
Connie Francis was a trailblazing pop star haunted by tragedy
Her breakthrough hit, 1958's Who's Sorry Now, was written as far back as 1923 and had been a hit for Johnnie Ray just a couple of years earlier, with a swinging, uptempo arrangement. But what made the 19-year-old Francis's version click was the way in which she took pleasure in her ex's misery, coolly and coyly cooing over the slow-rocking backing while picking his failed love life apart; for a finale, she ended the song with impressive, high-kicking spite. In contrast, her second UK No 1 was the daffy Stupid Cupid, written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, and loaded with ear-catching gimmicks: the bow-and-arrow guitar effect on the chorus; Francis jumping an octave when she sings 'Cu-pid!'; and instruments that drop out – the musical equivalent of a wink – to allow her voice to sound as seductive as possible.
Her career would follow this pattern through the late 50s and early 60s, alternating lightly updated pre-rock ballads with teenage material redolent of soda shops and drive-ins, the kind of American 50s scenario later lit in neon by Happy Days and Grease. Of the ballads, My Happiness and Mama were especially heartfelt performances, and both reached the top 10 in Britain and America, while the desperation of the country-leaning My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own gave her the second of three US No 1s. The finger-snapping Fallin' and It's Gonna Take Some Time were cool and sassy, while Lipstick on Your Collar (its title later used by Dennis Potter as a late 50s signifier) and Vacation were so camp, they were almost gleeful self-parodies.
In 1960, Francis made her big-screen debut in Where the Boys Are, and the Sedaka/Greenfield theme song became another transatlantic top five single. 1960 was also the year Brenda Lee broke through – up to this point, Francis had been a lone trailblazer for women in rock'n'roll; the likes of Wanda Jackson and Jo Ann Campbell made great records but never came close to a top 10 hit, while the girl group era which gave us the Ronettes, the Chiffons and the Shangri-Las didn't begin in earnest until 1962.
Francis struggled to adapt to the rise of the teenage girl group, though when she recorded material as strong as 1965's soulful No Better Off it was clear the fault didn't lie with the singer. She would be edged further into easy listening territory, scoring her last two hits in the UK with the darkly intense My Child in 1965 (she would never have children of her own) and the accusatory Jealous Heart in 1966. The latter could have been directed at her father, also her manager, who had broken up her relationship with the singer Bobby Darin by waving a gun at him; Francis would later describe Darin as 'the most interesting human being I've ever met in my life'.
The following decades were less than kind to Connie Francis, who seemed to be dogged by tragedy. She was raped at knifepoint and almost killed in her motel room in 1974, after performing at a fair in New York state. She went public with the story, and Howard Johnson Motor Lodges were ordered to pay her $2.5m in compensation (later reduced to $1.475m in a settlement); this would then become a test case, leading to major upgrades in American hotel and motel security. The attacker was never found. Francis's bravery in going public couldn't help her overcome the mental health repercussions, and she didn't sing in public for several years afterward. Then in 1981, her brother was shot dead, apparently by a professional hitman; the trauma would lead to Francis being misdiagnosed with manic-depressive disorder. She was involuntarily hospitalized by her controlling father, and spent much of the 1980s in and out of psychiatric institutions. Again, Francis was brave enough to speak out as a survivor, and became a spokesperson for Mental Health America to help others 'suffering from the deleterious effects of depression and trauma of all kinds'.
