Fanny was an American rock band, active in the early 1970s. The group was founded by guitarist June Millington and her sister, bassist Jean, who had been playing music together since they moved from the Philippines to California in the early 1960s. In high school they formed a band called the Svelts with June on guitar, Jean on bass, Addie Lee on guitar, and Brie Brandt on drums. When the Svelts disbanded, de Buhr and Lee formed another group called Wild Honey. The Millington sisters later joined this band,
which played Motown covers and eventually moved to Los Angeles.
Frustrated
by a lack of success or respect in the male-dominated rock scene, Wild
Honey decided to disband after one final appearance at the Troubadour
Club in Los Angeles in 1969. They were spotted at this gig by
the secretary of producer Richard Perry, who convinced Warner Bro.
Records to sign the band, still known as Wild Honey, to Reprise
Records.Prior to recording their first album, the band recruited
keyboardist Nickey Barclay. The band was then renamed Fanny and the initial lineup consisted of June Millington on guitar, Jean Millington
on bass, de Buhr on drums, Barclay on keyboards, and Brandt on lead
vocals and percussion. Perry dismissed Brandt because he wanted the
group to be a self-contained four piece band like The Beatles. The Millingtons and Barclay all assumed lead vocal duties on
alternating songs, while de Buhr sang lead occasionally on later albums.
Perry produced the band's first three albums, beginning with Fanny in 1970. Their cover of Cream's "Badge" from the first album had significant radio airplay. The follow-up album, Charity Ball was released the following year, and its title track reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100. The members of Fanny also worked as session musicians, and played on Barbra Streisand's 1971 album Barbra Joan Streisand, after Streisand had wanted to record with a small band. The group continued to pick up well-known fans; David Bowie sent the group a letter admiring their work and invited the band to a post-show party. With young engineer Leslie Ann Jones as their road manager and live sound mixer, Fanny toured worldwide, opening for Slade, Jethro Tull and Humble Pie, gaining widespread popularity in the United Kingdom. The group made several live television appearances during tours, including The Sonny and Cher Show, American Bandstand, The Old Grey Whistle Test and Beat Club.
The group's third album, Fanny Hill (1972) featured the Beatles' engineer Geoff Emerick in addition to Perry's production. It included a cover of "Hey Bulldog" and Marvin Gaye's "Ain't That Peculiar", that was released as a single, reaching #85 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Their
fourth album, Mother's Pride (1973), was produced by Todd Rundgren. By
the time it was released, June Millington was feeling constrained by the
group
format and she decided to quit the group.
De Buhr also left the band, with Brandt returning on drums. Patti
Quatro replaced June on guitar. This lineup signed with Casablanca
Records and released the final Fanny album, Rock and Roll Survivors, in
1974. The first single, "I've Had It" reached #79 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Brandt left the band shortly after the album's completion and was briefly replaced by Cam Davis. Barclay quit the group at the end of 1974, thinking it was not working without June Millington. The second single, "Butter Boy" was written by Jean Millington about Bowie, and became their biggest hit, reaching #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April 1975. By the time that was released, the group had split.
Later groups such as The Bangles and The Runaways cited Fanny as a key influence.
