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At the young age of 18 Aretha joins Columbia records. This was in 1960.
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The Music Career and Success of Aretha Franklin From Columbia to Arista records
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Columbia released Franklin's first Christian album, Aretha: With The Ray Bryant Combo. The album featured her first single to chart the Billboard Hot 100, "Won't Be Long", which also peaked at number 7 on the R&B chart.
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In the same year, Franklin scored her first top 40 single with her performance remix of the standard "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody". "Rock-a-Bye" became her first international hit, reaching the top 40 in Australia and Canada!
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Franklin was named as a "new-star female vocalist" in DownBeat magazine.
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Atlantic issued her faster female version of Otis Redding's "Respect", which reached number one on both the R&B (Rhythm and Blues) and pop charts. "Respect" became her signature song and was later praised as a civil rights and feminist anthem.
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Franklin's success expanded during the early 1970s, during which she recorded R&B number one "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)", as well as the top-ten singles "Spanish Harlem", "Rock Steady" and "Day Dreaming".
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Franklin became the first R&B performer to headline Fillmore West, later that year releasing the live album Aretha Live at Fillmore West.
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After leaving Atlantic Records, Franklin signed with Clive Davis's Arista Records and that same year gave a command performance at London's Royal Albert Hall in front of Queen Elizabeth.
Arista had artists like Whitney Houston, Prince, Outkast, and eventually P!nk, and Pharrell Wiliams. -
Her final Arista album, So Damn Happy, was released in 2003 and featured the Grammy-winning song "Wonderful".