Franks grew up in southern California with his father Jerry, his mother Betty, and two younger sisters. Although no one in his family was a musician, his parents loved swing music, and his early influences included
Peggy Lee,
Nat King Cole,
George Gershwin,
Irving Berlin, and
Johnny Mercer. At age 14 Franks bought his first guitar, a Japanese Marco Polo for $29.95 with six private lessons included; those lessons were the only music education that he received. At
University High School in San Diego, Franks discovered the poetry of
Theodore Roethke with his off-rhymes and hidden meter. In high school, he began singing
folk-rock, accompanying himself on guitar. Studying English at
UCLA, Michael discovered
Dave Brubeck,
Patti Page,
Stan Getz,
João Gilberto,
Antonio Carlos Jobim, and
Miles Davis. He never studied music in college or later, but earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA in comparative literature in 1966 and a Master of Arts degree from the
University of Oregon in 1968. He had a teaching assistantship in a PhD program in American literature at the
University of Montreal before returning to teach part-time at UCLA. During this time Franks started writing songs, starting with the antiwar musical
Anthems in E-flat (1968) starring
Mark Hamill. He also composed music for the films
Cockfighter (1974), starring
Warren Oates, and ''
Zandy's Bride (1974), starring Liv Ullmann and Gene Hackman. Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee recorded three of his songs, including "White Boy Lost in the Blues" on their album Sonny & Brownie. Franks played guitar, banjo and mandolin on the album and joined them in touring. In 1973, he recorded an eponymous album, later reissued as Previously Unavailable,'' which included the minor hit "Can't Seem to Shake This Rock 'n' Roll." In 1976 Franks released his second album
The Art of Tea, which saw Franks begin a long relationship with
Warner Bros. Records.
The Art of Tea featured
Joe Sample,
Larry Carlton, and
Wilton Felder of
the Crusaders and included the hit song "Popsicle Toes". His third album,
Sleeping Gypsy (1977), which includes the song "The Lady Wants to Know", was partially recorded in Brazil. Around this time, percussionist Ray Armando gave Franks a
cabasa, which became a signature instrument for him to play on stage when he was not playing guitar.
Burchfield Nines (1978), which includes the song "When the Cookie Jar Is Empty," reflects his move to New York City and features more of an East Coast sound. Since then, Franks has recorded more than 15 albums. His best known works include "When I Give My Love to You," "Popsicle Toes," "Monkey See, Monkey Do," "Lotus Blossom," "Tiger in the Rain," "Rainy Night in Tokyo," "Mr. Smooth", and "Tell Me All About It." His biggest hit came in 1983 with "When Sly Calls (Don't Touch That Phone)" from the album
Passionfruit. Radio hits include "Your Secret's Safe With Me" from 1985's
Skin Dive, and "Island Life" from 1987's
The Camera Never Lies. Michael Franks also recorded his cover version of "Christmas Time Is Here" (the Christmas classic) with jazz pianist
David Benoit released in 1996 on Benoit's Christmas album
Remembering Christmas. ==Discography==