Though the hits had dried up in the mid-60s Connie Francis kept a devoted following. In 1977, 20 All Time Greats made her – rather shockingly – the first female solo artist to have a No 1 album in Britain. She had also been the first female singer of the modern pop era to score three US No 1 singles, while 1962's Pretty Little Baby – only an album track at the time – would become a TikTok hit, gaining millions of streams in 2025 thanks to its use by Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian. Connie Francis was a trailblazer, both as a pop star and an advocate of mental health support, and – like most trailblazers – she had to face the highs and the lows on her own.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Independent
18 minutes ago
- The Independent
Tom Lehrer, song satirist and mathematician, dies at 97
Tom Lehrer, the popular song satirist who lampooned marriage, politics, racism and the Cold War, then largely abandoned his music career to return to teaching math at Harvard and other universities, has died. He was 97. Longtime friend David Herder said Lehrer died Saturday at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He did not specify a cause of death. Lehrer had remained on the math faculty of the University of California at Santa Cruz well into his late 70s. In 2020, he even turned away from his own copyright, granting the public permission to use his lyrics in any format, without any fee in return. A Harvard prodigy (he had earned a math degree from the institution at age 18), Lehrer soon turned his very sharp mind to old traditions and current events. His songs included "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," "The Old Dope Peddler" (set to a tune reminiscent of "The Old Lamplighter"), "Be Prepared" (in which he mocked the Boy Scouts) and "The Vatican Rag," in which Lehrer, an atheist, poked at the rites and ceremonies of the Roman Catholic Church. (Sample lyrics: "Get down on your knees, fiddle with your rosaries. Bow your head with great respect, and genuflect, genuflect, genuflect.") Accompanying himself on piano, he performed the songs in a colorful style reminiscent of such musical heroes as Gilbert and Sullivan and Stephen Sondheim, the latter a lifelong friend. Lehrer was often likened to such contemporaries as Allen Sherman and Stan Freberg for his comic riffs on culture and politics and he was cited by Randy Newman and 'Weird Al' Jankovic among others as an influence. He mocked the forms of music he didn't like (modern folk songs, rock 'n' roll and modern jazz), laughed at the threat of nuclear annihilation and denounced discrimination. But he attacked in such an erudite, even polite, manner that almost no one objected. "Tom Lehrer is the most brilliant song satirist ever recorded," musicologist Barry Hansen once said. Hansen co-produced the 2000 boxed set of Lehrer's songs, "The Remains of Tom Lehrer," and had featured Lehrer's music for decades on his syndicated "Dr. Demento" radio show. Lehrer's body of work was actually quite small, amounting to about three dozen songs. "When I got a funny idea for a song, I wrote it. And if I didn't, I didn't," Lehrer told The Associated Press in 2000 during a rare interview. "I wasn't like a real writer who would sit down and put a piece of paper in the typewriter. And when I quit writing, I just quit. ... It wasn't like I had writer's block." He'd gotten into performing accidentally when he began to compose songs in the early 1950s to amuse his friends. Soon he was performing them at coffeehouses around Cambridge, Massachusetts, while he remained at Harvard to teach and obtain a master's degree in math. He cut his first record in 1953, "Songs by Tom Lehrer," which included "I Wanna Go Back to Dixie," lampooning the attitudes of the Old South, and the "Fight Fiercely, Harvard," suggesting how a prissy Harvard blueblood might sing a football fight song. After a two-year stint in the Army, Lehrer began to perform concerts of his material in venues around the world. In 1959, he released another LP called "More of Tom Lehrer" and a live recording called "An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer," nominated for a Grammy for best comedy performance (musical) in 1960. But around the same time, he largely quit touring and returned to teaching math, though he did some writing and performing on the side. Lehrer said he was never comfortable appearing in public. "I enjoyed it up to a point," he told The AP in 2000. "But to me, going out and performing the concert every night when it was all available on record would be like a novelist going out and reading his novel every night." He did produce a political satire song each week for the 1964 television show "That Was the Week That Was," a groundbreaking topical comedy show that anticipated "Saturday Night Live" a decade later. He released the songs the following year in an album titled "That Was the Year That Was.' The material included "Who's Next?" ponders which government will be the next to get the nuclear bomb ... perhaps Alabama? (He didn't need to tell his listeners that it was a bastion of segregation at the time.) "Pollution" takes a look at the then-new concept that perhaps rivers and lakes should be cleaned up. He also wrote songs for the 1970s educational children's show "The Electric Company." He told AP in 2000 that hearing from people who had benefited from them gave him far more satisfaction than praise for any of his satirical works. His songs were revived in the 1980 musical revue "Tomfoolery" and he made a rare public appearance in London in 1998 at a celebration honoring that musical's producer, Cameron Mackintosh. Lehrer was born in 1928, in New York City, the son of a successful necktie designer. He recalled an idyllic childhood on Manhattan's Upper West Side that included attending Broadway shows with his family and walking through Central Park day or night. After skipping two grades in school, he entered Harvard at 15 and, after receiving his master's degree, he spent several years unsuccessfully pursuing a doctorate. "I spent many, many years satisfying all the requirements, as many years as possible, and I started on the thesis," he once said. "But I just wanted to be a grad student, it's a wonderful life. That's what I wanted to be, and unfortunately, you can't be a Ph.D. and a grad student at the same time." He began to teach part-time at Santa Cruz in the 1970s, mainly to escape the harsh New England winters. From time to time, he acknowledged, a student would enroll in one of his classes based on knowledge of his songs. "But it's a real math class," he said at the time. "I don't do any funny theorems. So those people go away pretty quickly." ___ Former Associated Press writer John Rogers contributed to this story. Rogrers retired from The AP in 2021.


