For many listeners, the soul music of the 1960s represents the essence of African-American musical expression. Soul singers are characterised by their dramatic delivery of strongly emotional lyrics so that the listener is swept irresistibly into the same tide of feeling. Many soul singers, like Aretha Franklin, move on from the religious fervour of gospel to the exposition of personal emotions.
Historically, soul music was the logical progression of African-American music, a hybrid genre...