After signing Franklin, Wexler requested her to record a blues song. Franklin later says of her Atlantic tenure that "they just told me to sit on the piano and sing". From the very first chord that Aretha played on the piano, it was clear to everyone that it was a magic moment. It was at that point that Spooner Oldham, who had been hired to play piano, stepped aside to play the electric piano.[6] Within minutes of Franklin's recording, Wexler knew he had a hit.
The FAME session was later disrupted by a fight between Ted White and trumpeter Ken Laxton,[9][10] leaving the B-side, "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" unfinished. Wexler recorded more songs with Franklin in Atlantic's New York City studio, with some members of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section flown in to complete "Do Right Woman" and a number of other tracks (including "Respect"). There was a slight discrepancy in the tape recording speed of the Muscle Shoals FAME studio and the Atlantic's New York studio recorders. The foundation track of "Do Right Woman" recorded at Muscle Shoals and the subsequent tracks added at Atlantic's New York studio are very slightly out of tune with each other.[11]
Reception
Billboard described "I Never Loved a Man" as "a powerful blues wailer that will create much excitement in
both pop and r&b markets."[12] It 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 first Atlantic LP. 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 #189 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2009, the 1967 recording on Atlantic Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[13]
The creation of the song is related in the 2005 BBC Two documentary series Soul Deep, including interviews with the original personnel including Franklin, Shannon (demonstrating the central riff on electric piano), and Wexler.[15][16][17]
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. 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, Spencer Wiggins and Jennifer Hudson have also covered the song.
There are a number of renditions of this song on YouTube including Franklin performing it on the Lady Soul special from 1968. A live recording featured on the album "Aretha in Paris" (1968).[citation needed]
^Dobkin, Matt (2004). I Never Loved a Man the Way I Loved You: Aretha Franklin, Respect, and the Making of a Soul Music Masterpiece. New York: St. Martin's Press, pp160-161
^"Spotlight Singles"(PDF). Billboard. February 25, 1967. p. 18. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
