Aretha Franklin

Songwriter: Kenneth Gamble Leon Huff

[Chorus]
Christmas
Just ain't Christmas
Without the one you love
New Years
Just ain't New Years
Without the one you love

[Verse 1]
Underneath the mistletoe
I saw a face all aglow
Last year this time
Now I'm staying home alone
And my house is not a home
Without that girl of mine

[Chorus]

[Verse 2]
Twelve o'clock
And all is well
And I was doing
Oh, so swell
Last year, this time
Going shopping
With friends together
Making vows
To leave each other
Never
It was a waste of time

[Chorus][x3]

[Outro]
Jesus
You do'nt want to know Jesus
He's the reason, reason for this season
[x4]
Reason[repeat until fade]

Aretha Franklin is both a 20th and 21st century musical and cultural icon known simply by her first Aretha. She is the reigning and undisputed “Queen Of Soul” with a legacy that spans five decades. A native of Detroit, Michigan, Aretha began her career singing gospel at her father, minister C. L. Franklin’s church as a child. In 1960, at the age of 18, Aretha embarked on a secular career, recording for Columbia Records with modest success.

After moving to Atlantic Records in 1967, she released a steady string of US top ten hits through 1973 including “Spanish Harlem”, “Chain Of Fools”, “Baby I Love You”, “Since You’ve Been Gone”, “Daydreaming”, “The House That Jack Built”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman", ”Think“ and her first chart-topper “Respect” – a song that also won Aretha her first of 18 Grammys. During this time, several of her songs were also successful overseas.

By the mid-70s, Aretha’s commercial success waned and she left Atlantic for Clive Davis' Arista Records in 1980. Her 1982 song “Jump to It,” returned her to the top 40 for the first time in six years. 1985’s Who’s Zoomin' Who? got her back into the top 10 twice with its title track and “Freeway Of Love”. Four more songs reached the top 40 through 1986.

more tracks from the album

This Christmas, Aretha

From the album

This Christmas, Aretha (2008)

Aretha Franklin popular songs

Christmas Ain’t Christmas (Without The One You Love)Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin

This Christmas, Aretha