Carol Fran (born Carol Augustus Anthony; October 23, 1933 – September 1, 2021)
was an American
soul blues
Soul blues is a style of blues music developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s that combines elements of soul music and urban contemporary music.
Origin
African American singers and musicians who grew up listening to the electric blues by ar ...
singer, pianist, and songwriter, best known for her string of single releases in the 1950s and 1960s, and her later musical association with her husband, Clarence Hollimon. She released six albums since 1992 including four as a duo with Hollimon.
Biography
Carol Augustus Anthony was born in
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette (, ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the most populous city and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, located along the Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's fourth largest incorporated municipality by population and the 234th- ...
.
Commencing her
jump blues
Jump blues is an up-tempo style of blues, usually played by small groups and featuring horn instruments. It was popular in the 1940s and was a precursor of rhythm and blues and rock and roll. Appreciation of jump blues was renewed in the 1990s as ...
singing career with Don Conway, she subsequently relocated to
. There she married a saxophone player, Bob Francois, which allowed a simple abbreviation to arrive at her stage name of Carol Fran. Establishing a musical presence around
Bourbon Street
Bourbon Street (french: Rue Bourbon, es, Calle de Borbón) is a historic street in the heart of the French Quarter of New Orleans. Extending thirteen blocks from Canal Street to Esplanade Avenue, Bourbon Street is famous for its many bars an ...
, New Orleans, Fran also undertook a tour of Mexico. Her debut single was "Emmitt Lee", recorded in 1957 and released by
Excello Records Excello Records was an American blues independent record label, started by Ernie Young in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, in 1953 as a subsidiary of Nashboro, a gospel label.
History
It recorded such artists as Lonnie Brooks, Lightnin' Slim ...
. Three more singles ensued, but lack of success saw Fran singing with
Guitar Slim
Eddie Jones (December 10, 1926 – February 7, 1959), better known as Guitar Slim, was an American guitarist in the 1940s and 1950s, best known for the million-selling song " The Things That I Used to Do", for Specialty Records. It is listed in t ...
, and after his death in 1959, she then sang alongside
Nappy Brown
Napoleon Brown Goodson Culp (October 12, 1929 – September 20, 2008) better known by his stage name Nappy Brown, was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singing, singer. His hit record, hits include the 1955 ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard' ...
,
Lee Dorsey
Irving Lee Dorsey (December 24, 1924 – December 1, 1986) was an American pop and R&B singer during the 1960s. His biggest hits were "Ya Ya" (1961) and " Working in the Coal Mine" (1966). Much of his work was produced by Allen Toussaint, with ...
, and
Joe Tex
Yusuf Hazziez (born Joseph Arrington Jr.; August 8, 1935 – August 13, 1982), known professionally as Joe Tex, was an American singer and musician who gained success in the 1960s and 1970s with his brand of Southern soul, which mixed the style ...
.
Lyric Records then offered a recording contract to Fran. Her next offerings were a
swamp pop
Swamp pop is a music genre indigenous to the Acadiana region of south Louisiana and an adjoining section of southeast Texas. Created in the 1950s by young Cajuns and Creoles, it combines New Orleans–style rhythm and blues, country and western ...
version of "
The Great Pretender
"The Great Pretender" is a popular song recorded by The Platters, with Tony Williams on lead vocals, and released as a single in November 1955. The words and music were written by Buck Ram, the Platters' manager and producer who was a successfu ...
" (1962) and a
cover version
In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
of "
Crying in the Chapel
"Crying in the Chapel" is a song written by Artie Glenn and recorded by his son Darrell Glenn. The song was released in 1953 and reached number six on the ''Billboard'' chart.
The song has also been recorded by many artists including the Orio ...
" (1964). Despite a subsequent reissue of the latter on
Josie Records
Josie Records was a subsidiary of Jubilee Records in New York City that was active from 1954 to 1971.
The label's best selling bands were The Cadillacs ("Speedoo"), Bobby Freeman and the Meters.
Other hits for Josie Records included the Chip ...
, her momentum was stalled by
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
's release of his own version. Her follow-up, "You Can't Stop Me," was enhanced by an
arrangement
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...
by
Sammy Lowe
Sammy Lowe (May 14, 1918, Birmingham, Alabama – February 17, 1993, Birmingham) was an American trumpeter, arranger, and conductor.
