FFFFade Away Trivia Quiz

Answer: Frankie

The origins of this traditional murder ballad are a little sketchy though it is often suggested that it was inspired by a real life crime of passion that occurred in 1899 when Frankie Baker shot her lover, Albert Britt, after she found out he'd been sleeping with another woman. This is probably supported by the fact that the first recorded publication of the song was registered only five years later in 1904. In the few years prior to this it had been a regular bar room favourite.

In 1966 Elvis Presley starred in a movie with the same name and recorded a version of the song for its soundtrack. The release enjoyed moderate success in the charts. A more popular version of the track surfaced a few years earlier (1963) when Sam Cooke released it.

(Note) For the record (no pun intended) Frankie Baker pleaded self-defence and was acquitted.

Answer: Floyd

Pretty Boy Floyd was a bank robber who gained notoriety for his deeds during the 1930s. There existed about him an aura of being a modern day Robin Hood. This was probably aided by the fact that during this time (Depression era) the banks were seen as more of the enemy than the hoodlums. The song "Pretty Boy Floyd" was penned and recorded by Woody Guthrie and he also showcased him in a positive light;
"But many a starving farmer
The same old story told
How the outlaw paid their mortgage
And saved their little homes".

Guthrie wrote thousands of songs during his lifetime and a number of them, like this one, were inspired by stories and articles that he'd read in newspapers. A version of this track can be found on Guthrie's 1958 album "Dust Bowl Ballads".

Answer: Frank

Written by Paul Simon this track appeared on Simon and Garfunkel's last album, "Bridge Over Troubled Water", before they went their separate ways. There is suggestion that the lengthy fade out on the track where Garfunkel repeats the phrase "so long" numerous times is a sign that the duo were saying their goodbyes to each other. This, however, is debatable.

The idea for the song came from Garfunkel. Art majored in architecture while he was at Columbia University and had an affinity with Frank Lloyd Wright, the famous American architect. From the house that they were using while recording "Bridge Over Troubled Water" he spied a building that had been designed by Wright and suggested to Simon it would be a good idea to create a song around the man's name.

Answer: Flingel

There's not a lot to be said about this song apart from (a) it's an instrumental track (b) it was released as a single by The Shadows (c) it first appeared on their 1964 album "More Hits" and (d) it peaked at number five on both the UK and Australian singles charts.

American hardcore bluesman, Albert Castiglia, recorded a cover version of the track along with a take on Junior Wells' "Hoodoo Man Blues" for his 2006 album "A Stone's Throw".

Answer: Fritz

Steve Taylor is a Christian rock singer-songwriter and one of the early figures in what has become known as the Christian alternative rock scene. As a solo artist he enjoyed his best moments during the 1980s. Released in 1985 "On the Fritz" is the title track of his second studio album. The song, itself, takes a swipe at televangelist Jimmy Swaggart.

Answer: Fox

Before we get into this one I did look up a website on boy's names and Fox was on there, hence this track becomes fair game for this quiz.

The song appears on The Sweet's 1974 album "Desolation Boulevard" and it marked a coming of age for the band. Up to this point all of the band's songs had been written by, and their direction planned by, the legendary song-writing team of Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. This would be the first song that the band would write and release on their own. While there were screams that it would be a disaster waiting to happen the band proved their critics wrong and scored a global hit for themselves. They were so emboldened by their efforts that they parted company with Chinn and Chapman after the release of the album.

Answer: Fernando

This song represented ABBA's first non-album single and it was released in 1976, though originally it was recorded in Swedish as a track for band member Frida Lynstag's solo album "Frida Alone" in 1975. Despite its writer, Bjorn Ulvaeus, describing the lyrics as "absolutely banal" the song became one of ABBA's greatest selling singles.

In its year of release it sold six million copies worldwide. It would go on to be one of those rare singles that would sell in excess of ten million copies in its lifetime.

In Australia it remained that country's biggest selling single for over twenty years until it was overtaken by Elton John's tribute to Lady Diana Spencer, "Candle in the Wind '97".

Answer: Fred

"Right, Said Fred", written by Ted Dicks and Myles Rudge has a not-so-subtle dig at the British tradesman, their ability to turn small problems into substantially larger ones and their propensity for regular cups of tea. Recorded by Bernard Cribbins, who'd already made his mark as an actor and a comedian, the song reached the Top Ten of the UK Singles Charts in 1962.

Some quirky pieces of trivia to arise from this number include; it was produced by George Martin who would later gain greater glory as the producer of a small little band out of Liverpool called the Beatles, and in 1989, the Fairbrass brothers formed a band and named themselves after the song. They would have a hit in 1992 with "I'm Too Sexy" and a year later would invite Cribbins to be a guest vocalist on their single "Stick It Out".

Answer: Franco

NOFX released their ninth studio album "The War on Errorism" in 2003 and it proved to be another collection of bratty anthems delivered at breakneck speed. It also came complete with a rifle barrel of political criticism (look out President George W. Bush) and rhetoric. "Franco Unamerican" was the first single to be released from the disc and it is, without doubt, the most melodic and catchy track on the album. Fat Mike takes the opportunity to deliver to us his own view of the world we're in but the lyrical highlight for me is listening to him try to rhyme "apathy" with "Noam Chomsky".

Answer: Flash

It is difficult to get a line on the truth as to the origins of this 1968 single by The Rolling Stones. Keith Richards, in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, tells the tale that he and Mick (Jagger) had had a heavy night and Mick was woken early in the morning by noises outside his window. Keith laughed and said that it was just his gardener, Jumpin' Jack Dyer. While he (Keith) worked on the phrase musically, Mick toyed with it lyrically and blurted out "Flash" in place of "Dyer" and a new song was being born. Bill Wyman, on the other hand, reckons that he, Charlie (Watts) and Brian (Jones) were jamming in the rehearsal while they waited on Keith and Mick to show up. Mick walked in and fell in love with the sound and then added the lyrics to it.

The story, however, pales to a lesser significance as the single was a huge hit and heralded a return to the band's blues roots. This was pleasing after they had had some mediocre experiments with psychedelia on their albums "Between the Buttons" and "Their Satanic Majesties Request" (both 1967). The song's popularity is evident in that it has long been a live concert staple for the band.