"Private Dancer" is a hit song recorded by Tina Turner, and written by Mark Knopfler. It is the title track of Tina Turner's most successful album, Private Dancer. The song is viewed from the prospective of a high class prostitute, and it reached number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the US R&B chart. The song had moderate international success, reaching number twenty-six on the UK Singles Chart. (in Wikipedia)
"Freeway of Love" is a Grammy Award-winning song released as the first single from Aretha Franklin's 1985 album Who's Zoomin' Who?. It was very successful in the United States, peaking at the #3 position of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and topping the Hot R&B Singles chart for five weeks (from July 27, 1985 to August 24, 1985). In a remixed "rock" version, the song also topped the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, as well. This single became Aretha's fifteenth Top-10 pop hit in the United States and earned her twelfth Grammy Award, for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
The song features a notable contribution from Clarence Clemons, the saxophonist from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band. (in Wikipedia)
"Believe" is a pop song by American singer-actress Cher. It was released in most countries at the end of 1998 by Warner Bros., as the first single from her twenty third album, Believe.
It became one of the best-selling singles of all time, and is one of the fewer than thirty all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) copies worldwide. It won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording and was also nominated for Record of the Year.
"Believe" is noted for its deliberately bare-faced use of the Auto-Tune pitch-correction software on the singer's vocals to create a peculiar sound effect, sometimes referred to as the "Cher Effect".
The song debuted at #99 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart for the week of December 19, 1998. It peaked at #1 for the week of March 13, 1999. It stayed at #1 for four weeks.
"Believe" reached #74 on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the 90's." (in Wikipedia)
"On Silent Wings" is a song by Tina Turner with guest vocals from Sting. Released in April 1996 in support of Turner's Wildest Dreams album, the single performed reasonably well on the U.S. Adult Contemporary music chart, peaking at number 24. Like much of Turner's later work, "On Silent Wings" enjoyed greater success in the U.K., topping out just shy of the top ten at number 13 on the singles chart, in Poland the track was #1 for five weeks. The single included the country-flavoured single edit with additional guitar overdubs, later appearing on the 2004 compilation All the Best, as well as a second alternative version of the track. Some formats also featured the non-album track "Do Something", written by Holly Knight and Mike Chapman and produced by Trevor Horn.
The dance version of "On Silent Wings", re-mixed by Soul Solution, charted at #47 on the U.S. dance chart. Neither released nor supported by the label, that the dance mix charted at all was due almost entirely to its inclusion by D.J. Julian Marsh on his Centaur Music release Winter Party 1998. (in Wikipedia)
Until You Come Back To Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do), 1973
"Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" is the name of a song written by Morris Broadnax, Clarence Paul, and Stevie Wonder. The song was originally recorded by Stevie Wonder in 1967, but his version did not appear on an album until 1977's Anthology. The most well-known version of this song was done by Aretha Franklin, who had a million selling, top 10 hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard's R&B chart in 1973. It reached #1 on the R&B charts and #3 on the Hot 100 charts in 1974. The song's lyrics tell of a person who has been abandoned by their love interest, but who will continue to attempt to contact and win back that person until s/he returns. (in Wikipedia)
"Dark Lady" is an pop rock song recorded by American singer actress Cher from eleventh studio album, Dark Lady. Produced by Snuff Garrett, it was released as the album's first single in early 1974. The song became Cher's third solo U.S. number one hit on March 23, 1974 and her last until "Believe" a quarter-century later.
In 1974, Finnish singer Lea Laven covered this song under the title "Tumma nainen", and the song proved successful in Finland.
In 1974, "Dark Lady" topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for one week, becoming Cher's third solo #1 hit. The song was also a #1 hit in Canada and Sweden, a top ten hit in Norway and a top twenty hit in the Netherlands. Like Half-Breed, the song struggled in Germany and the UK, though it managed to reach top forty status in the UK. (in Wikipedia)
"The Best" is a song written by Mike Chapman and Holly Knight, originally included on Bonnie Tyler's 1988 release Hide Your Heart, in reference to Tom Mason. The song was then recorded and released as a highly successful single by Tina Turner in 1989 on her hit album Foreign Affair. The saxophone solo on Turner's version is played by Edgar Winter.
Holly Knight told Songfacts: "'Simply The Best' is one of those rare gems that's a positive song, and it's not cheesy. But the hard part is to write something in a positive mode that really is sincere - that's a tall order."
