Andy Fraser facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Andy Fraser
Fraser in 1970
Background information
Birth name	Andrew McIan Fraser
Born	(1952-07-03)3 July 1952 Paddington, London, England
Died	16 March 2015(2015-03-16) (aged 62) Temecula, California, US
Genres	Hard rock, blues-rock, funk rock
Occupation(s)	Musician songwriter
Instruments	Bass guitar piano
Years active	1968–2015

Andrew "Andy" McIan Fraser (born July 3, 1952 – died March 16, 2015) was a British musician. He was a talented songwriter and played the bass guitar. Andy Fraser is best known for being the bassist and a songwriter for the rock band Free. He helped start Free in 1968 when he was only 15 years old. After leaving Free in 1972, he also formed another rock band called Sharks.

Early Life and Music Journey

Andy Fraser was born in Paddington, a part of Central London, England. His father was from the Caribbean, and his mother was English. His parents later divorced, and his mother raised him and his three brothers and sisters.

He started playing the piano when he was five years old. He learned classical music until he was twelve. Then, he decided to switch to playing the guitar. By the time he was thirteen, he was already playing music in clubs. At 15, he went to Hammersmith College to continue his education.

At college, a student named Sappho Korner introduced him to her father, Alexis Korner. Alexis Korner was a famous blues musician and radio host. He became a mentor to Andy. Soon after, Alexis Korner suggested Andy to John Mayall, who needed a bass player for his band, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. Andy was still only 15, but he joined the band and started earning money as a professional musician.

Forming the Band Free

Alexis Korner also helped Andy join his next important band, Free. This band included Paul Rodgers as the singer, Paul Kossoff on guitar, and Simon Kirke on drums. Andy Fraser was a key part of Free.

He helped write and produce many songs for the band. One of their most famous songs was "All Right Now". Andy co-wrote this song with Paul Rodgers. It became a number one hit in more than 20 countries! By 1990, it had been played over a million times on the radio in the United States. In 2006, the song received an award for being played over three million times on radio and TV.

Simon Kirke, the drummer for Free, shared a story about how "All Right Now" was created. He said that after a bad concert, Andy Fraser started singing "All Right Now" and wrote the song right there in the dressing room. It took him less than ten minutes!

Andy also helped write other hit songs for Free, like "My Brother Jake" and "The Stealer". Free broke up for a short time in 1971. During this time, Andy formed a band called Toby. He later rejoined Free in December 1971 but left again in June 1972.

New Bands and Songwriting

After leaving Free, Andy Fraser started a new band called Sharks. The band included singer Snips, guitarist Chris Spedding, and drummer Marty Simon. Critics liked Sharks, especially Chris Spedding's guitar playing. However, Andy left Sharks after their first album, First Water, came out in 1973.

Next, he formed the Andy Fraser Band. This band had Kim Turner on drums and Nick Judd on keyboards. They released two albums in 1975: Andy Fraser Band and In Your Eyes. After this band also ended, Andy moved to California. He wanted to focus on writing songs for other artists.

He wrote hit songs for many famous singers. These included Robert Palmer, Joe Cocker, Chaka Khan, Rod Stewart, and Paul Young. Two of his most famous songs are "All Right Now" and "Every Kinda People". Robert Palmer recorded "Every Kinda People" in 1978 for his album Double Fun.

Andy married Henrietta from Australia in 1974. Their first daughter, Hannah, was born in England that year. After they moved to California, they had a second daughter, Jasmine, in 1977.

Later Years and Music

In 1984, Andy Fraser released another album of his own called Fine, Fine Line. He sang on this album. One of the songs, "Do You Love Me", was a cover song. It spent five weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States.

Andy played bass with his former Free bandmate Paul Rodgers at the Woodstock '94 music festival. After that, he kept a low profile until 2005. That year, he released a new album called Naked and Finally Free.

In an interview, Andy said, "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." This shows he was a very flexible musician.

In 2006, Andy Fraser gave a big interview about his music career. He also announced two rare live shows in California. These were his first live performances since the Woodstock reunion in 1994.

In 2008, he wrote and sang a song called "Obama (Yes We Can)". He wrote it to support Barack Obama's campaign to become president of the United States.

In 2010, Andy Fraser was interviewed for a BBC Two TV show called Rock 'n' Roll. This show looked at the success of famous bands over the past 50 years.

In 2013, Andy played bass for a young musician named Tobi Earnshaw. They played a few concerts in the UK with guitarist Chris Spedding. Andy also helped Tobi Earnshaw produce his albums.

Death

Andy Fraser passed away on March 16, 2015, at his home in California. He died from a heart attack. He was 62 years old. He was survived by his daughters, Hannah and Jasmine, and his ex-wife, Henrietta.

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)

See also

In Spanish: Andy Fraser para niños