Randall Franks
Encyclopedia
Randall Franks is an award-winning bluegrass
singer and musician who plays fiddle, mandolin, guitar and mountain dulcimer. He was recognized by the International Bluegrass Music Museum in 2010 as a Bluegrass Legend; inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004; and was designated the "Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle."
, he appeared for five years on NBC and CBS and now on WGN America and was seen in 150 countries around the world.
Franks returned full force into acting in 2011 with five films in nine months. He starred with Natalie Grant
and Billy Dean
as "Principal Nate Foster" in the 2011 film "Decision." He also appeared for director John Hillcoat
with Mia Wasikowska
, Shia LaBeouf
, Tom Hardy
and Jason Clarke
in the upcoming 2012 feature "The Wettest County in the World
." He made a special appearance in children's adventure "The Solomon Bunch" as "Edgar Albert." He stars with John Schneider (television actor)
, Bill Cobbs
, Nicole Anderson
and Jenna Von Oy
in the 2012 film "Lukewarm." The specifics of his fifth film are currently not released.
His earlier work includes the Hallmark Hall of Fame’s “The Flamingo Rising
” in which he co-starred with Academy Award winner William Hurt
as “Officer Randy Kraft.” He starred in the sci-fi thriller “Phoenix Falling” with Stella Parton
, in the Vietnam War era action adventure “Firebase 9.” He also made a special appearance in Dolly Parton
’s “Blue Valley Songbird
” for Lifetime
. Franks began his movie career with a singing role in the movie “Desperate For Love” with Christian Slater
.
After taking a hiatus from film and dramatic television, he returned in 2009 as attorney Alvin Potter for "Robert Townsend's Musical Theater of Hope" a special for America's GMC cable. For more information visit http://randallfranks.com/.
Franks hosted and directed the PBS documentary “Still Ramblin’” highlighting the life of Georgia singing cowboy and early Grand Ole Opry
star Ramblin’ “Doc” Tommy Scott.
His Crimson CD “God’s Children” pays homage to the brother duets of the 1930s. The project includes appearances by David Davis, Sonny Shroyer, “Enos” from the “Dukes of Hazzard,” the late Cotton and Jane Carrier and Marty Hays. The single “Children In Need,” co-written by Franks and Tommy Scott, featured a performance with Sonny Shroyer reminding listeners of the importance of helping the children in one’s community through a whimsical tale told by “Ollie the Old Church Owl” portrayed by Shroyer.
” by Ervin Rouse. He was inspired to study both classically with Donald Grisier, Ph.D. and at the feet of some of Georgia’s fiddle legends such as the Skillet Licker Gordon Tanner, WSB Barndance host Cotton Carrier, Anita Sorrells Mathis and Dallas Burrell.
While still in school, Franks formed the children’s bluegrass band The Peachtree Pickers. It was through this act that he gained attention from national acts and television becoming a regular on the “Country Kids TV Series” and appearing for the Grand Ole Opry. The group released five albums.
To support the group’s efforts Franks started a Randall “Randy” Franks Peachtree Picker Fan Club, coordinated by Pearl Bruce. The club grew to include around 8,000 fans by 1986 rivaling and exceeding those of top country stars of the period. Franks created “The Pickin’Post” newsletter to keep the large group of fans informed sharing info on his career as well as Southern bluegrass festivals and other groups. The club also launched “The Singing Post” for fans exclusively interested in gospel music. The club grew even more dramatically during Franks' success on television. After more than 25 years, “The Pickin Post” continues to keep fans informed three times each year from P.O. Box 42, Tunnel Hill, Ga. 30755.
took a special interest in the young band and especially the young fiddler. Monroe spent hours teaching and sharing with Franks much like Monroe’s Uncle Pen had done for him. With the departure of Kenny Baker, Franks was asked to join the Bluegrass Boys. Still in school, he took off to tour from coast to coast. Though school beckoned him back, Franks continued to make appearances with Monroe up until he stopped touring.
For his contributions to the work of Bill Monroe, Franks was honored by the state of Kentucky.
With more than 200 recordings to his credit, his music has brought him on stage or in the studio to perform with entertainers in a variety of music fields: Carl Perkins
; Charlie Daniels
; Peabo Bryson
; The Whites; Ricky Skaggs
; Kitty Wells; Pee Wee King; Jimmy Dickens; Jeff and Sheri Easter; The Lewis Family
; The Isaacs
; The Primitive Quartet; Bill Monroe; Jim and Jesse; Ralph Stanley
; Raymond Fairchild
; Jimmy Martin
; Mac Wiseman
; Chubby Wise; Josh Graves
; Doug Dillard; Jerry Douglas
; Sam Bush
; Byron Berline
; The Warrior River Boys; The Sand Mountain Boys; The Gary Waldrep Band; The Cox Family; The Sidemen; Elaine and Shorty; “Doc” Tommy Scott’s Last Real Old Time Medicine Show.
Franks was also tapped by two other nationally known performers: Folk Music’s Doodle and the Golden River Grass, with whom Franks carried on the Georgia Fiddle Band tradition; and multi-award–winning gospel quartet, The Marksmen, who Franks long admired for their vocal artistry.
Franks saw a bluegrass void in some areas in his home state of Georgia so in the mid 1980s he began promoting bluegrass concerts using regional talent in communities that did not have bluegrass events nearby to increase the visibility of the field outside bluegrass festivals. He carried this endeavor one step farther during his off time from “In the Heat of the Night” when he began the “Share with D.A.R.E.” (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) concert series held in communities in several states featuring acts including Jim and Jesse, The Lewis Family, the Osborne Brothers himself and others. The shows showcased bluegrass stars while raising awareness and funds for a program to help keep children off drugs.
