Don’t worry if you pride yourself on being a dyed-in-the-wool classic rocker but have never heard of Fanny. Lots of music fans haven’t. Reportedly the first all-female rock band to release an album on a major label, Fanny formed in 1969 and featured guitarist June Millington, her sister Jean on bass, keyboardist Nickey Barclay, both Brie Darling and Alice de Buhr on drums at one time or another, and later, guitarist Patti Quatro.
Despite being pioneers on many fronts, Fanny never truly broke out into the mainstream. FANNY: The Right To Rock, a documentary from director and writer Bobbi Jo Hart (She Got Game, Rebels On Pointe) breaks it all down — from the group’s beginnings and drive for success in the 1970s, to 2018, when all the members, with the exception of Barclay, reunited for a new album, Fanny Walked The Earth.
When Fanny first burst onto the scene, there were lots of unfortunate but classic ‘isms’ leveled at the group — specifically racism (the Millington sisters are Filipino) and sexism (an all-girl rock band trying to make their mark before the Go-Go’s, the Bangles, and the Runaways). The snippets of the songs we get to hear during the movie — be it an older and wiser Fanny rehearsing and recording new material or those fantastic TV appearances from the 70s (The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour and The Old Grey Whistle Test come to mind) show a group with chops and songs to spare.
Along the way here, we get insights from such notables as Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott, The B-52’s Kate Pierson, Bonnie Raitt (who hung with the band at their California clubhouse), Todd Rundgren (who produced their 1973 album, Mother’s Pride), guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, and Cherie Currie (lead singer for the Runaways). A celebrated endorsement from David Bowie — who once told Rolling Stone magazine: “They were one of the finest fucking rock bands of their time. They’re as important as anybody else who’s ever been, ever.” — is also shared in the film.
I can’t get enough of rock docs like this. Well told with classic footage and the group’s full participation, FANNY: The Right To Rock eloquently tells a story every music fan should know and appreciate.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
