So Damn Happy is a studio album by the "Queen of Soul" Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin

Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...

, released in 2003 on Arista Records

Arista Records

Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...

.

This is Aretha's first studio album since 1998's Gold-certified record A Rose Is Still A Rose

A Rose Is Still A Rose

A Rose is Still a Rose is the thirty-sixth studio album by American recording artist Aretha Franklin. Released in 1998, it resulted in the singer's best critically acclaimed and best-selling album of the nineties and her first gold-certified album in twelve years.-Background:By 1997, Aretha...

. The album included the Grammy-winning track "Wonderful".

Shortly after its release, Franklin left Arista Records after twenty-three years with the company.

She later announced plans to start her own Detroit-based record label, Aretha Records. However, there was no subsequent activity.

Track listing

1. "The Only Thing Missin'" (Gordon Chambers
   Gordon Chambers
   Gordon Chambers is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and record producer who has written songs for over 75 recording artists including Angie Stone, Yolanda Adams, The Isley Brothers, Brandy, Trey Songz, Chaka Khan, Patti Labelle, Usher, Marc Anthony, Jamie Foxx, Aretha Franklin,...
   
   , Troy Taylor, Rick Williams, Mylia "Sunny" Davis) 3:07
2. "Wonderful" (Aleese Simmons, Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence) 4:04
3. "Holdin' On ft. Mary J. Blige" (Earl Klugh
   Earl Klugh
   Earl Klugh is an American smooth jazz/crossover jazz/jazz fusion guitarist and composer.At the age of 13, Klugh was captivated by the guitar playing of Chet Atkins when Atkins made an appearance on the Perry Como Show. Klugh was a performing guest on several of Atkins' albums...
   
   , Mary J. Blige
   Mary J. Blige
   Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
   
   , Bruce Miller, Troy Taylor) 4:37
4. "No Matter What ft. Mary J. Blige" (Mary J. Blige, Bruce Miller, Troy Taylor) 4:33
5. "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" (James "Big Jim" Wright, Terry Lewis
   Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
   James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III and Terry Steven Lewis are an American R&B and pop-music songwriting and record production team...
   
   , James Harris) 4:35
6. "So Damn Happy" (Franklin) 4:29
7. "You Are My Joy" (Franklin) 2:34
8. "Falling Out of Love" (Burt Bacharach
   Burt Bacharach
   Burt F. Bacharach is an American pianist, composer and music producer. He is known for his popular hit songs and compositions from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David. Many of their hits were produced specifically for, and performed by, Dionne Warwick...
   
   , Jerry Leiber, Jed Leiber) 4:31
9. "Ain't No Way" (Gordon Chambers, Barry J. Eastmond) 4:37
10. "Good News" (Norman West) 4:55
11. "You Are My Joy (Reprise)" (Franklin) 2:33

Full Personnel

• Adi Yeshaya - Strings, Arranger, Conductor, Horn, Keyboards, Horn Arrangements
• Alexander Vselensky - Violin
• Alfred Brown - Viola
• Allen Sides - Engineer, Mixing
• Andy Stein - Violin
• Anthony Kadleck - Trumpet
• Anthony Posk - Violin
• Aretha Franklin - Piano, Vocals (Background), Producer, Engineer, Mixing
• B.J. - Handclapping
• Barbara Wesotski - A&R
• Barry Eastmond - Arranger, Keyboards, Producer, Engineer
• Belinda Whitney - Violin
• Birch Johnson - Trombone
• Bobby Ross Avila - Guitar, Keyboards
• Brenda Corbett - Vocals (Background)
• Burt Bacharach - Rhythm, Producer, String Arrangements
• Byung Kook Kwak - Violin
• Carl Robinson - Engineer, Assistant
• Cenovia Cummins - Violin
• Charles "Prince Cha... - Mixing
• Cindy Mizelle - Vocals (Background)
• Dan O. - Assistant
• Darryl Houston - Organ
• David Chase - Digital Editing
• David Foster
  David Foster
  David Walter Foster, OC, OBC , is a Canadian musician, record producer, composer, singer, songwriter, and arranger, noted for discovering singers such as Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, and Charice Pempengco; and for producing some of the most successful artists in the world, such as Céline Dion, Toni...
  