Franks studied commercial music while pursuing his bachelor’s degree in business administration at Georgia State University. Upon graduation, he entered a position as Sales and Promotions Manager for Atlanta based MBM Records. He quickly discovered that independent bluegrass and gospel music recordings were difficult to market amongst mainstream retailers but he set out to make the music he loved available in as many outlets as he could.
As he rose in popularity on television, he used his celebrity status to break down the barriers that he previously faced as a record executive and many other bluegrass and gospel artists encountered by calling mainstream and Christian retail buyers and store managers directly using his podium from NBC and CBS to assist record companies and distributors in marketing his and other bluegrass and gospel product.
Through the effort his products and many other artists sold by the companies he worked with became available in record chains throughout the country.
At a time when the industry was made of largely of established stars rather than rising new performers, Franks joined fellow rising star Alison Krauss as the most visible fiddlers and personalities of the industry in the late eighties and early nineties.
With Franks’ widespread notoriety he gained by weekly network exposure, he worked to expose bluegrass and Southern Gospel to this new audience appearing on radio and television talk, news and entertainment shows. Franks continues to appear on radio stations in all formats, television stations throughout the country, gives countless print interviews talking about and sharing the music he loves.
Franks began the 1990s as he crossed over to the Southern Gospel market being the first bluegrass performer to take his solo music project “Handshakes and Smiles” to the Top 20 Sales Charts. Singing News gave it “Four Stars”.
co-star Alan Autry
joined forces under the banner of Autry-Franks Productions to produce the charity "In the Heat of the Night" CD "Christmas Time's A Comin'" featuring the cast of the show. The project raised funds for drug abuse prevention charities.
With Franks producing, Autry performed his rendition of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" in homage to Gene Autry
. Franks performed an original song with Grand Ole Opry
stars The Whites entitled "Let's Live Everyday Like It was Christmas." The duo both performed on "Jingle Bells" and "Christmas Time's A Comin'." Franks and Autry were able to include many music legends, some among them, Country Music Hall of Famers Kitty Wells
, Jimmy Dickens and Pee Wee King
as well as many top legends from the Bluegrass genre, from Jim and Jesse to The Lewis Family. The “Christmas Time’s A Comin’” CD released on Sonlite and MGM/UA was one of the most popular Christmas releases of 1991 and 1992 with Southern retailers.
Franks formed his Hollywood Hillbilly Jamboree in the early 1990s, bringing his unique style of bluegrass into fairs, festivals and communities not normally including bluegrass in their annual celebrations. His show packages included a variety of stars, one of those casts were Donna Douglas
, “Elly Mae Clampett” of “The Beverly Hillbillies,” Sonny Shroyer
“Enos” from “The Dukes of Hazzard” and himself. Another television commercials package featured Dan Biggers
“Doc Robb” from TV’s “In the Heat of the Night.” Other musical acts that appeared with his show include David Davis and the Warrior River Boys, Gary Waldrep, Ryan Robertson, Barney Miller, James Watson, Danny Bell, Bill Everett, Gilbert Hancock, Sue and Kim Koskela, Roger Hammett, The Sand Mountain Boys, The Dowden Sisters and others. At one South Carolina event alone over 30,000 people came out to see the show and his show was the only featured attraction.
Both his “Sacred Sounds of Appalachia” (1992) and his “Tunes and Tales from Tunnel Hill” (1995) were among the top thirty bluegrass recordings of the year. His “Let’s Live Everyday Like It Was Christmas” single with Grand Ole Opry stars The Whites was given a nod as one of the top Country Vocal Collaborations.
Franks was tapped to host the SPBGMA Bluegrass Music Awards in Nashville, Tenn. at the Roy Acuff Theater in 1995. He presented Del McCoury his Male Vocalist of the Year Award at the IBMA Awards in Owensboro, Ky. in 1992.
To raise funds for the Share America Foundation, Inc. in April 2009, the Franks and Scott partnered on stage to present the play "An Appalachian Gathering" featuring a cast of 20 performers creating a slice of Southern life in the 1940s and present day highlighting the effects of the Medicine Show on small towns through Scott's eyes. Franks played Scott in the 1940s.
Franks has been honored with countless awards including The Fiddlin’ John Carson Award, A.S.E. Male Vocalist of the Year, The Cotton Carrier Award, Little Jimmy Dempsey Musician Award and a Sons of the American Revolution Citizenship Award. The Governor of Kentucky honored him for his contributions to the music of Bill Monroe. Catoosa County designated him “Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle” in 2004. Franks received the Songwriter of the Year Award from the Atlanta Society of Entertainers in 2009 for his song "The Old Black Fiddle" and also received Bluegrass Band of the Year with the Georgia Bluegrass Mafia Band. He appeared with that group performing that song on the live Georgia Public Broadcasting of the Georgia Music Hall of Fame Awards along side Collective Soul
and Third Day
honoring Georgia music pioneer John L. "Johnny" Carson.
The International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, Ky. honored Franks as a Bluegrass Legend at its 2010 Pioneers of Bluegrass Gathering alongside fellow Blue Grass Boys and other pioneers.
Randall Franks and the Georgia Mafia Bluegrass Band received the 2010 Atlanta Society of Entertainers Bluegrass Band of the Year Award. The Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle was honored as a feature performer alongside the Watkins Family by the Appalachian Regional Commission at its annual conference in 2010.
