Aretha Franklin RIP

More than any other "genre pioneer" that I can recall, her death truly feels like the end of an era.  Many rock pioneers have passed away in recent years, but rock has evolved so much since the 50's and 60's and its current incarnations would have been inconceivable to the giants of the past.  But everything Aretha touched still feels fresh, current, and vital.  The famous Kennedy Center performance of "(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman" proved that she still had no equals even a few short years ago.  Not to mention that the R&B superstars who have dominated the pop charts in this generation (Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, Brandy, Beyonce, and dozens of others) clearly owe a lot to Aretha Franklin, and that influence shows little signs of fading.  

I thought about George Michael, who duetted with Franklin in a pairing that seemed far from obvious at the time.  The British teen pop star with the American soul legend twenty years her senior?  Their voices compliment each other perfectly on "I Knew You Were Waiting", which was a transatlantic number one hit.  And yet I can't help but feel that it would have been Boyz II Men/Mariah Carey levels of huge had it been released ten years later.  I also realized for the first time that Michael's "One More Try" is an Aretha Franklin song in style and spirit.