"The Best" is one of Turner's most successful and popular singles worldwide. It peaked at number 15 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and made it to the top five in the UK, peaking at number 5 and Germany, reaching number 4. Certain editions of Turner's single also included the non-album track "Bold and Reckless", produced by Rupert Hine. (in Wikipedia)
Aretha Franklin released a cover version of the song in the summer of 1971 which outperformed the original on the charts, charting #1 R&B for three weeks and #2 Pop for two weeks. Aretha Franklin's version earned a gold single for sales of over one million. Dr. John played keyboards on Franklin's version. This version hit #6 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart. Franklin also changed the lyrics slightly, from "A red rose up in Spanish Harlem" to "There's a rose in Black 'n Spanish Harlem. A rose in Black 'n Spanish Harlem." (in Wikipedia)
"Half-Breed" is a song recorded by Cher and released as a single in 1973. On October 6, 1973, it became Cher's second U.S. number one hit as a solo artist, similarly becoming her second solo single to hit the top spot in Canada on the same date.
In 1973, "Half-Breed" topped the United States Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks, becoming Cher's second number one hit and second Gold single. The song was a number one hit in Canada, a Top 10 hit in Sweden, and a Top 20 hit in Norway. In Germany and the United Kingdom, the song did not chart. (in Wikipedia)
"What's Love Got to Do with It" is the second single (after "Let's Stay Together") released from Tina Turner's fifth solo album Private Dancer. In Europe it was the third single following Turner's cover of The Beatles' "Help!". "What's Love Got to Do with It" became Turner's most successful single.
Turner had previously released two solo albums while still with her husband and musical partner Ike Turner. She split from him in 1976 and divorced him in 1978. Following the divorce, she released two more solo albums, both of which failed on the charts. However, "What's Love Got to Do with It", from her fifth solo album, reached the top five in both the US and UK. The music video was directed by Mark Robinson. The song ranked #309 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It also ranked #38 on Songs of the Century. It was the 17th best-selling single of 1984 in the UK. The song was originally recorded by UK pop group Bucks Fizz, but unreleased until 2000. In 1993, the song's name was used as the title for What's Love Got to Do With It, a biographical film about Tina Turner's life. (in Wikipedia)
"Chain of Fools" is a song written by Don Covay. Aretha Franklin first released the song as a single in 1967 and subsequently it appeared on many of her albums. It reached number one on the U.S. R&B chart, staying there for four weeks, and went to number two on the pop chart in January 1968.
It won the Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, and later a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. In 2004, this song was ranked #249 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The trademark tremolo guitar licks at the introduction were played by Joe South. (in Wikipedia)
"Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves" is the first single released by Cher for the album of the same name, her seventh solo album. It was her first chart-topper as a solo artist in the United States.
It hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 6, 1971, and it remained there for two consecutive weeks. The single also reached #1 in Canada and the Top 10 in many European countries, becoming the number-one selling single of 1971 at more than 3 million copies worldwide. Today it remains one of her signature songs. (in Wikipedia)
Tina Turner first covered Proud Mary in 1971 with her husband at the time, Ike Turner. The Ike & Tina Turner version was released as a single from their Workin' Together album and the song differed greatly from the structure of the original, but is also well known and has become one of Tina's most recognizable signature songs. The Turners' version was substantially rearranged by Soko Richardson and Ike Turner. It included a sultry, slow opening and spoken-word intro by Tina Turner, as well as bass backing vocals from Ike. It reached #4 on the pop charts on March 27, 1971, two years to the week after Creedence Clearwater Revival's version was at its peak, and won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group in 1972.
In 1988, a live solo version was included on the album Tina Live in Europe. Tina Turner later re-recorded the song in the studio for the 1993 soundtrack album What's Love Got to Do With It. This version was released as a promotional single issued to radio stations and DJs. Tina's solo version was later included on her 2004 greatest hits album All the Best. After a contestant's performance of the song on The X Factor in 2010, this version entered the UK Singles Chart at #62 and fell to #121 the next week, it also entered the Scottish Singles Chart at #40. (in Wikipedia)
"Respect" is a song written and originally released by Stax recording artist Otis Redding in 1965. "Respect" became a 1967 hit and signature song for R&B singer Aretha Franklin. While Redding wrote the song as a man's plea for respect and recognition from a woman, the roles were reversed for Franklin's version. Franklin's cover was a landmark for the feminist movement, and is often considered as one of the best songs of the R&B era, earning her two Grammy Awards in 1968 for "Best Rhythm & Blues Recording" and "Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female", and was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2002, the Library of Congress honored Franklin's version by adding it to the National Recording Registry. It is number five on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It was also included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. (in Wikipedia)
"Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" is the second single by singer-actress Cher from her second studio album The Sonny Side of Chér. The song was written by Sonny Bono and released in 1966. The song reached number three in the UK Singles Chart and number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The same year, the song was covered by Nancy Sinatra.
