Young, Gifted And Black  by Aretha Franklin

Only the existence of Rock Steady, a composition by Aretha Franklin herself, would be enough to turn Franklin's eighteenth album into one of the most significant albums of black music. Young, Gifted And Black from 1972 is the final seal that Aretha Franklin reached her artistic peak and would not come down from there until the end... as it happened...

Aretha Franklin offers her audience an album of twelve amazing soul songs. Four of these are her own compositions, while the remaining eight are carefully chosen covers from composers such as the duo of Elton John & Bernie Taupin, the duo of John Lennon & Paul McCartney, the duo of Burt Bacharach & Hal David, and many more. And all this is performed with her unique voice, which is at its best, giving a new dimension to all the covered songs as if they were interpreted by her for the first time. And all this with Billy Preston and Donny Hathaway on the organ and an incredible team of wonderful voices in the backing vocals that create an amazing gospel atmosphere. And all this with Tom Dowd, Arif Mardin, and Jerry Wexler in the album's production, the best of that time (!)

Young, Gifted And Black reached No. 11 on the Billboard and the 500,000 copies made it gold in the USA. Regardless of sales, this particular album has not stopped enchanting and being a point of reference for those who love soul music.