Franklin would soon become a superstar after the release of this song. The song has since been called a pivotal moment in rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
. It ranked #186 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
The creation of the song is related in the BBC documentary series Soul Deep, including interviews with the original personnel including Aretha Franklin, Ronnie Shannon (demonstrating the central riff on electric piano), and Jerry Wexler.
Swedish pop group Roxette
Roxette
Roxette are a Swedish pop music duo, consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle . Formed in 1986, the duo became an international act from the late 1980s, when they released their breakthrough album Look Sharp!...
included the song in their MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
show, in 1993. The song was later covered by Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
as "Never Loved a Girl" on 2004's Honkin' on Bobo
Honkin' on Bobo
Honkin' on Bobo is the 14th studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released on March 30, 2004 by Columbia Records. The album includes 11 covers and one original track titled "The Grind"...
a collection of old blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and r&b songs. In 2006 Allison Crowe
Allison Crowe
Allison Louise Crowe is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist from Nanaimo, British Columbia who lives in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, communities spanning the breadth of Canada....
recorded the song for release on her album, This Little Bird
This Little Bird
This Little Bird is the fourth studio album by Allison Crowe to be released on her independent label, Rubenesque Records Ltd. Overall, it's the fifth album release from the Canadian singer-songwriter — following Crowe's double-CD ...
. The song has also been performed on American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
by contestants Sabrina Sloan in season 6 and Alexis Grace in season 8. Both performances received much acclaim. Grammy Award winners Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
, Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Brianne Clarkson is an American pop rock singer-songwriter and actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and would later become the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.In 2003,...
, and Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place...
have also covered the song.
There are a number of renditions of this song on Youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
including Aretha performing it on the Lady Soul special from 1968. A live recording featured on the album "Aretha in Paris
Aretha in Paris
Aretha In Paris is a live album by Aretha Franklin released in 1968. The album was recorded in Paris on May 7, 1968. It reached the Top 20 of Billboards album chart...
" (1968).
This song has been in many movies, such as the 1991 movie "The Commitments" and the 2007 movie "This Christmas" (starring Loretta Devine and Chris Brown).
Chart positions
| Charts | Peak position |
|---|---|
| R&B Singles Chart Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
1 |
| 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... |
9 |
See also
- Muscle ShoalsMuscle Shoals Sound StudioThe Muscle Shoals Sound Studio was formed in Muscle Shoals, Alabama,in 1969 when musicians Barry Beckett , Roger Hawkins , Jimmy Johnson and David Hood left FAME Studios to create their own studio...
- Muscle Shoals Rhythm SectionMuscle Shoals Rhythm SectionThe Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, also known as The Swampers, are a group of American soul, R&B, and country studio musicians based in the town of Muscle Shoals, Alabama...
- FAME StudiosFAME StudiosFAME Studios are located at 603 East Avalon in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. They have been an integral part of American popular music from the late 1950s to the present...