Franks said he was honored when the Georgia Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Macon featured an exhibit on his career in the Skillet Licker Café beside other Georgia notables Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt and Trisha Yearwood which was highlighted from 1996-2007.
He has performed at thousands of events and television shows including 20 years at CMA Fan Fair, most of the leading Bluegrass Festivals, The National Folk Festival, National Black Arts Festival, Georgia Mountain Fair, ACM Fan Fest, Grand Ole Opry, Fiddlin’ Fish Music and Arts Festival, The Grand Masters, Command Presidential Performance, Nashville Now, Crook and Chase, Miller & Company, Reno’s Old Time Music Festival and HGTV’s Extreme Homes.
He is president of the Share America Foundation that provides encouragement through the Pearl and Floyd Franks Scholarship to youth who are continuing the musical arts of Appalachia. The organization produces ten gospel Ringgold monthly. For more information visit http://www.shareamericafoundation.org/.
He serves as treasurer of the Catoosa County Local Emergency Planning Committee. The organization brings together all of the agencies that our community relies upon each day when a need arises. Through the committee's efforts, its members work to prepare solutions for widespread problems our community could face to better protect each of us.
He is the Fast Forward Chairman for the Georgia Production Partnership, a Georgia Film Industry organization which works to improve industry growth and opportunities.
He is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Ringgold, Boynton Lions Club, Catoosa Family Collaborative, Catoosa Ferst Foundation for Family Literacy, Nathan Anderson Cemetery Committee, Catoosa County Habitat for Humanity and the Catoosa County Historical Society. He is a Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame board advisor. Franks serves as a field researcher for several museums throughout the South.
He grew and gained skills by competing in Georgia fiddle contests, many fostered by World Record Mandolinist Bill Lowery as well as the Grand Ole Opry's Grand Master Fiddler Championship. In the 1990s Georgia honored Franks for his work to preserve the heritage of Georgia’s fiddling by naming a state-sponsored fiddle contest in his honor hosted then at Lake Lanier Islands.
Today, the Randall Franks Trophy is presented to the winner each year at the 1890s Day Jamboree Old Time Fiddler's Convention in Ringgold, Ga.
Franks also co-hosts America's Grand Master Fiddler Championship annually in Nashville at the IBMA World of Bluegrass.
His love of writing blossomed into scriptwriting under the tutorage of Carroll O’Connor during his time on “In the Heat of the Night,” which yielded him the unique opportunity to co-write the screenplay for the #1 Country song “Wolverton Mountain” with Merle Kilgore
.
He focused on another career in mainstream journalism from 2001-2009 in association with News Publishing Co. He developed a syndicated slice of life and entertainment column called “Southern Style” which is used in publications from North Carolina to Louisiana. Many readers equate his folksy style to that of the late columnist Lewis Grizzard
. He currently writes for various magazines.
In his first year of journalism, the Georgia Press Association awarded him a First Place Feature Photo award for a unique photo of the Bluegrass group The White Oak Mountain Boys. His writing has yielded 21 Georgia Press and one National Press Association awards; one among those is W. Trox Bankston Award. He has helped garner two W. G. Sutlive trophies for community service and assisted The Catoosa County News in achieving the General Excellence award in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and a National Press Association award for Local News coverage.
It was perhaps Franks' love for journalism in the entertainment field specifically, that also caused him to discover a huge oversight in a popular publication about television. In the renowned The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: 1946–Present by Tim Brooks
and Earle Marsh, the authors had long left out Franks' name in the complete regular cast list of In the Heat of the Night. In the late 1990s, Franks picked up a copy of what had to have been the 1995 edition of the book, the first to have information on the entire series after it ended in 1994. Obviously feeling slighted when he discovered that he was never listed as a principal character in that edition and two previous ones, Franks wrote to the authors himself; he pointed out that he had co-starred on the series for five years, and asked to be added in the next edition. A rare instance of the authors omitting a prominent actor in a TV series listing, Franks got his wish when he was finally added, starting with the seventh edition in 1999. Brooks and Marsh even mentioned their contact by Franks, in their 1999 epilogue, to make up for the long holdout.
Franks is currently serving on the city council in Ringgold, Georgia
with the term ending on December 31, 2013.
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
singer and musician who plays fiddle, mandolin, guitar and mountain dulcimer. He was recognized by the International Bluegrass Music Museum in 2010 as a Bluegrass Legend; inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004; and was designated the "Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle."
TV and movies
As TV’s “Officer Randy Goode” on the hit series In the Heat of the NightIn the Heat of the Night (TV series)
In the Heat of the Night is a television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995...
, he appeared for five years on NBC and CBS and now on WGN America and was seen in 150 countries around the world.
Franks returned full force into acting in 2011 with five films in nine months. He starred with Natalie Grant
Natalie Grant
Natalie Grant is a singer-songwriter of contemporary Christian music. Her work has gained prominence, including four consecutive Dove Awards for best female artist, and with her signature song, Held...
and Billy Dean
Billy Dean
William Harold "Billy" Dean, Jr. is an American country music singer and songwriter. Billy Dean first gained national attention after appearing on the television talent competition Star Search...
as "Principal Nate Foster" in the 2011 film "Decision." He also appeared for director John Hillcoat
John Hillcoat
John Hillcoat is an Australian screenwriter and film director.Hillcoat was born in Queensland, Australia, and was raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. As a child, his paintings were featured in the Art Gallery of Hamilton. He has repeatedly worked with Nick Cave and also the band Depeche Mode...
with Mia Wasikowska
Mia Wasikowska
Mia Wasikowska is an Australian actress. After starting her career in Australian television and film, she first became known to a wider audience following her critically acclaimed work on the HBO television series In Treatment...
