TORONTO - Proving her title as the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin took to the stage like a true diva at a free outdoor mini-concert in the city Tuesday, wearing a floor-length white fur coat and belting out five tunes with gusto, including her classics "Respect" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman."
"We love you, Aretha!" fans screamed over and over as the 65-year-old gospel legend from Detroit got the crowd clapping, singing and bopping their heads with her legendary pipes outside Holt Renfrew's flagship Bloor Street store.
The half-hour show was part of the company's annual holiday window display launch, emceed by "Entertainment Tonight Canada" hosts Cheryl Hickey and Roz Weston.
Franklin was slated to sing four tracks with the band but wound up doing five, despite the chilly temperatures and rain that she tried to shrug off by pulling her fur collars over her throat to protect her husky vocals.
In a silver-sequined squirt and skirt combo, Franklin even sat behind the piano for a track from her upcoming album, "A Woman Falling Out of Love," set for release in the spring.
"It's kind of cold out here, as you know, so I'll probably be drinking hot tea, and that's all it is, just to keep my throat open, OK?" she said to the crowd of hundreds who stood in the rain, some for many hours, in a blocked off section of the luxury shopping district.
The superstar singer was only scheduled for that event in Toronto and planned to leave the next day. Her new compilation disc, "Jewels in the Crown: All-Star Duets With the Queen," is set for release next week and boasts collaborations with an eclectic blend of artists, including Frank Sinatra, Mary J. Blige, Fantasia Barrino John Legend and Keith Richards.
The disc also has Franklin's unforgettable performance at the 1998 Grammy Awards, when she filled in at the last minute for a sick Luciano Pavarotti.
This is the third year in a row the Canadian specialty retailer Holt Renfrew has held a grand public unveiling of its Christmas window display at the store.
This year's window display has a couture theme.
