Michael Franks
b. 1944, La Jolla, California, USA. As a young teenager, Franks began singing to his own guitar accompaniment. He drew his eclectic repertoire from a broad field including currently popular folk music and aspects of the blues. He also began composing in the blues idiom, performing his own work and also hearing it picked up by other musicians. Franks continued to work mostly on the west coast and by the '70s had become a well-known teacher and composer. His songs have been recorded by Mark Murphy, Carmen McRae and others. In the mid-70s he made a number of well-received records with jazzmen such as Kenny Barron and Ron Carter. Franks sings with a huskily intimate sound, interpreting lyrics with feeling and imparting a smooth swing to all his performances.