, Shia LaBeouf
Shia LaBeouf
Shia Saide LaBeouf is an American actor who became known among younger audiences for his part in the Disney Channel series Even Stevens and made his film debut in Holes . In 2007, he starred as the leads in Disturbia and Transformers...
, Tom Hardy
Tom Hardy
Edward Thomas "Tom" Hardy is an English actor. He is best known for playing the title character in the 2008 British film Bronson, the character of Eames in Inception, and the villain Praetor Shinzon in Star Trek Nemesis...
and Jason Clarke
Jason Clarke
Jason Clarke is a writer and web developer living in Orono, Maine.His first book, Michael Moore Is a Big Fat Stupid White Man, co-written with David T. Hardy, was released in June 2004 and spent six weeks on The New York Times Bestseller list for Hardcover Nonfiction...
in the upcoming 2012 feature "The Wettest County in the World
The Wettest County in the World
The Wettest County is an upcoming film directed by John Hillcoat due to be released on 20th April 2012 and starring Shia LaBeouf and Tom Hardy. The Nick Cave screenplay is based on a novel of the same name by Matt Bondurant.- Plot :...
." He made a special appearance in children's adventure "The Solomon Bunch" as "Edgar Albert." He stars with John Schneider (television actor)
John Schneider (television actor)
John Richard Schneider III is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Bo Duke in the 1980s American television series The Dukes of Hazzard, and as Jonathan Kent on Smallville, a 2001 television adaptation of Superman.Alongside his acting career, Schneider performed as a...
, Bill Cobbs
Bill Cobbs
Wilbert "Bill" Cobbs is an American film and television actor. He has starred in over 120 television programs and movies.-Life and career:...
, Nicole Anderson
Nicole Anderson
Nicole Gale Anderson is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Macy Misa in the Disney Channel Original Series JONAS L.A., and also known for the role of Kelly Parker on the ABC Family series Make It or Break It...
and Jenna Von Oy
Jenna von Oÿ
Jenna von Oÿ is an American actress and country music singer best known for her roles as Six LeMeure on the NBC series Blossom, and Stevie van Lowe on the UPN sitcom The Parkers.-Early life and career:...
in the 2012 film "Lukewarm." The specifics of his fifth film are currently not released.
His earlier work includes the Hallmark Hall of Fame’s “The Flamingo Rising
The Flamingo Rising
The Flamingo Rising is a 2001 dramatic film in the Hallmark Hall of Fame released on television in 2001, and based on the novel The Flamingo Rising written by Larry Baker in 1997. The movie stars William Hurt, Elizabeth McGovern, and Brian Benben...
” in which he co-starred with Academy Award winner William Hurt
William Hurt
William McGill Hurt is an American stage and film actor. He received his acting training at the Juilliard School, and began acting on stage in the 1970s. Hurt made his film debut as a troubled scientist in the science-fiction feature Altered States , for which he received a Golden Globe nomination...
as “Officer Randy Kraft.” He starred in the sci-fi thriller “Phoenix Falling” with Stella Parton
Stella Parton
Stella Parton is an American Country Music singer and songwriter. She is a younger sister of country music icon Dolly Parton, and musician and businessman Randy Parton. Stella Parton became a mildly successful country singer in the 70s, and though having nowhere near the success of her elder...
, in the Vietnam War era action adventure “Firebase 9.” He also made a special appearance in Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
’s “Blue Valley Songbird
Blue Valley Songbird
Blue Valley Songbird is a 1999 made for television movie starring Dolly Parton. It was filmed in Nashville, Tennessee.-Plot:Dolly Parton stars as country singer Leana Taylor who struggles to escape from her controlling manager/boyfriend as well as her troubled past...
” for Lifetime
Lifetime Television
Lifetime Television, often referred to as Lifetime TV, or most commonly, Lifetime, is an American cable television specialty channel devoted to movies, sitcoms and dramas, all of which are either geared toward women or feature women in lead roles. The cable network is owned by A&E Television Networks...
. Franks began his movie career with a singing role in the movie “Desperate For Love” with Christian Slater
Christian Slater
Christian Michael Leonard Slater is an American actor. He made his film debut with a small role in The Postman Always Rings Twice before playing a leading role in the 1985 film The Legend of Billie Jean...
.
After taking a hiatus from film and dramatic television, he returned in 2009 as attorney Alvin Potter for "Robert Townsend's Musical Theater of Hope" a special for America's GMC cable. For more information visit http://randallfranks.com/.
Franks hosted and directed the PBS documentary “Still Ramblin’” highlighting the life of Georgia singing cowboy and early Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
star Ramblin’ “Doc” Tommy Scott.
His Crimson CD “God’s Children” pays homage to the brother duets of the 1930s. The project includes appearances by David Davis, Sonny Shroyer, “Enos” from the “Dukes of Hazzard,” the late Cotton and Jane Carrier and Marty Hays. The single “Children In Need,” co-written by Franks and Tommy Scott, featured a performance with Sonny Shroyer reminding listeners of the importance of helping the children in one’s community through a whimsical tale told by “Ollie the Old Church Owl” portrayed by Shroyer.
