Aretha Franklin was 14 when the recordings later released as Songs of Faith were made. The sessions took place in 1956 at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, where her father, Reverend C. L. Franklin, preached.
The performances captured Franklin in her earliest recorded setting: gospel music, piano accompaniment, and the intense church environment that shaped her vocal style. Joe Von Battle recorded the services and issued the material through his J-V-B label. The album’s later title reflects its religious repertoire and setting.
The age can cause confusion because Songs of Faith was reissued and circulated in later forms, including a 1965 Checker Records release. That later release date does not indicate when the performances were recorded. Franklin was 14 in 1956, years before her Columbia and Atlantic careers.