Daily Mail
19 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Travis Kelce unveils slick new haircut at Chiefs training camp as he ditches long locks ahead of new season
Travis Kelce has freshened up his look while in training camp with the Kansas City Chiefs after ditching his long locks for a fade. The 35-year-old, who is getting ready for his 13th season in the NFL, was sporting a slick new haircut when he emerged for practice with his teammates on Sunday. Kelce is back in football mode after enjoying some downtime in the offseason with girlfriend Taylor Swift, who he will not see for the next three weeks while in camp. Earlier this week he finally went Instagram official with Swift after posting her on his account for the very first time as part of an offseason photo dump. The superstar couple look smitten in a number of the pictures, which show them posing together in a warm setting, clowning around in the snow, skating on an ice rink and out with friends. One of the pictures even sparked engagement rumors after eagle-eyed Swifties spotted that Travis has an image of him and Taylor as the lock screen on his phone. In a photo that shows them out for dinner together, Kelce's phone is lying on the table with his loved-up screensaver clearly visible. And Swift's die-hard legion of fans pointed out how their beloved singer appeared to be holding both hands up to the camera with a ring on her finger. Yet according to TMZ , the pop megastar is actually wearing Kelce's three Super Bowl rings in the picture he saved as his phone background. Unfortunately for Swifties, it is believed that Travis has not yet popped the question to Taylor just yet. After his offseason adventures with Swift, Kelce was back on the practice field on Tuesday as the Chiefs began their preparations for the new NFL season. Up until August 13, the team will be based at Missouri Western State University in St Joseph - around an hour north Arrowhead Stadium. There, Kelce and the other 89 players on the roster will stay in dorms on campus for the duration of camp. That means three weeks without seeing their partners and families. For Travis, that means three weeks without seeing his girlfriend. Kelce and Swift enjoyed a more low-key offseason together than last year, with the pair only making a handful of public appearances since the Chiefs' Super Bowl defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles in February. The most noteworthy of the lot came when Taylor made a surprise cameo at her man's 'Tight End University' event in Nashville last month, where she took to the stage and performed her famous 'Shake It Off' song.


BreakingNews.ie
19 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Drake concert cancelled due to ‘unforeseen' travel issues
Rapper Drake has had a concert at Co-Op Live cancelled due to 'unforeseen' travel issues. The Canadian musician was due to perform at Manchester's Co-Op Live Arena on Monday July 28, however, has had to reschedule the gig due to 'unforeseen ferry schedule and travel logistics'. Advertisement The 38-year old, whose full name is Aubrey Drake Graham, will instead perform at the venue on August 5th. Drake attending the UK premiere of Top Boy at the Hackney Picturehouse in London (Ian West/PA) The news was shared in a statement on the Co-Op live website, which said: 'Due to unforeseen ferry schedule and travel logistics, tomorrow's performance in Manchester on July 28th has been rescheduled. 'The good news is that Drake will now perform in Manchester on Tuesday, August 5th, and it's set to be an unforgettable night. 'All tickets remain valid for the new date—we can't wait to see you there!' Advertisement This comes after Drake released a new song, Which One, on Thursday with British rapper Central Cee. Drake is midway through the UK leg of his Some Special Shows 4 U tour with Partynextdoor, marking his first return to Europe in six years. Drake performing at the Wireless Festival in Finsbury Park, central London. Photo: Ian West/PA. Earlier this month Drake performed at Wireless Festival in London after signing a multi-million pound deal to top the bill each night of the three nights. The Canadian brought out UK heavyweights Dave, Central Cee and J Hus as surprise guests during one of his performances on the main stage in Finsbury Park. Advertisement He also performed with Lauryn Hill on one of the three nights. The five-time Grammy-award winning artist will head to mainland Europe in August with concerts scheduled in Amsterdam, Zurich, and Milan and Paris. The artist is best known for his hit songs One Dance, Hold On We're Going Home, and Hotline Bling.