Author
Franks embarked on a new facet of his career when he co-authored the award-winning “Stirring Up Success with a Southern Flavor” with Shirley Smith, executive director for the Catoosa County Learning Center. Franks gathered over 70 celebrities for the cookbook that incorporates celebrities, center stories and Catoosa County history and photos to assist with the fundraising project for the center. In just one year of sales, that book yielded the program over $27,000 in 2004. With the 2007 release of "Snake Oil, Superstars, and Me," the autobiography of Ramblin' "Doc" Tommy Scott, Franks joined Scott and fellow co-author Shirley Noe Swiesz in completing the 700-page project highlighting Scott's 90 years on the stage, film and television. Franks is currently working on three other books, one featuring stories of his experiences in entertainment and another reflecting the Appalachian upbringing of his late mother and a sequel to the literacy cookbook mentioned above. Smith and Franks partnered again in 2009 for a sequel "Stirring Up Additional Success with a Southern Flavor" with even more celebrities to raise more for the Catoosa County Learning Center.Early musical experiences
As a child, Franks was exposed to the rich heritage of Georgia fiddlin’ at family reunions. Franks’ desire to learn was sparked at the age of eight when he heard the “Orange Blossom SpecialOrange Blossom Special (song)
The fiddle tune "Orange Blossom Special", about the passenger train of the same name, was written by Ervin T. Rouse in 1938. The original recording was created by Ervin and Gordon Rouse in 1939. It is considered the best known fiddle tune of the twentieth century and is often called simply The...
” by Ervin Rouse. He was inspired to study both classically with Donald Grisier, Ph.D. and at the feet of some of Georgia’s fiddle legends such as the Skillet Licker Gordon Tanner, WSB Barndance host Cotton Carrier, Anita Sorrells Mathis and Dallas Burrell.
While still in school, Franks formed the children’s bluegrass band The Peachtree Pickers. It was through this act that he gained attention from national acts and television becoming a regular on the “Country Kids TV Series” and appearing for the Grand Ole Opry. The group released five albums.
To support the group’s efforts Franks started a Randall “Randy” Franks Peachtree Picker Fan Club, coordinated by Pearl Bruce. The club grew to include around 8,000 fans by 1986 rivaling and exceeding those of top country stars of the period. Franks created “The Pickin’Post” newsletter to keep the large group of fans informed sharing info on his career as well as Southern bluegrass festivals and other groups. The club also launched “The Singing Post” for fans exclusively interested in gospel music. The club grew even more dramatically during Franks' success on television. After more than 25 years, “The Pickin Post” continues to keep fans informed three times each year from P.O. Box 42, Tunnel Hill, Ga. 30755.
Bill Monroe
In the 1980s, The Father of Bluegrass, Bill MonroeBill Monroe
William Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
took a special interest in the young band and especially the young fiddler. Monroe spent hours teaching and sharing with Franks much like Monroe’s Uncle Pen had done for him. With the departure of Kenny Baker, Franks was asked to join the Bluegrass Boys. Still in school, he took off to tour from coast to coast. Though school beckoned him back, Franks continued to make appearances with Monroe up until he stopped touring.
For his contributions to the work of Bill Monroe, Franks was honored by the state of Kentucky.
Disc jockey and artist credits
While in college, Franks became part of the cast of the WRFG radio show “The Bluegrass Festival,” hosted by T.P. and Sandra Hollomon. As part of the highest-rated bluegrass show in the Atlanta market, Franks participated on the weekly broadcast and occasionally filled in for the hosts. He also from time to time, hosted his own shows on WRFG. In the early 1990s, he hosted “Sacred Sounds” featuring bluegrass gospel on WGFS in Covington, Ga. He now hosts "Sacred Sounds Fridays Live" on WBFCFM.com in Ringgold, Ga. Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. and Fridays at 9 a.m.With more than 200 recordings to his credit, his music has brought him on stage or in the studio to perform with entertainers in a variety of music fields: Carl Perkins
Carl Perkins
Carl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
; Charlie Daniels
Charlie Daniels
Charles Edward "Charlie" Daniels is an American musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer...
; Peabo Bryson
Peabo Bryson
Peabo Bryson is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, born in Greenville, South Carolina...
; The Whites; Ricky Skaggs
Ricky Skaggs
Rickie Lee "Ricky" Skaggs is a country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, and banjo.-Early career:...
; Kitty Wells; Pee Wee King; Jimmy Dickens; Jeff and Sheri Easter; The Lewis Family
The Lewis Family
The Lewis Family is a family of gospel and bluegrass musicians from Lincolnton, Georgia. They are known as the "First Family of Bluegrass Gospel"....
; The Isaacs
The Isaacs
The Isaacs are a country and bluegrass gospel music group consisting of mother Lily Isaacs, and daughters Becky and Sonya Isaacs and son Ben Isaacs, along with John Bowman as an instrumentalist and songwriter. Joe Isaacs, formerly a singer and banjo player in the group, has left since his 1998...
; The Primitive Quartet; Bill Monroe; Jim and Jesse; Ralph Stanley
Ralph Stanley
Ralph Stanley , also known as Dr. Ralph Stanley, is an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing.-Biography:...
; Raymond Fairchild
Raymond Fairchild
Raymond Fairchild is an American banjo player from the Great Smoky Mountains. He is known for his fast playing, his fancy and intricate picking and his ability of making the banjo mimic both animals and humans.-Biography:...
; Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass".-Early years:Born James H. Martin in Sneedville, Tennessee. Jimmy Martin was born into the hard farming life of rural East Tennessee. He grew up near Sneedville, singing in church and with friends from surrounding...
