Connie Francis • Who’s Sorry Now?

A few weeks ago, we started a new tradition - “Fab Fifties Friday Night.”

Each Friday night we pick a different 50s artist to spotlight. I suggested before that the 1950s was such a fun era of music, we must not allow it to become lost in time, like the hula hoop or the Edsel or roller rinks. We must fight to keep alive the memory of Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry and Connie Francis. So here now, keeping my promise, is another great 50s artist that I think you are going to love:

Tonight, we turn the spotlight on one of the most gifted and successful female performers of all time, Connie Francis! As usual, I’ll attach here a few videos of her singles which have become classics from that 1950’s, early 60s era. You’ll enjoy those! But first, a few interesting thoughts about who she is.

For the record, if you’re not familiar with her (until today that is), Connie Francis is the only recording artist to have been awarded 10 Gold Records for 10 individual titles within a two year period. At last count, Connie had 16 Gold Records to her name, and sold over 100 million records. Not too shabby.

Sometimes, it’s true, “Father Knows Best” (the name of a classic 1950s TV Sitcom). What do I mean? Well, in this case, Connie Francis’ Dad had really good instincts, and she listened to his advice. What happened? After a couple of years in the music industry, with some small modest results, one day in 1957, Francis was informed by MGM Records that her contract would not be renewed after her next solo single. It just didn’t seem to be working for them. She felt like she was done! Connie Francis was going to throw in the towel and quit the music business. None of us would ever have heard of her or her amazing future records! In fact she wondered about going in to medicine, and had just been offered a full four year scholarship to NYU.

Then, enter Dad. Her father urged her not to give up, but to give it one more try. In fact, he offered very specific advice, that he was convinced would work for her. He strongly suggested that she record a song that had been a pretty big hit way back in 1923! His logic was that adults already knew the song and would buy it for nostalgic reasons. And he knew teenagers would love it and dance to it if it had a contemporary arrangement.

(Photo below of Connie with parents [sitting])

So, on October 2, 1957, Francis went in to the studio and worked on the song. But she still wasn’t convinced. She has said that she recorded it only at the insistence of her father. Connie, who did not even like the song and had been arguing about it with her father heatedly, delayed the recording of the two other songs during the session so much, that in her opinion, no time was left on the continuously running recording tape. Her father insisted, though, and when the recording was finished, only a few seconds were left on the tape. It had worked out perfectly. It was recorded!

(Photo below of Connie with Dick Clark on TV)

So they released the single, a song that was entitled “Who's Sorry Now?" The record just seemed to go unnoticed at first, like so many of the more recent releases had. But then the big break came. On January 1, 1958, her song debuted on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. Then the following month Dick Clark featured it on his other show, called The Saturday Night Beechnut Show. That was all it took.

By April, "Who's Sorry Now?" had climbed all the way to # 4 in the US, and to # 1 in the UK. And the rest is history. By mid-year, over a million copies had been sold, and Francis was suddenly launched into worldwide stardom. For the next four years, she was voted the "Best Female Vocalist" by a nationwide vote of American Bandstand viewers. And as noted earlier, Connie Francis went on to earn 16 Gold Records, and to sell 100 million records. Maybe sometimes “Father does Know Best.” HaHa!

She next recorded a song written for her by Neil Sedaka, “Stupid Cupid.” It went on to reach number 14 on the Billboard chart and was her second number 1 in the UK. Next she released “My Happiness” (number 2 on the Hot 100), then “Among My Souvenirs,” (# 7).

In 1959, she gained two gold records for a double-sided hit: on the A-side, “Lipstick on Your Collar,” (# 5), B-side, “Frankie,” (# 9). That made her the first female recording artist in the world to receive a double sided Gold Record. So much good music!

Tim Sendra (of AllMusic Review) says of her, “In the late '50s and early '60s, there were few bigger stars in the world of music than Connie Francis. Able to sing many different styles convincingly, from rock & roll to country, from lush adult ballads to Italian love songs and girl group sounds, Francis had hits galore and created a very impressive body of work. The 2005 Gold (album) rounds up 50 of her singles recorded between 1957 and 1969 on two discs and is now the best Connie Francis collection on the market for anyone who wants to get the full scope of her incredible talent without forking over the money for a box set. Just one listen will either remind you how much you already dug her or it will make you a staunch supporter.”

In the 1970s and 80s, Connie Francis suffered a number of tragedies, including a rape, as well as the murder of her brother by the mafia. She almost didn’t recover from these, but ultimately regained her equilibrium, and moved on with her life. In December 2017, Francis released her most recent autobiography, Among My Souvenirs. She is 82, is retired from music, and enjoys living in Florida.

My “Best of Connie Francis” Playlist on Spotify

Here is a video of Connie Francis, with a live performance of “Who’s Sorry Now?:”

Here with her 2nd big hit, a live performance on TV, of “Stupid Cupid:”

Here in a duet with Pat Boone, a live TV performance of “My Happiness:”

A live performance of “Where The Boys Are:”

Finally, an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, performing the song “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool:”