Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero in Newark's Italian Down Neck or Ironbound section of Newark, New Jersey neighbourhood, she is considered the most prolific and popular female rock 'n' roll hit-maker of the early rock era -- the late 1950s to the early 1960s. After an appearance on Startime, Francis was advised to change her name from Franconero to something more easily pronounceable, as well as to quit the accordion and focus on singing.
Francis' first single "Freddy" (1955) met with little success. Her next nine singles were also failures, and she began considering a career in medicine; however, "Who's Sorry Now" (a cover version of a 1923 song) launched her into super-stardom worldwide. Francis recorded the song at what was to have been her final recording session for MGM, as the label was about to drop her since her previous singles had generated little activity. She has said (paraphrased from The Billboard Book of Number One Singles by Fred Bronson) that she recorded it at the suggestion of her father, who convinced her it stood a chance of becoming a hit because it was a song adults already knew and that teenagers would dance to if it were released with a more contemporary arrangement.
The gamble paid off. In April 1958, "Who's Sorry Now" reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart (number four in the USA); in 2000, it was named one of the Songs of the Century. On January 1, 1958, she debuted it on Dick Clark's American Bandstand television show; by mid-year over a million copies were sold. This was followed by many other hits over the next decade, as Connie Francis became one of the most popular vocalists in the world.
Francis specialized in downbeat ballads delivered in her trademark "sobbing" style -- such as "My Happiness," "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry," "Among My Souvenirs," "Together," "Breakin' In a Brand New Broken Heart," and the Italian song "Mama," many of which were remakes of old standards. However, she also had success with a handful of more upbeat, rock-and-roll-oriented compositions, such as "Stupid Cupid," "Lipstick On Your Collar," and "Vacation." Among her other notable performances were "In the Summer of His Years" (a tribute to slain U.S. President John F. Kennedy) and Bert Kaempfert's "Strangers In The Night" (although the latter song is more identified with Frank Sinatra). Both "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" and "My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own" went to No.1 on the Billboard music charts in 1960. In 1962 she had another No.1 hit with "Don't Break the Heart That Loves You."
Francis recorded in nine languages during her career, including English, Italian, French, Spanish, German, and even Japanese, and remade many of her hits in foreign languages, including "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" and her signature song, "Where the Boys Are." In fact, her biggest hit album in the U.S. was 1960's Italian Favorites, and she followed it with several more albums of Italian songs over the years, as well as collections of Spanish-language and Jewish songs, among others.
"Where The Boys Are," one of many Neil Sedaka/Howard Greenfield compositions Francis recorded during her career (others included "Stupid Cupid" and "Everybody's Somebody's Fool"), gained wide exposure through its inclusion in the 1960 motion picture with the same title. Francis had a role in the film and sang the title song. During the first half of the 1960s she starred in three additional films -- Follow the Boys (1963) (the title song of which became a No. 17 Billboard single for Francis), Looking for Love (1964) and When the Boys Meet the Girls (1965).
In 1960 Francis became the youngest headliner to sing in Las Vegas, where she played 28 days a year for nine years. In 1961 she was successful in starring in her own television special on ABC television sponsored by Brylcreem titled Kicking Sound Around, singing and acting along-side Tab Hunter, Eddie Foy Jr. and Art Carney. She appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show on July 1, 1962 with French singing star Johnny Hallyday in a show that was taped at the famous Moulin Rouge nightclub in Paris, France. On July 3, 1963 she played a Command performance before Queen Elizabeth II at the Alhambra Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland. By 1967, she had 35 U.S. Top 40 hits, and three number ones.
Connie Francis has always been a great fan of country music and recorded several albums of country standards during her pop career. In 1969 she had a modest country hit with "The Wedding Cake" and made the country charts again in 1982 with "There's Still a Few Good Love Songs Left in Me." Several country singers found chart success remaking Francis' pop hits for the country market, including Marie Osmond ("Who's Sorry Now" in 1975), Susan Raye ("My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own" in 1972), Margo Smith ("Don't Break The Heart That Loves You" in 1978), and Debby Boone.
During the height of the Vietnam War in 1967, Connie Francis performed for U.S. troops.
Francis ended her recording career in 1969. She returned in 1973 with "The Answer," a song written just for her, and soon began performing again. Her son Joey was born in 1974. Tragedies followed soon after. In 1974 she was sexually assaulted in a hotel following a performance in Westbury, New York. Nasal surgery to correct a sensitivity to air conditioning deprived her of her ability to sing professionally for four years. Her brother was murdered in 1981.
Francis' autobiography, Who's Sorry Now? was published in 1984. Francis was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a mental disease which includes severe depressions and manic highs. She uses the drug Lithium to balance out the emotional highs and lows caused by the disease. Connie Francis resumed her career in 1989 after discovering the drug and has continued singing and recording since then. Francis still holds a world-wide appeal shown through continued music sales and sold-out appearances.
Her latest CD The American Tour contains performances from recent shows. In late December 2004, Francis headlined in Las Vegas for the first time since 1989.
In March of 2007, Francis performed to a sold-out crowd -- composed of gay urbanites and conservative suburbanites -- in San Francisco. The "little diva" belted out versions of her "woebegone ballads . . . in full force," according to the San Franciso Chronicle's music critic.
Connie's fan club: www.conniefrancis.com
can i rely on you
Connie Francis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So I've made up my mind
To live in memory
Of such an old lonesome time
I can't stop wanting you
It's useless to say
So I'll just live my life
Those happy hours
That we once knew
Though long ago
They still make me blue
They say that time
Heals a broken heart
But time has stood still
Since we've been apart...
