Seldom has a performer been strongly considered for an Academy Award in both acting and music, yet Frank Stallone has managed to pull it off.
His fiery portrayal of a brutish bartender in BARFLY had Hollywood insiders abuzz at Oscar time, and his #1 smash hit single, ‘Far From Over’ from Staying Alive was likewise touted for a “Best Song” nomination. It’s all in a days work for Frank, a gifted artist equally comfortable on screen or the concert stage.
This Grammy and Golden Globe nominated artist has been everything from a street singer, a rock singer, to a big-band singer. Frank was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Soundtrack, and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song for Staying Alive. Frank has written songs for 11 films, and still plays to SRO crowds in arenas and concert halls from Los Angeles to London.
Frank got his first big-break with his on-screen appearance in Rocky, for which he wrote and performed the song ‘Take You Back,’ sung ‘a capella’ in one of the film’s unforgettable street corner scenes.
A dream came true for Frank when he teamed with his lifelong idol, two-time Grammy winner Harry Nilsson, on a remake of Joni Mitchell’s classic, A Case Of You. The two remained good friends until Nilsson’s untimely death in 1994. To add to Frank’s musical diversity, he has written and published over 200 songs. He has also recorded a pair of Big Band albums titled In Love In Vain and Frankie and Billy with legendary arrangers Sammy Nestico and Billy May.
In addition, 4 time Academy Award winner Sammy Cahn also contributed glowing liner notes for this project . On ‘Frankie & Billy’ Frank teamed with Billy May, the great arranger and conductor responsible for many classic recordings by Frank Sinatra. Both Albums reveal Stallone’s poise and vocal maturity. Billy May has said of the experience, “ I felt the same excitement that I got in 1958 with another Frank (Sinatra), or in 1953 from Nat Cole.”
Frank’s greatest hits album, Stallone on Stallone – By Request, is a first time collection of all the songs Frank wrote and performed in some of his brother’s biggest films, including Rocky I, II, and III, Rambo II, Staying Alive and Over The Top. New original material which is more guitar driven and rock oriented is presented on the album Full Circle.
Frank has appeared in over 50 movies, including Tombstone and Hudson Hawk well as many others; and starred on the stage in acclaimed repertory productions of Waiting for Godot, Studs Lonigan, Our Town, Idiot’s Delight, Johnny Got His Gun and All My Sons, to name a few.
Frank’s lifelong musical journey continues and his enthusiasm for entertaining remains unshaken.