"Frankie"
Single by Sister Sledge
from the album When the Boys Meet the Girls
B-side"Hold Out Poppy"
ReleasedMay 1985
GenrePop, R&B
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)Denise Rich[1][2]
Producer(s)Nile Rodgers
Sister Sledge singles chronology
"We Are Family (Bernard Edwards Remix)"
(1984) 		"Frankie"
(1985) 		"Dancing on the Jagged Edge"
(1985)

"Frankie" is a song by American vocal group Sister Sledge, released as a single in 1985. It is taken from their eighth studio album, When the Boys Meet the Girls (1985).

Overview

The song was written by Denise Rich (under the pseudonym "Joy Denny") after dreaming while on a flight from the United States to Switzerland.[2] According to the Now 5 album (on which the song appears), the song was written about Frank Sinatra.

The song was produced by Chic's Nile Rodgers, who had co-produced the sisters' earlier hits such as "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "We Are Family". The sisters suggested the song to him, but he hated it on first hearing. A week later, he went back to them saying he could not stop singing it, and so he insisted that the band recorded it.[3]

A marked contrast to the disco cuts which had made them internationally famous in the late 1970s, this girl-pop number became a hit in the UK Singles Chart, spending four weeks at number one in June and July 1985.[4] It fared much less well in the US where it peaked at number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 32 R&B[5] and No. 15 Adult Contemporary.[6]

"Frankie" was fifth best selling single of 1985 with 698,000 sold copies in the United Kingdom.[7]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ [1] Archived May 9, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b Edward Wong (October 11, 2000). "Public Lives; Songwriter Who Doubles as Friend of Bill". The New York Times. United States. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
  3. ^ Songfacts. "Frankie by Sister Sledge - Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  4. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 450–1. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  5. ^ Alex Henderson. "Sister Sledge | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 221.
  7. ^ Copsey, Rob (April 9, 2021). "Official Top 40 best-selling songs of 1985". Official Charts. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  8. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 276. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. ^ "Sister Sledge – Frankie" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  10. ^ "Sister Sledge – Frankie" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  11. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 7820." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  12. ^ "European Top 100 Singles". Eurotipsheet. Vol. 2, no. 31. August 5, 1985. p. 8.
  13. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 31, 1985" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  14. ^ "Sister Sledge – Frankie" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  15. ^ "Sister Sledge – Frankie". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  16. ^ "Sister Sledge – Frankie". Singles Top 100. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  17. ^ "Sister Sledge: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  18. ^ "Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. July 13, 1985. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  19. ^ "Adult Contemporary". Billboard. July 27, 1985. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  20. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. July 20, 1985. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  21. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Sister Sledge – Frankie" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  22. ^ "Kent Music Report No 599 – 30 December 1985 > National Top 100 Singles for 1985". Kent Music Report. Retrieved January 23, 2023 – via Imgur.
  23. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1985" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  24. ^ "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1985" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  25. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1985" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  26. ^ "British single certifications – Sister Sledge – Frankie". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
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