Aretha Live at Fillmore West
Live album by
Aretha Franklin
ReleasedMay 19, 1971
RecordedMarch 5–7, 1971
VenueFillmore West Concert Hall
(San Francisco, California)
LabelAtlantic
ProducerJerry Wexler
Aretha Franklin chronology
Spirit in the Dark
(1970) 		Aretha Live at Fillmore West
(1971) 		Aretha's Greatest Hits
(1971)

Aretha Live at Fillmore West is a live album by American singer Aretha Franklin.[1] Released on May 19, 1971, by Atlantic Records. It was reissued on compact disc in 1993 through Rhino Records. An expanded, limited edition 4-CD box set entitled, Don't Fight the Feeling: The Complete Aretha Franklin & King Curtis Live at Fillmore West was released by Rhino in 2005. This was limited to 5000 numbered copies. In addition, there is a guest duet vocal by Ray Charles on "Spirit in the Dark".[2]

Franklin played a Fender Rhodes piano "Eleanor Rigby", "Spirit in the Dark", "Don't Play That Song", "Make it With You" and "Dr. Feelgood". Backing Franklin was King Curtis' band, the Kingpins, featuring Cornell Dupree on guitar, Bernard Purdie on drums, and Jerry Jemmott on bass, Billy Preston on organ, Curtis on saxophone, together with the Memphis Horns.[2] The album reached number one on the Billboard R&B album chart on June 19, 1971.

Background

The recording was made at the Fillmore West concert hall, the storied rock venue in San Francisco, over three nights, March 5, 6 and 7 in 1971. The album opens with Aretha's best-known song, her version of Otis Redding's "Respect". The album features Aretha's take on many "hippie" anthems as Aretha and Atlantic Records executive/album producer Jerry Wexler wanted to reach out to the expected hippie audience in San Francisco. Covers include the Bread song "Make it With You", the Stephen Stills song, "Love the One You're With", Diana Ross' "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)", the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" and Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge over Troubled Water".

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Christgau's Record GuideB[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[4]

Track listing

Original release

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Respect"Otis Redding3:53
2."Love the One You're With"Stephen Stills4:15
3."Bridge Over Troubled Water"Paul Simon5:55
4."Eleanor Rigby"Lennon–McCartney2:33
5."Make It with You"David Gates4:33
6."Don't Play That Song"Ahmet Ertegün, Betty Nelson3:16
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Dr. Feelgood"Aretha Franklin7:06
8."Spirit in the Dark"Aretha Franklin5:33
9."Spirit in the Dark" (Reprise with Ray Charles)Aretha Franklin8:53
10."Reach Out and Touch"Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson2:35
2006 deluxe edition disc 2 – Alternates and Unused Songs
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Respect" (1971-03–06th)Redding3:56
2."Call Me" (1971-03–07th)Franklin5:38
3."Mixed-Up Girl" (1971-03–05th)Jimmy Webb2:58
4."Love the One You're With" (1971-03–05th)Stills4:18
5."Bridge Over Troubled Water" (1971-03–06th)Simon7:41
6."Share Your Love with Me" (1971-03–06th)Alfred Braggs, Deadric Malone4:29
7."Eleanor Rigby" (1971-03–05th)Lennon, McCartney2:37
8."Make It with You" (1971-03–06th)Gates4:49
9."You're All I Need to Get By" (1971-03–06th)Ashford, Simpson5:02
10."Don't Play That Song" (1971-03–05th)Ertegün, Nelson3:16
11."Dr. Feelgood" (1971-03–05th)Franklin6:44
12."Spirit in the Dark" (1971-03–05th)Franklin6:42
13."Spirit in the Dark" (Reprise) (1971-03–05th)Franklin2:40

Don't Fight the Feeling: The Complete Aretha Franklin & King Curtis Live at Fillmore West

