Andy Fraser
Andy Fraser | |
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blues-rock, funk rock | |
Occupation(s) |
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Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1968–2015 |
Formerly of |
Andrew McIan Fraser (3 July 1952 – 16 March 2015) was a British musician and songwriter, best known as the bassist and co-composer for the rock band Free, which he helped found in 1968 when he was 15. He also founded the rock band Sharks after leaving Free in 1972.
Peak years (1960s and 1970s)
Fraser was born in the Paddington area of Central London to a Barbadian/Guyanese father of mixed European and African ancestry, and an English mother.[1] His parents later divorced and, along with his three siblings, he was raised by his mother.[2]
He began playing the piano at the age of five. He was trained classically until twelve, when he switched to guitar. By thirteen he was playing in
Korner was also instrumental in Fraser's next move, to the influential band
Fraser also co-wrote two other hit singles for Free, "My Brother Jake" and "The Stealer".[7] Free initially split in 1971, and Fraser formed a trio, Toby, with guitarist Adrian Fisher, and drummer Stan Speake.[8] Material was recorded but not released, and Fraser re-joined Free in December 1971. He left for the second time in June 1972.
After leaving Free, Fraser formed Sharks with vocalist Snips (later Baker Gurvitz Army), guitarist Chris Spedding and drummer Marty Simon. Despite being well received by the critics, especially for Spedding's tasteful guitar work (Crawdaddy Lead Review, Bruce Malamut Vol. 27, 1973), Fraser left after their debut album, First Water (1973).
He then formed the Andy Fraser Band, a trio with Kim Turner on drums and Nick Judd on keyboards. They released two albums, Andy Fraser Band and In Your Eyes, both in 1975, before that also folded. Attempts to form a band with
.He married Henrietta ("Ri") from Australia in 1974. In that year their first daughter Hannah was born in England, and after moving to California they had a second child, Jasmine in 1977
Fraser's most famous compositions remain "All Right Now" and "Every Kinda People", which Robert Palmer recorded in 1978 for his Double Fun album.
Later period (1980s–2015)
In 1984, Fraser released another album of his own. Fine, Fine Line featured ex-
Having been diagnosed with
He played bass with former Free colleague Paul Rodgers at Woodstock '94, but otherwise kept a low profile until 2005, when a new release, Naked and Finally Free, appeared. At the time of the new album's release, Fraser was interviewed by Dmitry M. Epstein for the DME website and revealed: "To be quite honest, I never thought of myself as a bass-player. I actually only used the bass-guitar because the other kids in our school-band wanted to be the singer, or drummer, or guitarist. I have always thought of myself as doing whatever was necessary to make the whole thing work. I'm happy adding piano, or tambourine, or anything that helped".[10]
In early 2006, writing for
In 2008, he wrote and sang the song "Obama (Yes We Can)", to support the campaign to elect Barack Obama as president of the United States.[11]
In May 2010, Fraser was interviewed for BBC Two's documentary series titled Rock 'n' Roll. The project includes a five-part documentary, narrated by British music show anchor-man Mark Radcliffe plus online and radio content. "The documentary aims to explain the success of some of the greatest bands of the past 50 years, including the Who, the Police, the Doors, Bon Jovi and the Foo Fighters".
In mid-2013, Fraser played a supporting role as bassist in the band of protege Tobi Earnshaw for a short series of UK dates. Accompanying Tobi Earnshaw and Fraser was a veteran ally, guitarist Chris Spedding. Fraser produced and mentored Earnshaw on a number of album releases.
Death
Fraser died on 16 March 2015 at his home in California of a heart attack caused by atherosclerosis.[12] He was survived by his daughters Hannah and Jasmine, and ex-wife Henrietta.[13]
Discography
with Free
- Tons of Sobs (1969)
- Free (1969)
- Fire and Water (1970)
- Highway (1970)
- Free Live! (1971)
- Free at Last (1972)
- Songs of Yesterday (box set) (2000)
- Live at the BBC (2006)
with Sharks
- First Water (1973)
- Broke a Feeling (single) (1973)
- OI' Jelly Roll (single) (1973)
with Andy Fraser Band
- Andy Fraser Band (1975)
Solo
- ...In Your Eyes (1975)
- Fine Fine Line (1984)
- Naked... and Finally Free (2005)
- On Assignment (2005)
References
- ^ Babb, Colin (August 2013). "Andy Fraser – All Right Now". Caribbean Intelligence. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
- ^ "Interview with Andy Fraser". DMME.net. May 2005. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
- ^ "Alexis Korner | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Snow, Mat (5 March 1991). "Out Of It". Q Magazine. 55: 15.
- ^ "2006 BMI London Awards | News". BMI.com. 3 October 2006. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ Allsworth, Steve (June 2011), "Free: All Right Now", Guitar Techniques, p. 14
- ^ "Andy Fraser – Writing credits". www.discogs.com. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
- ^ "Andy Fraser Forms New Band". Sounds. Spotlight Publications. 28 August 1971. p. 2.
- ^ "Andy Fraser – Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ a b Epstein, Dmitry M. (May 2005). "Interview with Andy Fraser". DME. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
- ^ "Obama 08". Andyfraser.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ "Cause of Death Determined for "All Right Now" Songwriter Andy Fraser". Jammerzine. 1 June 2015.
- ^ "Free bassist Andy Fraser dies at 62". BBC News. 18 March 2015. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
External links
- "Andy Fraser official website". Archived from the original on 5 April 2007. Retrieved 11 October 2005.
- "Andy Fraser press kit". Archived from the original on 29 January 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - Andy Fraser at IMDb
- Two-part exclusive interview with Andy Fraser on music and life.
- Andy Fraser bass guitar goes on exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- Gibson Bass interview with Andy Fraser