Who's Zoomin' Who?
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| Who's Zoomin' Who? | ||||
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| File:Who's Zoomin Who album.jpg | ||||
| Studio album by Aretha Franklin | ||||
| Released | July 1985 | |||
| Recorded | October 1984 – May 1985 | |||
| Genre | Pop, rock, R&B, dance | |||
| Length | 47:15 | |||
| Label | Arista | |||
| Producer | Narada Michael Walden For Perfection Light Productions (Tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8), Aretha Franklin (Tracks 3, 9), Dave Stewart (Track 5) | |||
| Aretha Franklin chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Who's Zoomin' Who? | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    link |
| Robert Christgau | A link |
| Rolling Stone | Favorable link |
Who's Zoomin' Who? is a Platinum-plus album by American musician Aretha Franklin, originally released in the summer of 1985, on Arista Records. It received praising critical reviews from people such as Robert Christgau. Single "Freeway of Love" proved both a commercial hit as well as a career achievement for Franklin, earning her a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
Album history
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Franklin said she wanted to do "a record with a younger sound to it. I'd been listening to the radio and I really liked what I heard. I figured to myself that it was time for me to do something serious."[1]
The album's lead single, "Freeway of Love", produced by Narada Michael Walden, was one of Franklin's biggest career hits. It held the #1 position on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for five consecutive weeks and also reached #3 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Cash Box Top 100. "Freeway of Love" also won a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. The follow-up single was the album's title track, "Who's Zoomin' Who?", which reached #2 on the R&B chart as well as #7 on Billboard's Hot 100. It also returned Franklin to the Top 10 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.
Also in 1985, Franklin duetted with the British rock/pop duo Eurythmics on the song "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves". The single was a top 10 hit in the UK, and was added to later pressings of the Who's Zoomin' Who? album.
With this album, Franklin also established herself as a star of music video. Popular videos for "Freeway of Love", "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" and "Another Night" - filmed at Detroit's Club Taboo on Woodbridge which Franklin co-owned - enjoyed heavy rotation on MTV.
At the time of its release, Franklin rated it as one of her best albums ever.[1]
The album was ranked #89 in Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Albums of the '80s.
Track listing
- Side One
- "Freeway of Love" (Jeffrey Cohen, Narada Michael Walden) - 5:52
- "Another Night" (Beppe Cantarelli, Roy Freeland) - 4:31
- "Sweet Bitter Love" (Van McCoy) - 5:11
- "Who's Zoomin' Who" (Aretha Franklin, Preston Glass, Narada Michael Walden) - 4:44
- Side Two
- "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" (with Eurythmics) (Annie Lennox, David A. Stewart) - 5:52
- "Until You Say You Love Me" (Preston Glass, Narada Michael Walden) - 4:23
- "Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You" (Jeffrey Cohen, Narada Michael Walden) - 4:50
- "Push" (Duet with Peter Wolf) (Jeffrey Cohen, Narada Michael Walden) - 4:35
- "Integrity" (Aretha Franklin) - 4:25
| 2014 Funky Town Grooves Remastered CD | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 10. | "Freeway Of Love [Single Mix]" | |
| 11. | "Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves [Single Mix]" | |
| 12. | "Who's Zoomin' Who? [Radio Mix]" | |
| 13. | "Another Night [Radio Mix]" | |
| 14. | "Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You [Single Mix]" | |
Disc Two:
- Freeway Of Love [Rock Mix]
- Freeway Of Love [Extended Remix]
- Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves [ET Mix]
- Who's Zoomin' Who [Dance Mix]
- Who's Zoomin' Who [Dub Mix]
- Who's Zoomin' Who [Acappella Mix]
- Another Night [Dance Mix]
- Another Night [Dub Mix]
- Another Night [Single Mix]
- Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You [Remix]
- Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You [Dub Mix]
- Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You [Percapella Mix]
Production & Personnel
- Tracks 3 & 9 Arranged & produced by Aretha Franklin. Recorded at United Sound (Detroit; vocals & instruments recorded by Mike Iacopelli) & The Power Station (strings; recorded by Josh Abbey & arranged by Paul Riser). Robert Kandor: Synthesizers; Nat Adderley, Jr.: Keyboards; William Powell, Steve Khan: Guitars; Louis Johnson: Bass; Yogi Horton: Drums; Steve Kroon: Percussion; Dizzy Gillespie: Trumpet Solo on track 9; Sandra Feva, Margaret Branch, Corbett: Backing vocals on track 9
- Track 5 Arranged & produced by Dave Stewart. Engineered by Adam Williams & Don Smith, with assistance by Jay Willis (for recording of vocals, guitars, keyboards & bass). Drums recorded by Shelly Yakus. Mixed by Dave Stewart & Don Smith.
- Annie Lennox: Vocals, Keyboards; Dave Stewart: Rhythm Guitar & Keyboards; Mike Campbell: Lead Guitar; Benmont Tench: Organ; Nathan East: Bass; Stan Lynch: Drums, Percussion; The Charles Williams Singers: Gospel Choir
- All other tracks arranged & produced by Narada Michael Walden for Perfection Light Productions. Engineered & mixed by "Dr." Dave Frazer, with additional mixing by Michael Brauer. Second Engineers: Maureen "Mo-Mo" Draney, Ray Pyle, Dana Jon Chapelle, Gordon "Trix" Logan, Tim Crich, Moira Marquis, Paul Hamingson
- Narada Michael Walden: Drums, Percussion; Randy Jackson: Electric & Synthesized Bass; Walter Afanasieff: Keyboards; Preston Glass: Keyboards & Keyboard Vibes, Backing vocals; Ray Gomez, Carlos Santana: Guitars; Corrado Rustici: Guitars & Guitar Synthesizers; Greg Gonaway: Tambourine; Andy Narell: Steel Drums; Santana Rhythm Section: Percussion; Clarence Clemons: Saxophone; Carolyn Franklin, Sylvester, Jeanie Tracy, Vicki Randle, Jim Gilstrap, Kitty Beethoven, Laundon Von Hendricks, Nikita Jermaine, Karen Benington, Craig Thomas: Backing vocals
External links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rolling Stone magazine, circa 1985 - upon the release of "Who's Zoomin' Who", "Aretha Franklin's New Wave of Pop" written by Eliza Graham, page 11.
