Carole Fredericks

Carole Denise Fredericks was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on June 5, 1952, the youngest of Mildred and Harry Fredericks' five children. She and her siblings were raised in Springfield and were educated in the public school system. Her mother who was originally from Bennettsville, South Carolina, sang with Big Bands and on Sundays was the lead singer for a local gospel choir. Her father, the son of immigrants from the island of Saint Kitts, was a pianist and wrote arrangements for jazz trios. Growing up in her household, Fredericks was exposed to music from around the world. Her parents encouraged creative expression in all their children. Fredericks' brothers and sister developed careers in art, music, dance and theatre. Her eldest brother is Grammy-winning blues musician, Taj Mahal.

Her parents, who came of age during the Harlem Renaissance, instilled in their children a sense of pride in their West Indian and African ancestry through their stories. Fredericks never got to know her father. When she was two years old, he was killed in a construction accident, crushed by a tractor when it flipped over. Although her mother would remarry later, the loss of her father left Fredericks with grief that remained with her the rest of her life.

By the time she was 20, Fredericks was living in Oakland, California. A year after her graduation from Classical High School, she persuaded Taj Mahal to send for her. Upon her arrival in San Francisco, He put Fredericks to work as a background vocalist on a number of his albums – Mo' Roots; Music Fuh Ya'; Together; and Evolution. To supplement the income from session work, Carole was employed as a receptionist for the Pacific Personnel Services. She was one of 71 voices in the New Generation Singers Gospel Choir (Oakland, California) and performed with Odetta in the stage play Look What A Wonder. Fredericks organized a trio – piano, bass and voice – and booked singing engagements on the weekends.

In an interview from OH LA! Magazine she said: "I was part of a choir for three years and I was doing backup work. It was not enough to sustain a comfortable lifestyle and I started to get sick and tired of this life. I refused to get by on my brother's name. During this period, I was working in San Francisco at a French restaurant, La Belle Helene. Some of the patrons would often suggest that I go to France. They said I would do very well there. They were very convincing and without knowing a bit of French, I left it all. I bought a one-way ticket and I was off to Paris. Everyone thought I was crazy."

Fredericks arrived in France to pursue a singing career in January 1979. Fredericks met the owner of La Belle Helene at the airport.

"He called his friends and I found myself working almost immediately. I started to sing everywhere. It was barely three weeks after my arrival that I was signed with Carla Music to record a disco album entitled Black Orchid." ...

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