Black Francis - Singer-songwriter, Career and Childhood
Black Francis's Personal Details
Black Francis (Frank Black) is an American singer, songwriter and musician
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birthday | April 6, 1965 |
| Nationality | American |
| Famous | University Of Massachusetts Amherst, Guitarists, Lyricists & Songwriters, Singers, Rock Singers, Singer-songwriter |
| Spouses | Jean Black (m. ?–2003), Violet Clark (m. 2003) |
| Known as | Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV |
| Childrens | Jack Errol Thompson, Lucy Berlin |
| Universities |
|
| Notable Alumnis |
|
| Birth Place | Boston |
| Gender | Male |
| Father | Charles Thompson III |
| Net Worth | $5 million as of Jun 5,2017 |
| Sun Sign | Aries |
| Born in | Boston |
| Famous as | Singer-songwriter |
// Famous Singer-songwriter
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O’Connell is an American singer and songwriter. Check out this biography to know about her childhood, family, personal life, birthday, etc.
Israel Houghton
Israel Houghton is a Grammy award-winning American Christian music recording artist, songwriter, producer and worship leader. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family, personal life, etc.
Bea Miller
Check out all that you wanted to know about Bea Miller, the famous singer & actress; her birthday, her family and personal life, her boyfriends, fun trivia facts and more.
Black Francis's photo
Who is Black Francis?
Black Francis is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV, his interest in music began at a young age. He formed the band ‘Pixies’ with his friend Joey Santiago, bassist Kim Deal, and drummer David Lovering. When the band released their mini-album ‘Come on Pilgrim’, he adopted the name ‘Black Francis’. Their first full-length album was ‘Surfer Rosa’. Soon other albums such as ‘Bossanova’ and ‘Trompe le Monde’ followed with lyrics to songs written mostly by him. The album ‘Doolittle’ with songs like ‘Debaser’ and ‘Monkey Gone to Heaven’ was critically acclaimed. After the Pixies split, he adopted the ‘Frank Black’, and released an eponymous album in collaboration with Eric Feldman. The album ‘Teenager of the Year’ showed a marked deviation in style. Along with Lyle Workman, David McCaffrey and Scott Boutier, he formed the band ‘Frank Black and the Catholics’, and released an album of the same name; other notable albums were ‘Pistolero’, ‘Dog in the Sand’, ‘Black Letter Days’, ‘Devil’s Workshop’, and ‘Show Me Your Tears’. He released a few solo albums, as well, including ‘Christmass’, ‘Frank Black 93-03’, ‘Bluefinger’, and the mini-album ‘Svn Fngrs’.
// Famous Singers
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O’Connell is an American singer and songwriter. Check out this biography to know about her childhood, family, personal life, birthday, etc.
Isaak Presley
All about American actor and singer Isaak Presley including his age, birthday, family life, girlfriends, net worth, and some fun facts.
Sophia Montero
Sophia Montero is an American singer and YouTuber. Let’s have a look at her family and personal life including age, date of birth, net worth, relationships, and fun facts.
Childhood & Early Life
Black Francis was born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was a bar owner and moved to Los Angeles, California to explore more about the business. His parents separated, and his mother re-married.
Introduced to music at a young age, he learnt to play the guitar by the age of twelve. His stepfather was religious, and they joined a church attached to evangelical ‘Assemblies of God’.
He graduated from high school in 1983, and enrolled at the ‘University of Massachusetts’, Amherst, for a major in Anthropology. He became friends with Joey Santiago who introduced him to punk music.
Career and Later Life
A college exchange program took him to Puerto Rico. On returning back, he left college, and joined Santiago in Boston. They formed the band ‘Pixies’ in 1986 with bassist, Kim Deal, and drummer, David Lovering.
In 1987, Pixies released ‘The Purple Tape’. The demo tape helped them win a recording contract with English record label ‘4AD’. He adopted the name ‘Black Francis’ when they released the mini-album ‘Come on Pilgrim’.
He wrote and sang all the tracks, (except for ‘Gigantic’ which was co-written and sung by Deal), on their debut album ‘Surfer Rosa’ in 1988. The band went on a European tour to promote the album.
Between 1990 and 1991, the band came together and recorded the albums ‘Bossanova’ and ‘Trompe le Monde’, the latter being his first collaboration with Eric Drew Feldman, with themes touching on aliens and UFOs.
Starting with the album ‘Bossanova’, he began writing all the lyrics, causing tension between him and Kim Deal. Tensions peaked, and Pixies split in 1992.
In 1993, he released the album ‘Frank Black’, and even adopted the name. Feldman, who played the keyboard and bass guitar, produced it. Santiago played lead, and Nick Vincent, the drums.
Black released ‘The Cult of Ray’ via Rick Rubin’s ‘American Recordings’ in 1996. It featured Lyle Workman on lead guitar, David McCaffrey on bass and Scott Boutier on drums.
Calling the band ‘Frank Black and the Catholics’, they recorded their eponymous album in 1997. It was released the following year, by ‘SpinArt Records’. The album was available for commercial download via ‘eMusic’.
