Episode 149: “Respect” by Aretha Franklin
A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs
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'Ted White'
Heather James says Ted White was famous even before he got with Aretha. He had been Diana Washington's boyfriend in the 50s, and her first sight of him had been carrying a drunk Washington out of the house after a party. A lot of the big time singers who re-idolised as girls, like Billy Holiday and Sarah Vaughan, had pimps for boyfriends and managers. That was standard operating procedure. My own mother had made a living turning tricks. When we were getting started, that way of life was part of the music business. It was in our genes. Part of the lure of pimps was that they got us paid.
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