Soulful Sundays: Aretha Franklin

I’ve been an Aretha Franklin fan for a long time. I thought I had heard every song she’s sung.

One morning, I heard a DJ mention an Aretha song that, in his estimation, was one of her best. But, he added, wasn’t as well known as her others. He played the song and I had to agree. It was Ain’t No Way.

I went out that same day and bought the cassette tape (yeah, it was that long ago. I still have it!), played it over and over in the car on the way home and for months later. It captured my imagination.

Ain’t No Way

Ain’t no way for me to love you,
if you won’t let me.
It ain’t no way for me to give you all you need,
if you won’t let me give all of me.
I know that a woman’s duty is to help and love a man,
and that’s the way it was planned.
Oh, but how can I, how can I, how can I
give you all the things I can,
if you’re tying both of my hands?

Oh, it ain’t no way (ain’t no way).
It ain’t no way (ain’t no way).
It just ain’t no way, baby (ain’t no way).
Ain’t no way baby (ain’t no way).
It ain’t no way for me to love you,
if you won’t let me.

Stop trying to be someone you’re not.
How cold and cruel is a man
who pay too much for what he got?
And if you need me to love you, say, say you do.
Oh, then baby, baby, baby don’t you know that
I need you.
Oh, Oh, it ain’t no way.
I’ll tell you that it ain’t no way,
It ain’t no way.
It ain’t no way, baby, no.
It just ain’t no way.
It sure ain’t no way
It ain’t no way for me to love you,
if you won’t let me…

Enjoy!

Ain\’t No Way

Aretha will be performing in July at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater in Babylon, NY. I would love to see her again but I doubt I’ll be able to. If I had my choice, though, I’d see her in a more intimate setting.

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