‘Frank Black and the Catholics’ released ‘Pistolero’ in 1999 and ‘Dog in the Sand’, two years later.
In 2002, they released two albums namely ‘Black Letter Days’ and ‘Devil’s Workshop’. The latter contained ‘Velvety’, a version of the Pixies’ ‘Velvety Instrumental Version’ with lyrics.
The Catholics’ sixth album ‘Show Me Your Tears’, released in 2003, contained songs inspired by Black’s divorce, including the title song. The Pixies announced a reunion, and toured the US, Canada and Europe.
They recorded Kim Deal’s ‘Bam Thwok’, and released it on ‘iTunes Music Store’. The double album ‘Frank Black Francis’ was released at the same time at the Pixies reunion tour.
In 2005, Black Francis released ‘Honeycomb’ in collaboration with a group of Nashville session men, Steve Cropper, Spooner Oldham, Reggie Young, Anton Fig, and producer Jon Tiven. It won favorable reviews.
‘Fast Man Raider Man’, a double album with the Nashville sessions men was released in June 2006. He continued touring with the Pixies, and the Catholics became inoperative.
The fall of 2006 saw him embark on a solo tour. In December, he released the compilation album ‘Christmass’. ‘Frank Black 93-03’ was released in June, the following year.
The album ‘Bluefinger’ that drew inspiration from Dutch artist-musician Herman Brood was released in September 2007, under the name Black Francis, as was the mini album ‘Svn Fngrs’ released in March, next year.
He produced the group Art Brut’s album, ‘Art Brut vs. Satan’ in 2008. They, in return, supported the Pixies at the Brixton Academy show. He also worked with them for their album ‘Brilliant! Tragic!’
Black and his wife Violet Clark formed the band ‘Grand Duchy’. ‘Petit Fours’, their debut album, was released in February 2009. The album ‘Let the People Speak’ was released three years later.
The album ‘NonStopErotik’ was released in the Black Francis name in March 2010. He provided the song ‘I Heard Ramona Sing’ for the soundtrack of the film ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’.
In 2010, he collaborated with Reid Paley as Paley & Francis, on their eponymous album with Paley and Black Francis on guitars and vocals, Spooner Oldham on piano, and David Hood on bass.
Major Works
In 1989, the Pixies’ critically acclaimed second album ‘Doolittle’ was released. It contained songs like ‘Debaser’ and ‘Monkey Gone to Heaven’, with lyrics by Black.
Black’s second solo record called ‘Teenager of the Year’ was released in 1994 and included the song ‘Headache’. It marked a change in style, and covered various topics and genres.
Awards & Achievements
While residing in Westport, Massachusetts, Black – then Thompson – won a ‘Teenager of the Year’ award before his senior year. He had then composed a number of songs which would later appear in his albums.
Personal Life & Legacy
Black married Jean Black, but they divorced. He then married Violet Clark. He has three children by her. They live in Hadley, Massachusetts, along with her two children from a previous relationship.
Trivia
He once said, “I think that morality is not God-given or even acquired through religion, it’s natural, innate and, to be honest, pretty damn obvious. It’s obvious you shouldn’t steal, kill or be cruel.”
This musician once staged an impromptu gig at St. Stephen’s Green in Dublin, Ireland, and was taken away by the Irish police. He was later released.
// Famous Lyricists & Songwriters
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O’Connell is an American singer and songwriter. Check out this biography to know about her childhood, family, personal life, birthday, etc.
Bea Miller
Check out all that you wanted to know about Bea Miller, the famous singer & actress; her birthday, her family and personal life, her boyfriends, fun trivia facts and more.
Kylee Renee
Check out all that you wanted to know about Kylee Renee, the famous singer; her birthday, her family and personal life, her boyfriends, fun trivia facts and more.
Black Francis biography timelines
- // 6th Apr 1965Black Francis was born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was a bar owner and moved to Los Angeles, California to explore more about the business. His parents separated, and his mother re-married.
- // 1983He graduated from high school in 1983, and enrolled at the ‘University of Massachusetts’, Amherst, for a major in Anthropology. He became friends with Joey Santiago who introduced him to punk music.
- // 1986A college exchange program took him to Puerto Rico. On returning back, he left college, and joined Santiago in Boston. They formed the band ‘Pixies’ in 1986 with bassist, Kim Deal, and drummer, David Lovering.
- // 1987In 1987, Pixies released ‘The Purple Tape’. The demo tape helped them win a recording contract with English record label ‘4AD’. He adopted the name ‘Black Francis’ when they released the mini-album ‘Come on Pilgrim’.
- // 1988He wrote and sang all the tracks, (except for ‘Gigantic’ which was co-written and sung by Deal), on their debut album ‘Surfer Rosa’ in 1988. The band went on a European tour to promote the album.
- // 1989In 1989, the Pixies’ critically acclaimed second album ‘Doolittle’ was released. It contained songs like ‘Debaser’ and ‘Monkey Gone to Heaven’, with lyrics by Black.