   - Synthesizer Strings
• Delant "Butta" Murphy - Handclapping
• EMI Ferguson - Digital Editing
• Eugene J. Moye - Cello
• George Flynn - Trombone
• Gerald Tarack - Violin
• Gloria Agostini - Harp
• Gordon Chambers - Vocals (Background), Producer, Vocal Arrangement
• Greg Phillinganes - Digital Editing
• Israel Chorberg - Violin
• Iz - Drum Programming
• James "Big Jim" Wright - Keyboards, Producer
• Jean-Marie Horvat - Mixing
• Jeff Burns - Assistant
• Jesse Levy - Cello, Orchestra Contractor
• Jimmy Jam - Producer
• JoAnn Tominaga - Production Coordination
• Joe-Mama Nitzberg - Creative Director
• Joey Arbagey - A&R
• Joyce Hammann - Violin
• Karen Karlsrud - Violin
• Keith O'Quinn - Trombone
• Keith Slattery - Assistant
• Kenneth Burward-Hoy - Viola
• Kenya Lucas - Handclapping
• Kermit Moore - Cello

• Kwaku Alston - Photography
• L.A. Reid - Executive Producer
• Leo Grinhauz - Cello
• Lew Soloff
  Lew Soloff
  Lew Soloff is a jazz trumpeter, composer and actor. He studied trumpet at the Eastman School of Music and the Juilliard School. He is likely best known for his work with Blood, Sweat & Tears from 1968 to 1973...
  
   - Trumpet
• Louis Alfred III - Engineer
• Margeret Th. Hjalte... - Viola
• Mary J. Blige
  Mary J. Blige
  Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
  
   - Vocals (Background), Vocal Arrangement, Melodie, Handclapping
• Michael Baker - Strings, Horn
• Michael Hart Thompson - Guitar
• Michael J. Powell - Engineer, Mixing
• Mildred Scott - Vocals (Background)
• Myiia "Sunny" Davis - Vocals (Background)
• Nate Neblett - Drums
• Neil Stubenhaus
  Neil Stubenhaus
  Neil Stubenhaus is an American bass guitarist.-Career:He started his musical training playing drums and switched to bass guitar at the age of 12. He studied at the Berklee College of Music where he graduated in 1975...
  
   - Bass
• Norman West - Synthesizer, Bass, Piano, Keyboards, Producer, Engineer, Mixing
• Olivia Koppell - Violin, Viola
• Pablo Arraya - Assistant
• Paulinho Da Costa
  Paulinho Da Costa
  Paulinho da Costa is a Brazilian percussionist born in Rio de Janeiro, considered one of the most recorded musicians of modern times. Playing over two hundred percussion instruments, he has participated in thousands of recording sessions, Grammy Award-winning albums, hit songs, soundtracks, radio...
  
   - Percussion
• Perry Hughes - Guitar
• Ralphe Armstrong - Bass
• Randy Brecker
  Randy Brecker
  Randal "Randy" Brecker is an American trumpeter and flugelhornist. He is a highly sought after performer in the genres of jazz, rock, and R&B, and has performed or recorded with Stanley Turrentine, Billy Cobham, Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed, Sandip Burman, Charles Mingus, Blood, Sweat & Tears,...
  
  - Trumpet
• Regine Lambert - Handclapping
• Regis Iandiorio - Violin
• Richard Thomas Jenn... - Art Direction, Design
• Rick Williams - Guitar
• Ricky Lawson - Drums
• Rob Shrock - Synthesizer Arrangements
• Robert Chausow - Violin
• Roger Wendt - French Horn
• Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence - Keyboards, Multi Instruments, Producer, Engineer, Drum Programming
• Rowie Nomeri - Engineer
• Sandra Dance - Vocals (Background)
• Sara Divine - Vocals (Background)
• Sharon Moe - French Horn
• Sheila Reinhold - Violin
• Shelly Ponder - Vocals (Background)
• Steve Pageot - Engineer
• Susan Heerema - Violin
• Terry Lewis - Producer
• Tom Coyne - Mastering
• Tom Sweeney - Assistant
• Tommy Morgan - Harmonica, Soloist
• Tommy Wilber - Assistant
• Troy Taylor - Bass, Drums, Keyboards, Programming, Vocals (Background), Multi Instruments, Producer, Vocal Editing
• Vernon D. Fails - Fender Rhodes
• William Bush - Arranger, Keyboards, Drum Programming
• Winterton Garvey - Violin