The single proved successful, charting high on many national charts worldwide. In the United States, it was Cher's biggest solo hit of the 1960s, peaking at #2. The single sold over 3 million copies, in the US alone, by 1984. In 1987, Cher released this song as a single again from her nineteenth album Cher. (in Wikipedia)
This week Choose of the Week will continue to present the Music Divas according to website About.com.
Although, we will introduce a suggested Diva by one fan. So the themes this week will be:
- Best of Diva Cher
- Best of Diva Aretha Franklin
- Best of Suggested Diva Tina Turner
"Saving All My Love for You" is the second hit single from Whitney Houston's self-titled debut album. This jazzy ballad (released in August 1985) is about a love affair with a married man, and the singer is "saving all her love for him". The song was written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin. The song was arranged by Gene Page. It was also a minor hit for Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. in 1978 on their album Marilyn & Billy (although Davis’ voice was not heard on their version).
Houston won the 1986 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the American Music Award for Favorite R&B/Soul Video for "Saving All My Love For You". (in Wikipedia)
"Beauty and the Beast" is the leading single from the Academy Award Best Picture nominated animated film Beauty and the Beast film and the first hit single from Céline Dion's eponymous album. It was performed in the movie by Angela Lansbury and sung over the movie's closing credits by Céline Dion and Peabo Bryson. The Dion-Bryson single was released on November 16, 1991 in Canada, on December 30, 1991 in the United States and the next year in the rest of the world.
The song is a ballad about the love developing between Belle and the Beast. It was written by composer Alan Menken and late lyricist Howard Ashman. It was one of Ashman's last works before he died of AIDS in 1991.
"Beauty and the Beast" won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1992, marking Menken and Ashman's (posthumously) second win after the 1989 award for "Under the Sea" from The Little Mermaid. A couple of months before, it had also won the 1992 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. It also went on winning two Grammy Awards in 1993, for the Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media and the Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. The song was also nominated for two other important Grammys: Record of the Year and the Song of the Year. In Canada, "Beauty and the Beast" won a Juno Award for the Single of the Year. (in Wikipedia)
"Don't Forget About Us" is a song co-written by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Johntá Austin and Bryan-Michael Cox, and recorded by Carey for the re-release of her tenth studio album, The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). The song reached number one in Finland, Flanders and the U.S., and the top forty elsewhere. It was nominated for two awards at the 49th Grammy Awards.
"Don't Forget About Us" was released to U.S. radio on October 11, 2005. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in its eleventh week and spent two weeks at the top, from December 25 to January 8. "Don't Forget About Us" stayed in the top forty for eighteen weeks and reached number one on other Billboard charts, including the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. At the time, it tied Carey with Elvis Presley for the most number-one singles in the U.S. by a solo artist with seventeen; she has since surpassed this record and is now behind only The Beatles, who hold the record with twenty. (in Wikipedia)
In 1992, singer Whitney Houston recorded the song for the soundtrack to The Bodyguard, her film debut. Houston was originally to record Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" as the lead single from The Bodyguard. However, when it was discovered the song was to be used for Fried Green Tomatoes, Houston requested a different song and her co-star Kevin Costner brought her Linda Ronstadt's 1975 version of "I Will Always Love You" from her album Prisoner in Disguise. Houston and producer David Foster re-arranged the song as a soul ballad. Her record company did not feel a song with an a cappella introduction would be as successful; however, Houston and Costner insisted on retaining the a cappella intro. The tenor saxophone solo was played by Kirk Whalum. Whitney Houston's recording is not the only version of the song featured in the movie. In a scene where she dances with Kevin Costner, a version by John Doe can be heard playing on a jukebox.
Houston's version was a massive worldwide success, selling over 12 million copies worldwide. It became a regular on countdown lists: appearing at number eight on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the Past 25 Years"; number four on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the 90s" and number one on VH1's "100 Greatest Love Songs". The song also lists at number sixty-eight on Billboard's "Greatest Songs of All Time". (in Wikipedia)
