Freddy & Francine

Location: R.A. Fountain

from our promo for this concert

Bianco Caruso and Lee Ferris, who perform as Freddy and Francine, met as cast members in the 40th anniversary staging of the musical Hair in Los Angeles in 2007. Ferris subsequently starred as Carl Perkins in the Broadway musical Million Dollar Quartet, giving over 500 performances. The duo has released two EPs and three full length CDs since 2008. Their latest, Gung Ho, features session players from [Jacksonville native] Ryan Adams’ and Rufus Wainwright’s bands.

         Freddy and Francine played this year’s Telluride Bluegrass Festival and the Rocky Mountain Folk Fest, both as main stage performers. They are on the East Coast working on a new recording in Nashville, Tennessee, with producer Don Knobler, whose credits include production of recordings by Rodney Crowell and Roseanne Cash. During this min-tour on break from recording, they will play one other North Carolina venue.

         A recent Arizona reviewer says their shows range from “lullabies so sweet you’d swear a choir of angels were harmonizing just for you, to gut-busting, foot-stomping tunes befitting a New Orleans gospel choir.” A No Depression magazine reviewer says they “currently top my list” with “vocals blending like milk and honey.”

Tags: alt country, alt-Americana, folk, original