; Mac Wiseman
Mac Wiseman
Malcolm B. Wiseman , better known as Mac Wiseman, is an American bluegrass singer, nicknamed The Voice with a Heart. The bearded singer is one of the cult figures of bluegrass....
; Chubby Wise; Josh Graves
Josh Graves
Josh Graves , born Burkett Howard Graves, was an American bluegrass musician. Also known by the nicknames "Buck," and "Uncle Josh," he is credited with introducing the dobro into bluegrass music shortly after joining Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys in 1955...
; Doug Dillard; Jerry Douglas
Jerry Douglas
Jerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
; Sam Bush
Sam Bush
Sam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
; Byron Berline
Byron Berline
Byron Berline is an American fiddle player.-Biography:Berline started playing the fiddle at age five and quickly developed a talent for it. In 1965, he recorded the album Pickin' and Fiddlin with the Dillards...
; The Warrior River Boys; The Sand Mountain Boys; The Gary Waldrep Band; The Cox Family; The Sidemen; Elaine and Shorty; “Doc” Tommy Scott’s Last Real Old Time Medicine Show.
Franks was also tapped by two other nationally known performers: Folk Music’s Doodle and the Golden River Grass, with whom Franks carried on the Georgia Fiddle Band tradition; and multi-award–winning gospel quartet, The Marksmen, who Franks long admired for their vocal artistry.
SEBA and fostering bluegrass
Franks founded the SouthEastern Bluegrass Association (SEBA) in 1984 to preserve, promote and publicize Bluegrass Music. Through the organization which has grown to one of the country’s largest he supported the creation of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA).Franks saw a bluegrass void in some areas in his home state of Georgia so in the mid 1980s he began promoting bluegrass concerts using regional talent in communities that did not have bluegrass events nearby to increase the visibility of the field outside bluegrass festivals. He carried this endeavor one step farther during his off time from “In the Heat of the Night” when he began the “Share with D.A.R.E.” (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) concert series held in communities in several states featuring acts including Jim and Jesse, The Lewis Family, the Osborne Brothers himself and others. The shows showcased bluegrass stars while raising awareness and funds for a program to help keep children off drugs.
Recording executive
In 1989, Franks released “Golden River Fiddlin’” to the Folk and Bluegrass markets. SPBGMA, the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America, said Franks had a “Special Touch on the fiddle” while Bluegrass Unlimited called him “Hard Driving…Straightahead..Solid…Sure” like Tommy Jackson and Paul Warren.Franks studied commercial music while pursuing his bachelor’s degree in business administration at Georgia State University. Upon graduation, he entered a position as Sales and Promotions Manager for Atlanta based MBM Records. He quickly discovered that independent bluegrass and gospel music recordings were difficult to market amongst mainstream retailers but he set out to make the music he loved available in as many outlets as he could.
As he rose in popularity on television, he used his celebrity status to break down the barriers that he previously faced as a record executive and many other bluegrass and gospel artists encountered by calling mainstream and Christian retail buyers and store managers directly using his podium from NBC and CBS to assist record companies and distributors in marketing his and other bluegrass and gospel product.
Through the effort his products and many other artists sold by the companies he worked with became available in record chains throughout the country.
At a time when the industry was made of largely of established stars rather than rising new performers, Franks joined fellow rising star Alison Krauss as the most visible fiddlers and personalities of the industry in the late eighties and early nineties.
With Franks’ widespread notoriety he gained by weekly network exposure, he worked to expose bluegrass and Southern Gospel to this new audience appearing on radio and television talk, news and entertainment shows. Franks continues to appear on radio stations in all formats, television stations throughout the country, gives countless print interviews talking about and sharing the music he loves.
Inspiring the youth
He also carried this message to America’s youth as an Honorary D.A.R.E. Officer appointed by the National Dare Officers Association, he has appeared for more than 10,000 students across the country to encourage them to live a successful drug-free life while also sharing his love of bluegrass music to a new generation of listeners. He coordinated a nationwide radio campaign featuring Alan Autry, David Hart and himself to encourage a drug-free life.Franks began the 1990s as he crossed over to the Southern Gospel market being the first bluegrass performer to take his solo music project “Handshakes and Smiles” to the Top 20 Sales Charts. Singing News gave it “Four Stars”.
In the Heat of the Night Christmas
Serving both as an artist and producer, Randall Franks and his In the Heat of the NightIn the Heat of the Night (TV series)
In the Heat of the Night is a television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995...
co-star Alan Autry
Alan Autry
Carlos Alan Autry is an American actor, politician, and former National Football League football player. He is best known for his role as Captain Bubba Skinner on the television series In the Heat of the Night; he also has been in numerous movies and other television shows...
joined forces under the banner of Autry-Franks Productions to produce the charity "In the Heat of the Night" CD "Christmas Time's A Comin'" featuring the cast of the show. The project raised funds for drug abuse prevention charities.
With Franks producing, Autry performed his rendition of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" in homage to Gene Autry
Gene Autry
Orvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s...
. Franks performed an original song with Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
stars The Whites entitled "Let's Live Everyday Like It was Christmas." The duo both performed on "Jingle Bells" and "Christmas Time's A Comin'." Franks and Autry were able to include many music legends, some among them, Country Music Hall of Famers Kitty Wells
Kitty Wells
Ellen Muriel Deason , known professionally as Kitty Wells, is an American country music singer. Her 1952 hit recording, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", made her the first female country singer to top the U.S. country charts, and turned her into the first female country star...