Disc 1
  1. "Intro"
  2. "Knock on Wood" – The Memphis Horns
  3. "Whole Lotta Love" – King Curtis
  4. "Them Changes" – King Curtis
  5. "A Whiter Shade of Pale" – King Curtis
  6. "My Sweet Lord" – Billy Preston
  7. "Ode to Billie Joe" – King Curtis
  8. "Mr. Bojangles" – King Curtis
  9. "Soul Serenade" – King Curtis
  10. "Memphis Soul Stew" – King Curtis
  11. "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" – King Curtis
  12. "Respect" – Aretha Franklin
  13. "Call Me" – Aretha Franklin
  14. "Mixed-Up Girl" – Aretha Franklin
  15. "Love the One You're With" – Aretha Franklin
  16. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" – Aretha Franklin
  17. "Eleanor Rigby" – Aretha Franklin
  18. "Make It with You" – Aretha Franklin
  19. "Don’t Play that Song" – Aretha Franklin
Disc 2
  1. "You're All I Need to Get By" – Aretha Franklin
  2. "Dr. Feelgood" – Aretha Franklin
  3. "Spirit in the Dark" – Aretha Franklin
  4. "Spirit in the Dark" (reprise) – Aretha Franklin
  5. "Knock on Wood" – The Memphis Horns
  6. "Them Changes" – King Curtis
  7. "Whole Lotta Love" – King Curtis
  8. "A Whiter Shade of Pale" – King Curtis
  9. "I Stand Accused" – King Curtis
  10. "Soul Serenade" – King Curtis
  11. "Memphis Soul Stew" – King Curtis
  12. "Respect" – Aretha Franklin
  13. "Call Me" – Aretha Franklin
  14. "Love the One You’re with" – Aretha Franklin
  15. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" – Aretha Franklin
Disc 3
  1. "Share Your Love with Me" – Aretha Franklin
  2. "Eleanor Rigby" – Aretha Franklin
  3. "Make It With You" – Aretha Franklin
  4. "You're All I Need to Get By" – Aretha Franklin
  5. "Don't Play That Song" – Aretha Franklin
  6. "Dr. Feelgood" – Aretha Franklin
  7. "Spirit in the Dark" – Aretha Franklin
  8. "Spirit in the Dark" (reprise) – Aretha Franklin
  9. "Knock On Wood" – The Memphis Horns
  10. "Them Changes" – King Curtis
  11. "A Whiter Shade of Pale" – King Curtis
  12. "Ode To Billie Joe" – King Curtis
  13. "Soul Serenade" – King Curtis
  14. "Memphis Soul Stew" – King Curtis
Disc 4
  1. "Respect" – Aretha Franklin
  2. "Call Me" – Aretha Franklin
  3. "Love the One You're With" – Aretha Franklin
  4. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" – Aretha Franklin
  5. "Share Your Love with Me" – Aretha Franklin
  6. "Eleanor Rigby" – Aretha Franklin
  7. "Make It With You" – Aretha Franklin
  8. "Don't Play That Song" – Aretha Franklin
  9. "You're All I Need to Get By" – Aretha Franklin
  10. "Dr. Feelgood" – Aretha Franklin
  11. "Spirit in the Dark" – Aretha Franklin
  12. "Spirit in the Dark" (reprise) – Aretha Franklin with Ray Charles
  13. "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody’s Hand)" – Aretha Franklin

Rhino Handmade remastered 2005 liner notes:
Disc 1 tracks 01 to 19, and Disc 2 tracks 01 to 04 were recorded on March 5, 1971.
Disc 2 tracks 05 to 15, and Disc 3 tracks 01 to 08 were recorded on March 6, 1971.
Disc 3 tracks 09 to 14, and Disc 4 tracks 01 to 13 were recorded on March 7, 1971.

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1971) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[6] 7
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[7] 1
Chart (2018) Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[8] 191

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[9] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Aretha Franklin | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  2. ^ a b c "Overview" allmusic. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  3. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: F". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 24, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  4. ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 262–263.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  6. ^ "Aretha Franklin Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  7. ^ "Aretha Franklin Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  8. ^ "アレサ・ライヴ・アット・フィルモア・ウェスト | アレサ・フランクリン | ORICON NEWS" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  9. ^ "American album certifications – Aretha Franklin – Aretha Franklin at the Fillmore West". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
Categories