Jackson C. Frank

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Jackson Carey Frank (born March 2, 1943 in Buffalo , New York , † March 3, 1999 in Great Barrington , Massachusetts ) was an American folk musician . Although he released only a single album and did not achieve any major commercial success, he influenced some well-known singer-songwriters such as Paul Simon , Sandy Denny and Nick Drake .

biography

When Jackson Frank was 11 years old , a furnace exploded at his school in Cheektowaga , New York . Fifteen of his classmates were killed in the fire, and Frank suffered burns on over 50% of his body surface. During his hospital stay, Frank received a guitar from a teacher. When Frank was 13, his mother traveled with him to see his idol Elvis Presley at Graceland . At 16, he performed as a rock and roll musician in the Buffalo area . He attended Gettysburg College , but at the age of 21 received over $ 100,000 in compensation that allowed him to travel first to Toronto and then to England, where he immersed himself in the burgeoning folk scene.

In 1965 his only album, Jackson C. Frank , was released, produced by Paul Simon . The most famous song on the album, Blues Run the Game , has been covered many times, including by Simon and Garfunkel , Jon Mark , Wizz Jones , the Counting Crows , John Mayer , Mark Lanegan , the Headless Heroes , Colin Meloy , Bert Jansch , Eddi Reader , Laura Marling and Robin Pecknold ("White Antelope"); Nick Drake recorded the piece at home. Another song, Milk and Honey , was part of the soundtrack of The Brown Bunny , a film directed by Vincent Gallo , and was recorded by Fairport Convention , Nick Drake and Sandy Denny , among others . Frank had a relationship with Sandy Denny; he convinced her to give up her job as a nurse and devote herself entirely to music. Chromatics released a cover of I Want to Be Alone on August 24th .

In 1966 the first signs of mental problems appeared. The compensation was used up and Frank decided to return to America. When he returned to England in 1968, the consequences of his depression were clearly visible. In the States he lived in Woodstock . He married Elaine Sedgwick, an ex-model from England; they had a son and a daughter. When the son died of cystic fibrosis and the marriage fell apart, Frank's depression worsened. He was placed in a closed institution. In the early 1970s, he asked friends for help. In 1975 an article about Jackson Frank appeared in Melody Maker , his album was re-released in 1978.

In the early 1980s, Frank lived with his parents in Elma , New York . In 1984 he disappeared. He went to New York to find Paul Simon and ended up on the street. Several times he was in closed institutions because of schizophrenia . Jim Abbott, a fan from the Woodstock area, found him in the early 1990s. He organized Frank's return to Woodstock, where he was to stay in a home. While Frank was waiting on a bench in Queens , he was shot with an air rifle and hit in the left eye, causing him to go blind.

In Woodstock, Frank began recording demo material with new songs and performing in clubs. He died in 1999 of complications from pneumonia the day after his 56th birthday.

Discography

Studio album

  • 1965: Jackson C. Frank

Re-releases

  • 1978–2003: Jackson Again - Vinyl 1978, CD 1996, Vinyl & CD 2001, double CD 2003
  • 2003: Blues Run The Game - anthology on double CD with all (then) available recordings
  • 2013: Forest of Eden - previously unpublished recordings and demos
  • 2014: Jackson C. Frank
  • 2014: Fixin to Die - further previously unreleased recordings and demos
  • 2019: American Troubadour

single

  • 1965: Blues Run the Game / Can't Get Away From My Love

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Allmusic, see web links
  2. ↑ a b c d e Bob Stanley: The tragic tale of Jackson C Frank, forgotten legend of the 60s . The Guardian , January 9, 2014 (English)
  3. ^ A b c T. J. McGrath: Jackson C Frank (1943-1999) . Biography on Folk Blues & Beyond, April / May 1995 (English)
  4. ↑ CHROMATICS "I WANT TO BE ALONE" (Official Video). Retrieved August 24, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Frank, Jackson C.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Frank, Jackson Carey (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American folk musician
DATE OF BIRTH March 2, 1943
PLACE OF BIRTH Buffalo , New York
DATE OF DEATH March 3, 1999
Place of death Great Barrington , Massachusetts