Frank Bey (born Frank Bass; January 17, 1946June 7, 2020) was an American

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

singer. He changed his last name from Bass to Bey at age 27 when he joined the

Moorish Science Temple of America The Moorish Science Temple of America is an American national and religious organization founded by Noble Drew Ali (born as Timothy Drew) in the early twentieth century. He based it on the premise that African Americans are descendants of the Moa ...

Early life

Born and raised in

Millen, Georgia Millen is a city, and the county seat of Jenkins County, Georgia, United States. The population was 3,120 at the 2010 census, down from 3,492 at the 2000 census. The city is intersected by U.S. Route 25 and State Route 17, and the proposed Inte ...

, Frank was the seventh of twelve children born to gospel singer Maggie Jordan. He began his singing career performing gospel at the age of four. Along with his brother and two cousins, their group “The Rising Sons” toured around The South making live appearances as well as radio broadcasts. He remained with them until age 12 or 13 when the group dissolved. He also sang with his mother at local concerts, where he had the opportunity to help open shows for the

Five Blind Boys of Alabama The Blind Boys of Alabama, also billed as The Five Blind Boys of Alabama, and Clarence Fountain and the Blind Boys of Alabama, is an American gospel group. The group was founded in 1939 in Talladega, Alabama, and has featured a changing roster ...

, the

Soul Stirrers The Soul Stirrers were an American gospel music group, whose career spans over eighty years. The group was a pioneer in the development of the quartet style of gospel, and a major influence on soul, doo wop, and Motown, some of the secular musi ...

, and other notable groups.

Career

Frank left home when he was 17 and moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, where he worked for two and a half years as a driver for Gene Lawson,

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

’s advance publicity man. Redding sometimes rode in the back seat on trips between engagements. On three of those occasions, when the opening act was late showing up, Bey says he was given the opportunity to open the shows. By the early 1970s he joined the Moorish Vanguard who began touring in the Southeast. In 1976, Bey produced ''The Sunset of Your Love'' on the Country Eastern Music label.

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

then published the song on

Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

without the Vanguard's permission. The group initially accused Bey of giving the song to Brown but Brown later settled and admitted to taking the song. After this, Bey left the music business for 17 years, and had his own businesses in the construction and restaurants industries. By 1996, Bey returned to singing in the Philadelphia area. In 1998, Bey's debut album, ''Steppin' Out'', was released on MAG Records. Health problems interfered with his ability to perform in support of the release, and he subsequently released ''Blues in the Pocket'' in 2007 on Jeffhouse Records. By then, Bey was brought by blues DJ Noel Hayes to the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

in California to perform with guitarist

Anthony Paule Anthony Paule (born December 21, 1956) is an American electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He has issued records in his own name, but is best known for his work with others including Boz Scaggs, Charlie Musselwhite, Jackie Payne, Mark ...

and other area musicians. The two went on to release three albums, ''You Don't Know Nothing (Live)'', ''Soul for Your Blues'', and ''Not Goin' Away'' between 2013 and 2015. In July 2018, Bey signed with Nola Blue Records. In September, he released his first CD on the Nola Blue label, ''Back In Business''. This was followed by the release of ''All My Dues Are Paid'' in January 2020.

Death

Bey died on June 7, 2020, after a long illness.

Awards

* 35th Blues Music Awards – Nominee for Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year * 35th Blues Music Awards – Nominee (with Anthony Paule) for Soul Blues Album of the Year (''Soul for Your Blues'') * 37th Blues Music Awards – Nominee for Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year * 37th Blues Music Awards – Nominee (with Anthony Paule) for Soul Blues Album of the Year (''Not Goin' Away'') * 40th Blues Music Awards – Nominee for Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year * 40th Blues Music Awards – Nominee for Soul Blues Album of the Year (''Back In Business'') * 2018 Global Music Awards – Gold Medal, Male Vocalist – ''Back In Business'' * 2019 Blues Blast Music Awards – Nominee for Soul Blues Album (''Back In Business'') * 17th Independent Music Awards – Nominee for Blues Album (''Back In Business'') * 18th Independent Music Awards – Nominee for Blues Album (All My Dues Are Paid)

Discography

References

External links

Official website

Film website
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bey, Frank American blues singers People from Millen, Georgia Singers from Georgia (U.S. state) Singers from Pennsylvania 1946 births 2020 deaths