Happy 75th Birthday Aretha Franklin: Collaborating With The Queen Of Soul Spotify Playlist

Today is the 75th birthday of legendary musician Aretha Franklin. The Queen Of Soul announced earlier this year that she will retire from performing following the release of a new album being produced by Stevie Wonder. Saturday Stream this week celebrates Aretha’s career of collaborations with a 20-song Spotify Playlist featuring Franklin alongside several talented performers.

Franklin, who currently resides in Detroit, told the local television station WDIV about her pending retirement, revealing “I must tell you, I am retiring this year. This will be my last year. I will be recording, but this will be my last year in concert. This is it.” She is expected to record with Wonder in Detroit and issue the new record in September.

Truly earning the title of The Queen Of Soul, Franklin’s final chapter will punctuate a monumentally successful and influential career that began in 1956. Her decades-spanning hits include such classics as “Think,” “Respect,” “Chain of Fools,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Day Dreaming,” “Freeway of Love” and many others.

Some of those songs are featured in the playlist below that showcases Aretha collaborating with the likes of Ray Charles, Mavis Staples, James Brown, Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, Tony Bennett and more. There’s also a track featuring The Blues Brothers and three songs – “When The Battle Is Over,” “It Ain’t Fair” and a cover of The Band’s “The Weight” – that feature session guitar work by the late great Duane Allman.