"Listening to Stewart Francke's music is like waking up and finding yourself in an alternate universe. It's a place where rock and soul still speak to each other, where you catch glimpses of what the seventies might have become if we'd lived up to their long-forgotten promise. It immerses you in a soundscape where you hear Motown and Philly International communing with Pet Sounds and Fleetwood Mac. It's a good world to imagine, and, Francke promises us, it isn't really out of reach. Part of the sense of promise lies in the music itself. Whether you're coming at the music from rock or soul, you can close your eyes, relax and let it wash over you. When you come back to the world, you'll feel energized and renewed. Like the best music of he rock and soul era, this music believes. It believes that we can reach a higher ground, that the conversations between black and white, between blues realism and gospel redemption, remain as vital as they were before narcissistic irony swamped our shared hopes and dreams. Like Marvin Gaye and Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and Ani DiFranco, he knows that, if we find the strength to tell our own stories honestly and the courage to open ourselves to others, our burdens can be a source of hope, not despair. And, he insists, the only meaningful response is to love each other, and to change the world. " -- Craig Werner, Gleason-award winning author of Change Is Gonna Come and Higher Ground
“That’s The Way We Do It In Detroit,” (a/k/a “The Auto Trade”) Stewart Francke (www.stewartfrancke.com) – A statement of faith and purpose from a great music man in a great music community, as well as a somber meditation upon the destruction of Francke’s home, his town, his life, his family’s stability, his country’s prosperity. One of the first great songs from the New Depression. (Don’t miss the companion piece, a gorgeous white soul rendition of the Beatles’ “And Your Bird Can Sing.”) -- Rock'n'Rap Confidential
BIO: With hard work, great songwriting and soulful singing, Stewart Francke has found true indie success in today’s rough & tumble music business. He’s made ten highly praised cds, the most recent being Stewart Francke Alive And Unplugged at The Ark, released through Blue Boundary Records and Burnside Distribution. His previous cd, Motor City Serenade, was recorded with the legendary Motown session band the Funk Brothers. Stewart has sold 50,000 records–all without a major label and its promotional muscle.
In May, 2009, Stewart was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Awarded by his hometown of Saginaw, for the "insight and joy his songs have brought to so many in his hometown, home state, and beyond."
Building his devoted audience over the years, Stewart is now known as one of the most exciting and beloved live performers around, playing his own headlining shows as well as support touring with the likes of Sheryl Crow, Warren Zevon, Steve Earle, Chris Isaak, Robert Cray, Shawn Colvin, Hall & Oates, Michael McDonald, Stevie Winwood, Eddie Money, Foreigner, Chicago, & many others.
Now performing with his own band made up of Detroit's finest musicians, Francke’s show is exciting, smart, humorous, and loaded with a warm, soulful vibe that makes every night pure magic. As a songwriter, he’s licensed songs to TV (Melrose Place, MTV’s Real World, various daytime shows), for image advertising (GM, Ford, National Cancer Association) and documentaries.
His music has won numerous awards: nine Detroit music awards, Hour Detroit's most popular musician 2002-2004, four straight ASCAP writer's awards–-and a prestigious Point of Light Award for his work in cancer care. The Stewart Francke Leukemia Foundation was also presented the Partnership In Humanity Award by the Detroit Newspapers, and he was awarded a Creative Artist Grant by Artserve Michigan in 2003.
A leukemia and bone marrow transplant survivor of 10 years, Francke often plays benefit concerts and donates his time to cancer support efforts. To date the SFLF has raised $200,000, which has been donated to organizations such as Karmanos Cancer Institute, the Children's Leukemia Foundation, The National Bone Marrow Transplant Link, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Gilda's Club. The priority mission of the foundation is to fund low income patients and increase marrow donation in minority communities. Francke and Broadway star Brian d’arcy James recently raised $92,000 for the Fields Neurological Institute in their hometown of Saginaw, MI.
Prior to his success as a musician, Stewart was a Contributing Editor to Detroit’s Metro Times, writing on music and film, giving him the opportunity to interview many of his favorite musicians, from Johnny Cash to George Clinton. A book of his collected song lyrics and writing, titled Between The Ground & God, was published in 2005 by Ridgeway Press and won two Indie Excellence Awards in 2007. Stewart and his family live in Huntington Woods, Michigan.
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The Press/Bio
