Artist:Ernie Freeman
Song:Raunchy
Album:Live It Up!
A while ago I wrote about how Raunchy was the biggest hit and signature song of Bill Justis. It may seem odd today but in Dec. 1957 there were three recordings of Raunchy in the top ten at the same time. Justis reached #2. Ernie Freeman's recording of Raunchy reached #4 and Billy Vaughn's easy listening version of Raunchy reached #10. This was record companies trying to beat each other to the punch. Whatever version was released first was usually the biggest hit. Raunchy was not only Justis' biggest chart hit but it was Freeman's biggest chart hit. For the most part, Ernie Freeman was a significant behind the scenes figure in the Los Angeles studio scene for many years. His recordings as a leader were a sidebar. He was born Aug. 16, 1922 in Cleveland. His brother Art Freeman had success as a songwriter. As a teen he played local clubs with his father and sister. And he was in the US Navy with the first all black Navy band. After WWII, Freeman graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Music with a BA. Then he moved to Los Angeles and earned a master's degree in composition at USC. He started playing Los Angeles clubs mostly as an accompanist. When Freeman joined The Ernie Fields Orchestra as a pianist, he met guys that he would work with for years in the studio. In 1954, Freeman left to start his own band with Irving Ashby on guitar, Plas Johnson on tenor sax and Earl Palmer on drums. At the same time Freeman started playing sessions for artists like Duane Eddy, Bobby Vee and especially The Platters. That's Freeman playing piano on The Great Pretender. Freeman signed with Imperial Records in 1956. And in 1957 Raunchy topped the R&B Singles chart and reached #4 on the pop charts. Freeman recorded for Imperial until 1963. And though he would chart occasionally, Freeman concentrated on studio work. This comp from the reissue label Jasmine covers His Imperial recordings. Freeman won Grammys for his arrangements of Frank Sinatra's Strangers in the Night and Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water. He retired in the late 70s and died on May 16, 1981 at age 58. Here's a video of Raunchy by Ernie Freeman.
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