My lovely girlfriend asked me the other day if the rock band, FREE, were in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
Apparently, she had heard the song "Remember" from FREE's "Fire & Water" album on Steve Jones' (yes, he of the Sex Pistols) radio show, sparking a keen new interest in her and rekindling a 30 year admiration that I had for the group.
We dug out the old LPs and had a great time listening to the history of the band from it's first album, "Tons Of Sobs" (produced by genius/madman Guy Stevens of Mott The Hoople and later, Clash "London Calling" fame) to the final "FREE At Last." We were both mesmerized with the sheer artistry and intensity of the group, and fascinated with each members approach to his instrument. A perfect example of the whole being much greater than the parts.
While most fans of the band either loved the bluesy, soulful yelp of vocalist, Paul Rogers - or the big fat ringing tones of guitarist and Brian Jones-like tragic figure, Paul Kossoff - or the caveman-like simplicity/elegant tastefulness of drummer, Simon Kirke; my intrigue was always with that of bassist and main songwriter, Andy Fraser.
Andy Fraser made the bass sound like a tuba. Oftentimes he played actual solos while Kossoff laid back with a cool rhythm. He would not play during a verse, giving the song a sparse, edgy sound, then dive in during the chorus pushing songs like the famous "Alright Now," "The Stealer" and "Mr. Big" to a glorious third dimension.
Sometimes, Fraser's bassline would even strike me as funny - as does a lot of the music that I really love. The way Bonham's drums on "Black Dog" makes me chuckle. Glenn Hughes' (Trapeze) ultra-high pitched screams or Roy Wood (The Move) weighing in with a hard rock oboe solo. Magical moments.
You can't listen to "Mr. Big" and not crack a smile. And it's a *BLUES* song (kinda).
After the tragic, too-early death of Paul Kossoff forever silenced FREE, Andy Fraser released an eponymously named solo album. More 'da blues-meets-the-big-bass sound that Free had been famous for, but this time Andy did the vocals. Interesting because with this album, it became more obvious what Fraser's contribution to the music of Free had been. His voice and vocal phrasings even sounded like Paul Rogers. Muted guitars mimicked what the bass was doing (cause we all know that bass had to be #1 on an Andy Fraser album!). A single, "Don't Hide Your Love Away/Ain't Gonna Worry," was released from the album that featured a killer A and B side. Shoulda been a hit. But like most of the music that I loved from this era, sunk from the charts without a trace.
In 1973, Andy formed a band with two more of my favorite musicians: Mr. Snips and Chris Spedding. Calling themselves The Sharks, they even had a tricked-up old Cadillac called "The Sharkmobile" that they rode around London in. Now THAT's style!
"First Water," the Shark's amazing debut, had the Fraser stamp all over it. Andy wrote three quarters of the music and again, his sparse, bass-driven sound dominated. But this time, he had Snips belting out the tunes like an even throatier Joe Cocker and the laid-back cool of Chris Spedding who redefined the term "economical" with his guitar style. Fraser showed on this album that his piano playing was equally unique as it sometimes substituted for his trademark bass.
Wonderful stuff that I still return to and find something new. Possibly, one of the most underrated groups of this time.
Fraser left The Sharks after "First Water." He released at least two more solo albums subsequently, but to my ears, a bit disappointing because it sounded as if Fraser was trying to make more commercial - or maybe, traditional - soul sounding music. Up to this time, Fraser's music had been anything BUT traditional.
In the eighties I heard that Andy Fraser had become a staff songwriter for Island Records. That made sense to me after hearing the solo albums.
And I haven't heard from him since.
After bombarding the neighbors (cause we have speakers outside, too, y'know!) with all things FREE/Sharks/Fraser solo, we decided to look up Andy Fraser on the internet - just to see if anything's going on.
Our timing, May of '05, couldn't have been better - or worse - whichever way you want to look at it:
RUMORS...
- #1 FREE's Paul Rogers had joined a new version of Queen, filling tragic Freddie Mercury's (unfillable) vocal spot. Weird... but turned out to be TRUE.
- #2 John Deacon would NOT be rejoining Queen and that possible replacement would be Andy Fraser. Wow... with Fraser and Rogers on the same stage, I sure as hell wouldn't want them to be playing Queen songs! (but that's just me, folks)
- #3 Andy Fraser, shortly after performing as a guest with the new Queen, had died.
A press release from Fraser proved that, apparently, rumors of Andy's passing had been greatly exaggerated.
What is true, though, is that Andy Fraser has been living with AIDS.
On his website, Andy writes eloquently of his past, the history of FREE and of his own life journey. I didn't expect to find such a heartfelt, insightful and interesting story when, on a whim, I decided to look Andy Fraser up. But it's all there, from joining the John Mayall Bluesbreakers at age 16 (!), to a brand new solo record, just released.
If you're interested, you should read it, too. The page is at:
AndyFraser.com
I wish Andy Fraser good health and hope that he will grace the world with more music. And if I should be so lucky that he would read this, thank him for ALL of the great music...
With admiration,
Jah Paul Jo
PS. Oh... and to the original question: No, after a remarkable career that really set the standards for later successful blues/rock fusions like Bad Company, Foghat and even Foreigner and AC/DC, and creating one of the most popular and recognizable songs of all time in "All Right Now," FREE is NOT in the Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame. Nor are they likely to be. But Percy Sledge is.
Draw your own conclusions.
