Francine (song)

1972 single by ZZ Top

"Francene"

Single by ZZ Top

from the album Rio Grande Mud

B-side

"Francene (Spanish)"

Released

1972

Recorded

Brian Studios
Ardent Studios
Memphis, Tennessee

Genre

Rock

Length

3:33

Label

London

Songwriter(s)

Billy Gibbons, Steve Perron
Kenny Cordray^[1]^[2]^[3]

Producer(s)

Bill Ham

ZZ Top singles chronology

"(Somebody Else Been) Shakin' Your Tree"
(1971)

"Francene"
(1972)

"La Grange"
(1973)

Official audio

"Francene" on YouTube

"Francine" is a song recorded by the American rock band ZZ Top from their 1972 album Rio Grande Mud. It was their first chart hit.^[4]

Overview

"Francine" was the only single released from the Rio Grande Mud album and gave ZZ Top their first bona fide hit reaching number 69 on the Billboard charts.^[5] ZZ Top co-wrote the song with Steve Perron and Kenny Cordray, but the band claimed sole writing credit, cutting the two collaborators out of royalties for years.^[4]

Various official ZZ Top releases throughout the years, beginning in 1972, have used the alternative spelling "Francene", especially on the various single releases, both within and outside the United States.

The B-side of the single was a Spanish version of the song. It was later included on the box set Chrome, Smoke & BBQ.

Personnel

Frank Beard – drums
Billy Gibbons – guitar, lead vocals
Dusty Hill – bass guitar, backing vocals

References

^ BMI entry for song BMI, accessed June 25, 2013
^ "bio". Kenny Cordray. Retrieved 2017-05-22.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ Deborah Frost (1985). ZZ Top - Bad And Worldwide. New York: Rolling Stone Press. ISBN 0020029500.
^ ^a ^b Scott, Grace (June 2023). "Beard Science". Creem. pp. 52–59. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
^ "ZZ Top". billboard.com. Retrieved 2022-11-02.