Recorded just after Frampton Comes Alive! had broken the record for album sales in 1976, this interview captures Frampton at the pinnacle of his career. However, due to his seemingly sudden rise to superstardom (his first taste actually came in 1968), many people knew very little about him. As such, this interview focuses on Frampton’s past, from the day he first played a banjolele at age 6 through his teenage jams with David Bowie through the first time he met a Beatle.
Listen from the beginning to hear how Frampton dealt with his unprecedented success or check the time stamps below to hear about a specific band from his youth.
00:00 – Reaction to Frampton Comes Alive! breaking the record
Early Musical Experiences / Influences 02:25 – Growing up in Beckenham 02:54 – Playing a banjolele (age 6) 03:44 – Watching Eddie Cochran play a guitar (age 8) 04:11 – Getting his first guitar 04:58 – Biggest influence: Cliff Richard and Hank Marvin of The Shadows 05:38 – First record player: The Shadows, Django Reinhardt 07:43 – Other ambitions besides music? 08:22 – Bringing his guitar to school
Previous Bands 08:56 – The Little Ravens (age 12) 09:06 – The variety show at Bromley Technical School 11:35 – The headliners: George and the Dragons 12:20 – David Bowie as a 15 year-old musician
13:05 – The Trubeats 13:36 – First song he ever wrote (age 8)
14:44 – The Preachers, Tony Chapman (original Rolling Stones drummer) 15:49 – A jazz phase 16:38 – Getting help from Bill Wyman, recording at IBC Studios (age 14)
18:06 – The Herd, ultimatum from his father 18:39 – His father as manager 19:23 – Recording demos for Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich 20:19 – I Can Fly, cheaper recording tricks 20:47 – From The Underworld 21:30 – Scandal / saving money 22:49 – I Don’t Want Our Loving To Die
Stardom 23:17 – The first taste of stardom 25:00 – First experience meeting a Beatle (George Harrison) 26:57 – Meeting Ringo Starr and Stephen Stills 27:30 – Meeting Eric Clapton