Andy Fraser

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Andy Fraser

| image = Andy Fraser (1970).jpg

| caption = Fraser in 1970

| birth_name = Andrew McIan Fraser

| alias =

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1952|7|3}}

| birth_place = Paddington, London, England

| origin =

| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2015|3|16|1952|7|3}}

| death_place = Temecula, California, US

| genre = Hard rock, blues-rock, funk rock

| occupation = {{hlist|Musician|songwriter}}

| instrument = {{hlist|Bass guitar|piano}}

| years_active = 1968–2015

| label =

| past_member_of = {{hlist|Free|John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers|Toby|Sharks}}

| associated_acts =

| website =

}}

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.{{cite web |url=https://www.caribbeanintelligence.com/content/andy-fraser-all-right-now|title=Andy Fraser – All Right Now|first=Colin|last=Babb|date=August 2013|work=Caribbean Intelligence|accessdate=16 February 2021}} His parents later divorced and, along with his three siblings, he was raised by his mother.{{cite web|url=http://dmme.net/interviews/afraser1.html|title=Interview with Andy Fraser|date=May 2005|website=DMME.net|accessdate=16 February 2021|archive-date=16 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216222535/http://dmme.net/interviews/afraser1.html|url-status=dead}}

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 East End, West Indian clubs and after being expelled from St Clement Danes Grammar School in 1968 at the age of 15, enrolled at Hammersmith College of Further Education. There, another student, Sappho Korner, introduced him to her father, pioneering blues musician and radio broadcaster Alexis Korner,{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/alexis-korner-mn0000001020|title=Alexis Korner | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links|website=AllMusic}} who became a father figure to him.{{cite journal|last=Snow|first=Mat|date=5 March 1991|title=Out Of It|journal=Q Magazine|volume=55|pages=15}} Shortly thereafter, upon receiving a telephone call from John Mayall who was looking for a bass player, Korner suggested Fraser; still only 15, he was now in a professional band and earning £50 a week, although it ultimately turned out to be a brief tenure.

Korner was also instrumental in Fraser's next move, to the influential band Free, which consisted of Paul Rodgers (vocals), Paul Kossoff (guitar) and Simon Kirke (drums). Fraser produced and co-wrote the song "All Right Now" with Rodgers, a No. 1 hit in over 20 territories and recognised by ASCAP in 1990 for garnering over 1,000,000 radio plays in the United States by late 1989. In October 2006, a BMI London Million-Air Award was given to Rodgers and Fraser to mark over 3 million radio and television plays of "All Right Now".{{cite web|url=http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/534276 |title=2006 BMI London Awards | News |publisher=BMI.com |date=3 October 2006 |access-date=9 July 2011| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110708074525/http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/534276| archive-date= 8 July 2011 | url-status= live}} Simon Kirke later recalled: "'All Right Now' was created after a bad gig in Durham. We finished our show and walked off the stage to the sound of our own footsteps. The applause had died before I had even left the drum riser. It was obvious that we needed a rocker to close our shows. All of a sudden the inspiration struck Fraser and he started bopping around singing 'All Right Now'. He sat down and wrote it right there in the dressing room. It couldn't have taken more than ten minutes."{{Citation| title= Free: All Right Now |last= Allsworth |first= Steve|date= June 2011 | magazine= Guitar Techniques | page= 14 }}

Fraser also co-wrote two other hit singles for Free, "My Brother Jake" and "The Stealer".{{cite web | url=http://www.discogs.com/artist/272908-Andy-Fraser?type=Credits&subtype=Writing-Arrangement | title=Andy Fraser – Writing credits | publisher=www.discogs.com | access-date=18 March 2015}} Free initially split in 1971, and Fraser formed a trio, Toby, with guitarist Adrian Fisher, and drummer Stan Speake.{{cite news |title= Andy Fraser Forms New Band |newspaper=Sounds |publisher= Spotlight Publications |date= 28 August 1971|page= 2}} 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 Frankie Miller came to nothing, and Fraser relocated to California to concentrate on songwriting. He wrote hits for Robert Palmer, Joe Cocker, Chaka Khan, Rod Stewart and Paul Young.

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 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-Back Street Crawler drummer Tony Braunagel, Bob Marlette (keyboards), Michael Thompson (guitar) and David Faragher (bass), with Fraser contributing vocals. One of the songs on the album, "Do You Love Me" — a cover of the Berry Gordy Jr.-penned song – spent five weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 82 in March 1984.{{cite magazine | url=https://www.billboard.com/music/andy-fraser | title=Andy Fraser – Chart History | magazine=Billboard | access-date=15 April 2019 }}

Having been diagnosed with HIV, he was later diagnosed with Kaposi's sarcoma, a form of cancer that had been very rare until the onset of the AIDS epidemic. This timeline was called into question by Fraser's subsequent revelation that he was gay.

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".{{cite web | title= Interview with Andy Fraser | url= http://dmme.net/interviews/afraser1.html | last= Epstein | first= Dmitry M. | date= May 2005 | work= DME | access-date= 18 March 2015 | archive-date= 16 December 2013 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131216222535/http://dmme.net/interviews/afraser1.html | url-status= dead }}

In early 2006, writing for Vintage Guitar magazine, Tom Guerra conducted a comprehensive interview with Fraser, covering his career, influences and instruments and, in April, Fraser responded to the revival of interest in his music by announcing two rare live shows at Southern California's Temecula Community Arts Theatre on 4 May. The shows, accompanied by an eight-piece band, were his first live performances since the 1994 Woodstock reunion.{{cn|date=September 2022}}

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.{{cite web |url=http://www.andyfraser.com/obama08.html |title=Obama 08 |publisher=Andyfraser.com |access-date=9 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707142107/http://www.andyfraser.com/obama08.html |archive-date=7 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}

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.{{cite web|url=https://jammerzine.com/cause-of-death-determined-for-all-right-now-songwriter-andy-fraser/ |title=Cause of Death Determined for "All Right Now" Songwriter Andy Fraser |publisher=Jammerzine |date=1 June 2015}} He was survived by his daughters Hannah and Jasmine, and ex-wife Henrietta.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-31937608|title=Free bassist Andy Fraser dies at 62 |date=18 March 2015 |access-date=19 March 2015 |work=BBC News}}

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

External links

{{Cite web |url=http://www.andyfraser.com/ |title=Andy Fraser official website |access-date=11 October 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070405040921/http://www.andyfraser.com/ |archive-date=5 April 2007 |url-status=dead }}
{{Cite web |url=http://myppk.com/get/andyfraser |title=Andy Fraser press kit |access-date=5 April 2017 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130129074221/http://myppk.com/get/andyfraser |archive-date=29 January 2013 |url-status=bot: unknown }}
{{IMDb name|id=0292071|name=Andy Fraser}}
[http://dmme.net/interviews/afraser Two-part exclusive interview with Andy Fraser on music and life.]
[http://hmmawards.mi2n.com/pr.php3?id=128079 Andy Fraser bass guitar goes on exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303193314/http://hmmawards.mi2n.com/pr.php3?id=128079 |date=3 March 2016 }}
[http://www.gibsonbass.com/AndyFraser.php/ Gibson Bass interview with Andy Fraser]

Category:1952 births

Category:2015 deaths

Category:20th-century English LGBTQ people

Category:20th-century English male musicians

Category:21st-century English LGBTQ people

Category:21st-century English male musicians

Category:English expatriate musicians in the United States

Category:English gay musicians

Category:English LGBTQ songwriters

Category:English male bass guitarists

Category:English male songwriters

Category:English people of Barbadian descent