, Jimmy Dickens and Pee Wee King
Pee Wee King
Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski , known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "The Tennessee Waltz"....
as well as many top legends from the Bluegrass genre, from Jim and Jesse to The Lewis Family. The “Christmas Time’s A Comin’” CD released on Sonlite and MGM/UA was one of the most popular Christmas releases of 1991 and 1992 with Southern retailers.
Jim and Jesse and the Virginia Boys
In addition to his own concert and personal appearances in the early 1990s, Franks became part of the Grand Ole Opry’s Jim and Jesse Show in 1990 appearing at concerts and festivals intermittently with the Bluegrass Hall of Fame members until 1996.Franks formed his Hollywood Hillbilly Jamboree in the early 1990s, bringing his unique style of bluegrass into fairs, festivals and communities not normally including bluegrass in their annual celebrations. His show packages included a variety of stars, one of those casts were Donna Douglas
Donna Douglas
Donna Douglas is an American actress best known for her role as Elly May Clampett, in the long-running television series The Beverly Hillbillies.-Early life:...
, “Elly Mae Clampett” of “The Beverly Hillbillies,” Sonny Shroyer
Sonny Shroyer
Otis Burt "Sonny" Shroyer, Jr. is an American actor who has appeared in various television and movie roles. He is best known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Enos Strate in the television series The Dukes of Hazzard. He also starred in a spin-off called Enos based on his Dukes of Hazzard character...
“Enos” from “The Dukes of Hazzard” and himself. Another television commercials package featured Dan Biggers
Dan Biggers
Dan Biggers is an American actor best known for his role as Frank "Doc" Robb on the television series In the Heat of the Night. He was born in Rome, Georgia....
“Doc Robb” from TV’s “In the Heat of the Night.” Other musical acts that appeared with his show include David Davis and the Warrior River Boys, Gary Waldrep, Ryan Robertson, Barney Miller, James Watson, Danny Bell, Bill Everett, Gilbert Hancock, Sue and Kim Koskela, Roger Hammett, The Sand Mountain Boys, The Dowden Sisters and others. At one South Carolina event alone over 30,000 people came out to see the show and his show was the only featured attraction.
Both his “Sacred Sounds of Appalachia” (1992) and his “Tunes and Tales from Tunnel Hill” (1995) were among the top thirty bluegrass recordings of the year. His “Let’s Live Everyday Like It Was Christmas” single with Grand Ole Opry stars The Whites was given a nod as one of the top Country Vocal Collaborations.
Franks was tapped to host the SPBGMA Bluegrass Music Awards in Nashville, Tenn. at the Roy Acuff Theater in 1995. He presented Del McCoury his Male Vocalist of the Year Award at the IBMA Awards in Owensboro, Ky. in 1992.
"Doc" Tommy Scott
In addition to his schedule, Franks began working with Ramblin’ “Doc” Tommy Scott in 1995. While he worked on the sets of “Grace Under Fire” and “Foxworthy” in Studio City, Calif., he arranged for “Doc” Tommy Scott’s Last Real Old Time Medicine Show with its unique bluegrass flavor to perform at celebrations during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. A veteran 1940s Grand Ole Opry comedian, Scott joined Franks on his 1999 “Comedy Down Home” on Crimson Records. The duo co-wrote the 1999 Lewis Family hit “You Can’t Stop Time.” Scott founded the original Hollywood Hillbilly Jamboree in 1945. Each has appeared on the others’ stage shows.To raise funds for the Share America Foundation, Inc. in April 2009, the Franks and Scott partnered on stage to present the play "An Appalachian Gathering" featuring a cast of 20 performers creating a slice of Southern life in the 1940s and present day highlighting the effects of the Medicine Show on small towns through Scott's eyes. Franks played Scott in the 1940s.
Some awards and appearances
Franks was inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004.Franks has been honored with countless awards including The Fiddlin’ John Carson Award, A.S.E. Male Vocalist of the Year, The Cotton Carrier Award, Little Jimmy Dempsey Musician Award and a Sons of the American Revolution Citizenship Award. The Governor of Kentucky honored him for his contributions to the music of Bill Monroe. Catoosa County designated him “Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle” in 2004. Franks received the Songwriter of the Year Award from the Atlanta Society of Entertainers in 2009 for his song "The Old Black Fiddle" and also received Bluegrass Band of the Year with the Georgia Bluegrass Mafia Band. He appeared with that group performing that song on the live Georgia Public Broadcasting of the Georgia Music Hall of Fame Awards along side Collective Soul
Collective Soul
Collective Soul is an American rock band originally formed in Stockbridge, Georgia. Collective Soul broke into mainstream popularity with their first hit single, "Shine", which came from their debut album Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid, released in 1993...
and Third Day
Third Day
Third Day is a Grammy award-winning Christian rock band formed in Marietta, Georgia during the 1990s. The band was founded by lead singer Mac Powell, guitarist Mark Lee and former member Billy Wilkins. The other band members are bassist Tai Anderson and drummer David Carr...
honoring Georgia music pioneer John L. "Johnny" Carson.
The International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, Ky. honored Franks as a Bluegrass Legend at its 2010 Pioneers of Bluegrass Gathering alongside fellow Blue Grass Boys and other pioneers.
Randall Franks and the Georgia Mafia Bluegrass Band received the 2010 Atlanta Society of Entertainers Bluegrass Band of the Year Award. The Appalachian Ambassador of the Fiddle was honored as a feature performer alongside the Watkins Family by the Appalachian Regional Commission at its annual conference in 2010.
