“We all wept”: how Aretha Franklin reduced Elton John to tears
Some singers have an intrinsic ability to move their audiences to tears. Whether it’s through sheer talent, the emotional nuance in their delivery, or the words they’re voicing, they turn on the waterworks and leave your eyes blurry. One artist who harboured that ability was Aretha Franklin. The certified Queen of Soul had so much talent and authenticity packed into her voice that she could spark movements and reduce you to happy tears or sad ones.
On one occasion, Franklin even managed to reduce Elton John to tears. John may be a pop icon for tracks like ‘Rocket Man’ and ‘I’m Still Standing’, but he has his fair share of tear-jerkers in his own catalogue. From the gorgeous and endlessly covered ‘Your Song’ to the beloved ‘Tiny Dancer’, his music can be just as emotional as it is entertaining.
The two musical giants united just before Franklin’s death at a benefit for the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The gig would be Franklin’s last, taking place the year before she passed away at her home in the summer of 2018. She graced the stage at New York’s St John The Divine Cathedral to play some of her biggest hits, stunning both John and the entire audience.
“She was obviously unwell,” John recalled on Instagram after Franklin’s death, “and I wasn’t sure she could perform,” but the Queen of Soul quickly quelled his concerns. With a set that included iconic tracks like ‘I Say A Little Prayer’, she delivered a performance as good as any other in her career.
In a recording of the performance, Franklin fades out a gorgeous vocalisation before spreading her hands apart, welcoming the wild applause that follows. “Aretha raised the roof,” John remembered, “She sang and played magnificently, and we all wept. We were witnessing the greatest soul artist of all time.”
Stunned by her talent, John was understandably moved to tears, as any of us likely would have been in the presence of Franklin. She was a formidable force on stage, remaining one of the greatest vocalists of all time up to and long beyond her death.
John’s admiration for Franklin was not one-sided, and the pair had a relationship that pre-dated the benefit. In 1970, Franklin covered John’s songwriting collaboration with Bernie Taupin, ‘Border Song’. Over characteristic keys and gorgeous backing vocals, the lyrics contemplated peace and hatred. “He’s my brother. Let us live in peace,” John sang repeatedly.
Both sonically and lyrically, the track seemed like it was made for Franklin. Her own output had often been taken on by the civil rights movement, so the cover seemed like a perfect fit. Maintaining the sparkle of John’s songwriting but taking the piece to new heights, she delivered a stunning version of the track within the year.
The pair even performed it together on stage, combining their tear-jerking and awe-inspiring talents. Between the lyrics and the talent in her voice, it’s yet another track more than worthy of your tears. Essential figures in the soul and pop worlds respectively, John and Franklin had a mutual respect and admiration for one another. Each of them moved countless audiences to tears with their sheer talent.
Watch the Aretha Franklin performance that moved Elton John to tears below.
