Rock Steady (alt mix)

Recorded at Criterion Studios in Miami, Florida, with Aretha Franklin on vocals and piano and a core rhythm section including Donny Hathaway, Cornell Dupree, Chuck Rainey, Bernard Purdie, and percussion from Dr. John and Robert Popwell. The alternate mix comes from the Young, Gifted and Black sessions and was later issued as an outtake. The track presented Franklin at the height of her early-1970s funk turn, and the Young, Gifted and Black material was issued as part of Atlantic’s major soul catalog. The song was widely recognized as one of her signature recordings and helped define her groove-heavy crossover style. Rock Steady became a heavily sampled and covered Franklin recording, with scholarship describing it as sampled well over 100 times and as a lasting reference point in DJ and hip-hop culture. Its bassline, horn arrangement, and rhythm feel kept it in circulation long after the original sessions.