Franks said he was honored when the Georgia Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Macon featured an exhibit on his career in the Skillet Licker Café beside other Georgia notables Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt and Trisha Yearwood which was highlighted from 1996-2007.
He has performed at thousands of events and television shows including 20 years at CMA Fan Fair, most of the leading Bluegrass Festivals, The National Folk Festival, National Black Arts Festival, Georgia Mountain Fair, ACM Fan Fest, Grand Ole Opry, Fiddlin’ Fish Music and Arts Festival, The Grand Masters, Command Presidential Performance, Nashville Now, Crook and Chase, Miller & Company, Reno’s Old Time Music Festival and HGTV’s Extreme Homes.
Charitable Efforts
Franks served as the Chairman for the Catoosa Citizens for Literacy in 2002-04 and he took that position again in 2007-09 after serving as co-chair for two years. The organization operates the Catoosa County Learning Center helping residents reach their goals by learning to read, getting a GED or acquiring basic computer skills. He now serves as past chairman.He is president of the Share America Foundation that provides encouragement through the Pearl and Floyd Franks Scholarship to youth who are continuing the musical arts of Appalachia. The organization produces ten gospel Ringgold monthly. For more information visit http://www.shareamericafoundation.org/.
He serves as treasurer of the Catoosa County Local Emergency Planning Committee. The organization brings together all of the agencies that our community relies upon each day when a need arises. Through the committee's efforts, its members work to prepare solutions for widespread problems our community could face to better protect each of us.
He is the Fast Forward Chairman for the Georgia Production Partnership, a Georgia Film Industry organization which works to improve industry growth and opportunities.
He is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Ringgold, Boynton Lions Club, Catoosa Family Collaborative, Catoosa Ferst Foundation for Family Literacy, Nathan Anderson Cemetery Committee, Catoosa County Habitat for Humanity and the Catoosa County Historical Society. He is a Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame board advisor. Franks serves as a field researcher for several museums throughout the South.
Fiddling
The influence of the Georgia Fiddle Bands is apparent within Franks's style and recordings. He was exposed to the work of Fiddlin' John Carson, The Skillet Lickers and other Georgia fiddlers.He grew and gained skills by competing in Georgia fiddle contests, many fostered by World Record Mandolinist Bill Lowery as well as the Grand Ole Opry's Grand Master Fiddler Championship. In the 1990s Georgia honored Franks for his work to preserve the heritage of Georgia’s fiddling by naming a state-sponsored fiddle contest in his honor hosted then at Lake Lanier Islands.
Today, the Randall Franks Trophy is presented to the winner each year at the 1890s Day Jamboree Old Time Fiddler's Convention in Ringgold, Ga.
Franks also co-hosts America's Grand Master Fiddler Championship annually in Nashville at the IBMA World of Bluegrass.
Journalism and screenwriting
Franks began an interest in writing while still in high school. He began writing entertainment articles for various publications such as Bluegrass Unlimited, the SEBA Breakdown, Precious Memories magazine, and others.His love of writing blossomed into scriptwriting under the tutorage of Carroll O’Connor during his time on “In the Heat of the Night,” which yielded him the unique opportunity to co-write the screenplay for the #1 Country song “Wolverton Mountain” with Merle Kilgore
Merle Kilgore
Wyatt Merle Kilgore was an American singer, songwriter, and manager.-Early life:Although born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, Merle Kilgore was raised in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was the son of Wyatt and Gladys B. Kilgore...
.
He focused on another career in mainstream journalism from 2001-2009 in association with News Publishing Co. He developed a syndicated slice of life and entertainment column called “Southern Style” which is used in publications from North Carolina to Louisiana. Many readers equate his folksy style to that of the late columnist Lewis Grizzard
Lewis Grizzard
Lewis McDonald Grizzard, Jr. was an American writer and humorist, known for his Southern demeanor and commentary on the American South...
. He currently writes for various magazines.
In his first year of journalism, the Georgia Press Association awarded him a First Place Feature Photo award for a unique photo of the Bluegrass group The White Oak Mountain Boys. His writing has yielded 21 Georgia Press and one National Press Association awards; one among those is W. Trox Bankston Award. He has helped garner two W. G. Sutlive trophies for community service and assisted The Catoosa County News in achieving the General Excellence award in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and a National Press Association award for Local News coverage.
It was perhaps Franks' love for journalism in the entertainment field specifically, that also caused him to discover a huge oversight in a popular publication about television. In the renowned The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: 1946–Present by Tim Brooks
Tim Brooks (television historian)
Tim Brooks is an American television and radio historian, author and retired television executive. He is credited with having helped launch the Sci Fi Channel in 1992 as well as other USA Network projects and channels....
and Earle Marsh, the authors had long left out Franks' name in the complete regular cast list of In the Heat of the Night. In the late 1990s, Franks picked up a copy of what had to have been the 1995 edition of the book, the first to have information on the entire series after it ended in 1994. Obviously feeling slighted when he discovered that he was never listed as a principal character in that edition and two previous ones, Franks wrote to the authors himself; he pointed out that he had co-starred on the series for five years, and asked to be added in the next edition. A rare instance of the authors omitting a prominent actor in a TV series listing, Franks got his wish when he was finally added, starting with the seventh edition in 1999. Brooks and Marsh even mentioned their contact by Franks, in their 1999 epilogue, to make up for the long holdout.
Franks is currently serving on the city council in Ringgold, Georgia
Ringgold, Georgia
Ringgold is a city in Catoosa County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,422 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Catoosa County...
with the term ending on December 31, 2013.