In this classic song by Connie Francis, the lyrics depict a broken heart and the struggle to move on. The singer has made up her mind to live in memory of the past, unable to let go of the love she once had. The lyrics convey the hopelessness that one may feel after a heartbreak, with the singer acknowledging that it's useless to say she doesn't want her lover anymore. Instead of facing reality, she chooses to live in dreams of yesterday.
The singer longs for the happy hours that they once knew with their lover, but unfortunately, those memories only make her feel blue. She talks about the common belief that time heals all wounds, but it hasn't been the case for her since they've been apart. This song mirrors the experience of many people who struggle to get over a lost love and instead, choose to hold on to the memories of the past, hoping that they will bring some solace.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't stop loving you
I am still in love with you and cannot simply quit loving you.
So I've made up my mind
I have decided to embrace my feelings completely.
To live in memory
My mind will dwell on how it felt to be with you.
Of such an old lonesome time
Even though it was tragic, my heart will remember the time we spent together.
I can't stop wanting you
My love for you still exists after all this time, and I cannot simply get rid of it.
It's useless to say
Words cannot describe how much I miss you.
So I'll just live my life
Until I become reunited once again with you, I'll lead my life in constant daydreams of you.
In dreams of yesterday
I'm stuck in the past, and want nothing more than to go back to how things used to be between us.
Those happy hours
The times we had together were full of joy and love.
That we once knew
I can't help but remember how it felt to be in love with you.
Though long ago
Even though some time's passed, your love still endures in my mind.
They still make me blue
Every moment reminisced about leaves me feeling sad for what is lost.
They say that time
People say that over time...
Heals a broken heart
...Healing can start to take place, even from wounds of deepest love missing.
But time has stood still
Unfortunately, any developments haven't stopped the pain and longing completely.
Since we've been apart
During the entire length of time that we've been apart, nothing has been able to silence my desire to be with you again.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Don Gibson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@tellekohtala5913
@@kph1955
Well, well still..
'Can I rely on You..'
A very good question in this current world.
~CONNIE, You're totally in this time just now !~
Yes, with this stereo disc, everything is in good balance !
The orchestration of Don Costa is elegant with its arrangements and
CONNIE's song/voice crowns everything cleanly.
Composition by
Murry & Davis, sure quality work !
Like "honey" for my ears all
this music performance !
Kevin, thanks for Your posting ! Sounds super💞
@barbaraharris7004
@@miltonmoore8369 I cannot see no song recommendation.
On the next page ''To My Brooklet '' in my Henry Wadsworth Longfellow book I found a lovely poem. that was unknown to me ''Will Ever The Dear Days Come Back Again''
You might know of it.?
''Will ever the dear days come back again. Those days of June ,when lilacs were in bloom.
And bluebirds sang their sonnets in the gloom Of leaves that roofed them in from sun and rain.
I know not , but a presence will remain .Forever and forever in this room ,
Formless diffused in air ,like a perfume .
A phantom of the heart ,and not the brain .
Delicious days , when every spoken word was like a footfall nearer and more near.
And a mysterious knocking at the gate .Of the heart's secret places ,and we heard
In the sweet tumult of delight and fear. A voice that whispered '' Open I cannot wait''
@miltonmoore8369
@@barbaraharris7004
THE SONG RECOMMENDATION IS IN MY ORIGINAL COMMENT,
NEAR THE TOP OF THE PAGE, AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE COMMENT. (BILLY WALKER, "GONE', OUR ENDLESS LOVE," ON THE "BE MISTY CHANNEL." I LEFT SEVERAL COMMENTS ABOUT THAT FAVORITE BILLY WALKER SONG OF MINE.)
THANKS FOR SHARING THE POEM. THAT HIGH LEVEL OF WRITING FITS WHAT GOETHE WROTE:
"TRUTH AND BEAUTY WERE CREATED FOR THE WISE AND THE SENSITIVE OF HEART."
REGARDING THE DUCIS "BROOKLET" POEM, OF THE SEVERAL WEB SITES THAT CONTAIN IT, SOME HAVE AN EXTRA STANZA AT THE END THAT IS NOT
ON OTHER SITES, NOR IN THE VERSION IN YOUR BOOK. SO THAT'S INTERESTING AS TO THE QUESTION, "WHY?" SORRY I DON'T HAVE THE POEM COPIED DOWN, EXCEPT FOR THE ORIGINAL FRENCH VERSION SOMEWHERE
IN MY PAPERS. I INTEND TO PUT THAT POEM, ALONG WITH A COMMENT IN A SONG, TO GET IT MORE EXPOSURE.
MORE LATER. (SAD THAT
WE WON'T LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO READ AND ABSORB ALL THE GREAT POETRY, AS WELL AS "HIGH PROSE" THAT IS AVAILABLE TO US.)
@frankiehunter.
No one has sung this song better than Mrs Francis. Her interprration is worthy of the Grammy award.
@kph1955
It is a beautiful song and one of my favorites.
@theosimone
From the opening notes, you know this is a song that Connie is going to sink her teeth into -- and she does! It's a perfect match of song and singer resulting in a knockout recording.
@bernardrubin5816
Beautiful song and sung beautifully by Connie.
@kph1955
Bernard, I love this song. There is a version of this song with Connie narrating in the "Bridge" over the music. I'm trying to clean the audio so that it will be suitable for publication on my channel.
@bernardrubin5816
I will look forward to listening to it.
@franco7045
Love this song from Connie
@patriciastafford8105
Another beautiful song . Thanks Kevin.
@kph1955
It is a beauty, Pat. It sounds fantastic in natural stereo.
@miltonmoore8369
YES INDEED. I LEFT A COMMENT ABOVE.
👏✌️👍🤠🌹😺😃😁🌠