FANNY - FANNY HILL @ 50

 

Released in February of 1972, Fanny Hill, the third studio album by all female rock band, Fanny, turns 50 this month.

Fanny have become somewhat legendary as one of the first all female rock groups to be signed to a major label and experience notable, if modest, chart success. It wasn’t an easy road for the band, who were trying to make a name for themselves during a period when the male domination of the industry was at its peak. Getting anyone to take them seriously meant they had to work harder than most other bands to prove themselves and that effort certainly shows in the quality of the music they released over their brief half decade of existence in the early ‘70s. They had their champions, especially in the form of David Bowie, who praised them for their work, and they even became Barbara Streisand’s backing band for her album, Barbra Joan Streisand, in 1971, but none of this recognition came easy.

For their third LP, again produced by Richard Perry, they left LA to cross the Atlantic over to London to record at Abbey Road studios with Beatles engineer, Geoff Emerick. In addition to the group’s original compositions, each side of the LP is kicked off with a cover song. Side one features Marvin Gaye’s Ain’t That Peculiar, while side 2 features The Beatles, Hey Bulldog, both delivered in rousing, high energy renditions. The former also features sax from Rolling Stones session man, Bobby Keys. The title for the album is derived from the 1748 erotic novel of the same name, which was, in the 1960s, repeatedly prosecuted and republished. The album peaked on the Billboard charts at #85 and received a glowing review in Rolling Stone.

I didn’t discover Fanny until very recently when I came across some YouTube videos of them performing live on TV. I was immediately struck by their intensity and the fierceness of their performances. The quality of the songs also jumped out at me. The fact the band were fronted by two Filipino immigrant sisters added to their uniqueness beyond being all female as it brings in that “American dream” mythology.

It’s easy to see why they’ve become something of a cult sensation lately as they were so under-appreciated during their initial career. I’m still needing to see the documentary about them, Fanny - The Right To Rock. There’s an integrity and honesty to their music that has stood out from the very first notes I heard. On Fanny Hill, the song, You’ve Got a Home, strikes hard as a heartfelt expression of love and commitment from a struggling single mother to her child. It’s an atypical yet universal subject for a rock song that could only be expressed as poignantly by this band.

Fanny may have been all girls, but they never traded on obvious, cheap sex-appeal. Their stock was musicianship, song-craft and performing chops, which they honed to perfection. I suppose it’s better late than never to give them their dues, but it is a shame it took half a century for this music to be more fully recognized.