Career
Lowe was active both in jazz and in R&B music, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s. From the 1930s to ...
, whilst the
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, Pop music, pop, rock and roll, Folk music, folk, Swing music, swing, and country music.
He started his car ...
penned "A World Without You", also failed to find sufficient buyers. After another effort, "Any Day Love Walks In," she returned to the concert circuit.
In 1967, she signed to
Roulette Records
Roulette Records was an American record company and label founded in 1957 by George Goldner, Joe Kolsky, Morris Levy and Phil Kahl, with creative control given to producers and songwriters Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore. Levy was appointed direc ...
and issued a version of
Brook Benton
Benjamin Franklin Peay (September 19, 1931 – April 9, 1988), better known as Brook Benton, was an American singer and songwriter who was popular with rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and pop music audiences during the late 1950s and early 1960 ...
's "So Close." Success still eluded her and many recordings remained unreleased. Downhearted she concentrated on performing in
clubs
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises
...
back in Louisiana. In 1982, Fran met the
session guitarist
Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...
Clarence Hollimon, and they went on to marry a year later and relocated to
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. After appearing together in concert,
Black Top Records
Black Top Records was an American, New Orleans, Louisiana-based independent record label, founded in 1981 by brothers Nauman S. Scott, III and Hammond Scott. The label specialized in blues and R&B music. The first release was "Talk To You By Han ...
released their 1992 album ''Soul Sensation''.
Elsewhere, in 1993, Fran contributed to
Guitar Shorty's album, ''
Topsy Turvy
''Topsy-Turvy'' is a 1999 British musical period drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh, starring Allan Corduner as Sir Arthur Sullivan and Jim Broadbent as W.S. Gilbert, along with Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville and Ron Cook. The st ...
''. In 1996, Fran and Hollimon appeared at the
Long Beach Blues Festival
The Long Beach Blues Festival, in Long Beach, California, United States, was established in full in 1980, and was one of the largest blues festivals and was the second oldest on the West coast of the United States, West Coast (first being the San ...
.
''See There!'' (1994) was her next album release, before another collaboration with Hollimon saw the issue of ''It's About Time'' (2000).
However, Hollimon died the same year, and Fran moved back to Lafayette. She recorded her first solo effort ''Fran-tastic'' in New Orleans in October 2001 which was released the following year.
She appeared in the 2015 documentary film ''
I Am the Blues''.
Fran was a recipient of the 2013
National Heritage Fellowship
The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States government's h ...
awarded by the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
, which is the highest honor in the folk and traditional arts in the United States.
In 2020, Carol Fran released her first newly recorded album in 18 years titled ''All Of My Life: The Saint Agnes Sessions''. This was an LP only release by
Jazz Foundation of America
The Jazz Foundation of America (JFA) is a non-profit organization based in Manhattan, New York that was founded in 1989. Its programs seek to help jazz and blues musicians in need of emergency funds and connect them with performance opportunitie ...
. In the same year, her documentary film ''Carol Fran: Tous Les Jours C'est Pas La Même, Every Day Is Not The Same'' was released by Coulee Productions.
Fran died from post-
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
complications at
Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center in Lafayette, Louisiana, on September 1, 2021, aged 87.
Discography
Albums
Compilation albums
See also
*
List of electric blues musicians
*
List of soul-blues musicians
The following is a list of soul blues musicians.
*Johnny Adams
* Peggy Scott-Adams
* Kip Anderson
* James Armstrong
* Reneé Austin
* L.V. Banks
*Jo Jo Benson
* Buster Benton
*Bobby Bland
*Blues Boy Willie
*Ronnie Baker Brooks
*Michael Burks
* ...
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fran, Carol
1933 births
2021 deaths
American blues pianists
American blues singers
Electric blues musicians
Louisiana blues musicians
Swamp blues musicians
Musicians from Lafayette, Louisiana
Songwriters from Louisiana
Soul-blues musicians
Writers from Lafayette, Louisiana
Singers from Louisiana
National Heritage Fellowship winners
20th-century American women pianists
20th-century American pianists
21st-century American women pianists
21st-century American pianists
Excello Records artists
Roulette Records artists
Black Top Records artists
JSP Records artists
African-American women songwriters
African-American pianists
Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Louisiana
21st-century African-American women singers
20th-century African-American women singers