- // 1990 To 1991Between 1990 and 1991, the band came together and recorded the albums ‘Bossanova’ and ‘Trompe le Monde’, the latter being his first collaboration with Eric Drew Feldman, with themes touching on aliens and UFOs.
- // 1992Starting with the album ‘Bossanova’, he began writing all the lyrics, causing tension between him and Kim Deal. Tensions peaked, and Pixies split in 1992.
- // 1993In 1993, he released the album ‘Frank Black’, and even adopted the name. Feldman, who played the keyboard and bass guitar, produced it. Santiago played lead, and Nick Vincent, the drums.
- // 1994Black’s second solo record called ‘Teenager of the Year’ was released in 1994 and included the song ‘Headache’. It marked a change in style, and covered various topics and genres.
- // 1996Black released ‘The Cult of Ray’ via Rick Rubin’s ‘American Recordings’ in 1996. It featured Lyle Workman on lead guitar, David McCaffrey on bass and Scott Boutier on drums.
- // 1997Calling the band ‘Frank Black and the Catholics’, they recorded their eponymous album in 1997. It was released the following year, by ‘SpinArt Records’. The album was available for commercial download via ‘eMusic’.
- // 1999‘Frank Black and the Catholics’ released ‘Pistolero’ in 1999 and ‘Dog in the Sand’, two years later.
- // 2002In 2002, they released two albums namely ‘Black Letter Days’ and ‘Devil’s Workshop’. The latter contained ‘Velvety’, a version of the Pixies’ ‘Velvety Instrumental Version’ with lyrics.
- // 2003The Catholics’ sixth album ‘Show Me Your Tears’, released in 2003, contained songs inspired by Black’s divorce, including the title song. The Pixies announced a reunion, and toured the US, Canada and Europe.
- // 2005In 2005, Black Francis released ‘Honeycomb’ in collaboration with a group of Nashville session men, Steve Cropper, Spooner Oldham, Reggie Young, Anton Fig, and producer Jon Tiven. It won favorable reviews.
- // 2006‘Fast Man Raider Man’, a double album with the Nashville sessions men was released in June 2006. He continued touring with the Pixies, and the Catholics became inoperative.
- // 2006 To 2007The fall of 2006 saw him embark on a solo tour. In December, he released the compilation album ‘Christmass’. ‘Frank Black 93-03’ was released in June, the following year.
- // 2007 To 2008The album ‘Bluefinger’ that drew inspiration from Dutch artist-musician Herman Brood was released in September 2007, under the name Black Francis, as was the mini album ‘Svn Fngrs’ released in March, next year.
- // 2008He produced the group Art Brut’s album, ‘Art Brut vs. Satan’ in 2008. They, in return, supported the Pixies at the Brixton Academy show. He also worked with them for their album ‘Brilliant! Tragic!’
- // 2009Black and his wife Violet Clark formed the band ‘Grand Duchy’. ‘Petit Fours’, their debut album, was released in February 2009. The album ‘Let the People Speak’ was released three years later.
- // 2010The album ‘NonStopErotik’ was released in the Black Francis name in March 2010. He provided the song ‘I Heard Ramona Sing’ for the soundtrack of the film ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’.
- // 2010In 2010, he collaborated with Reid Paley as Paley & Francis, on their eponymous album with Paley and Black Francis on guitars and vocals, Spooner Oldham on piano, and David Hood on bass.
// Famous University Of Massachusetts Amherst
Jack Welch
Jack Welch is an American business executive famous for serving as the CEO of General Electric. This biography of Jack Welch provides detailed information about his childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.
Richard Gere
Richard Gere is a famous American actor and activist. This biography profiles his childhood, film career, life, achievements, trivia and timeline.
Bill Pullman
Bill Pullman is an American actor best known for his role in the film ‘Spaceballs.’ Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him.
Russell Alan Hulse
Russell Alan Hulse is an American physicist who was one of the joint winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1993. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.
Rick Pitino
Rick Pitino is an American basketball coach who led three different schools to a Final Four—the only one in NCAA history to do so. This biography of Rick Pitino provides detailed information about his childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.
Black Francis's FAQ
What is Black Francis birthday?
Black Francis was born at 1965-04-06
Where is Black Francis's birth place?
Black Francis was born in Boston
What is Black Francis nationalities?
Black Francis's nationalities is American
Who is Black Francis spouses?
Black Francis's spouses is Jean Black (m. ?–2003), Violet Clark (m. 2003)
Who is Black Francis childrens?
Black Francis's childrens is Jack Errol Thompson, Lucy Berlin
What was Black Francis universities?
Black Francis studied at University Of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Massachusetts Amherst
What was Black Francis notable alumnis?
Black Francis's notable alumnis is University Of Massachusetts Amherst
Who is Black Francis's father?
Black Francis's father is Charles Thompson III
What is Black Francis's sun sign?
Black Francis is Aries
How famous is Black Francis?
Black Francis is famouse as Singer-songwriter