10: I NEVER LOVED A MAN THE WAY THAT I LOVE YOU | ARETHA FRANKLIN
Jason Ankeny at AllMusic: While the inclusion of "Respect" -- one of the truly seminal singles in pop history -- is in and of itself sufficient to earn I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You classic status, Aretha Franklin's Atlantic label debut is an indisputable masterpiece from start to finish. Much of the credit is due to producer Jerry Wexler, who finally unleashed the soulful intensity so long kept under wraps during her Columbia tenure; assembling a crack Muscle Shoals backing band along with an abundance of impeccable material, Wexler creates the ideal setting to allow Aretha to ascend to the throne of Queen of Soul, and she responds with the strongest performances of her career. While the brilliant title track remains the album's other best-known song, each cut on I Never Loved a Man is touched by greatness; covers of Ray Charles' "Drown in My Own Tears" and Sam Cooke's "Good Times" and "A Change Is Gonna Come" are on par with the original recordings, while Aretha's own contributions -- "Don't Let Me Lose This Dream," "Baby, Baby, Baby," "Save Me," and "Dr. Feelgood (Love Is a Serious Business)" -- are perfectly at home in such lofty company. A soul landmark.
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You is the eleventh studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. The record was released on March 10, 1967, by Atlantic Records.
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You is Aretha's first album with Atlantic Records. The record went to number 2 on the Billboard album chart and number 1 on the magazine's Top R&B Selling chart. It was certified Gold by the RIAA in 1967. It was voted number 352 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000). It received a number 83 ranking on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, and 84 in a 2012 revised list. It was also included in both the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2005) and 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008). When Rolling Stone listed the "Women in Rock: 50 Essential Albums" in 2002 and again 2012, the album listed at number one. The album included two top-10 singles: "Respect" was a number-1 single on Billboard's Hot 100 Pop singles chart, and "I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)" peaked at number 9. The album was rated the 10th best album of the 1960s by Pitchfork. Full article