# Erma Franklin

Erma Vernice Franklin (March 13, 1938 – September 7, 2002) was an American gospel and soul singer. Franklin recorded the original version of "Piece of My Heart", written and produced by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns in 1967, for which she was nominated for a Grammy Award. A cover version of the same song was recorded the following year by Big Brother and the Holding Company, with lead vocals by Janis Joplin. Franklin was the elder sister of American singer/musician Aretha Franklin.

## Biography
### Early life and family

Erma Franklin was born in Shelby, Mississippi, United States, the oldest daughter of Barbara (née Siggers) and the Reverend C. L. Franklin. She was raised in Detroit, Michigan, where her father was pastor of the New Bethel Baptist Church. She was raised by both parents until the age of 10, when her parents separated for the final time. Her mother took her eldest sibling, half-brother Vaughn, with her to Buffalo, New York, in 1948. Barbara Siggers-Franklin died four years later, on March 7, 1952, in Buffalo.
Franklin studied Business at Clark Atlanta University (then named "Clark College").

### Career

During her childhood, Erma and her sisters Aretha and Carolyn sang at New Bethel Baptist Church. When Aretha became a recording artist, Erma provided backing vocals and toured with her. Erma sang backup for her sister Aretha on Aretha's signature tune "Respect".
In 1967, Erma Franklin sang the original version of "Piece of My Heart", which was a top 10 soul hit in the U.S. and rose to number 62 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. The track was co-written and produced by Bert Berns. In the UK, Franklin's version was used in a Levi's jeans commercial ("Cinderella" AKA "Night and Day"), leading to a resurgence of interest in the song. The single was re-released in the UK in 1992 and peaked on the UK Singles Chart at number 9.
Franklin told an interviewer that when she first heard Janis Joplin's version on the radio, she did not recognize it because of the vocal arrangement.
In the mid-1970s, Franklin left the music industry, apart from occasional engagements with her sister. She was one of the special guests on Aretha's 1986 Showtime cable television special — filmed at Detroit's Music Hall — and also performed on June 28, 1990, at Nelson Mandela's rally at Tiger Stadium.

### Personal life and death

Franklin married Thomas Garrett and gave birth to their two children: Thomas Jr. and Sabrina. For 25 years, Franklin worked for the Boysville Holy Cross Community Center, a Detroit organization that helps homeless and disadvantaged minority children. Franklin died of cancer in Detroit, on September 7, 2002, aged 64. She is interred at Detroit's historic Woodlawn Cemetery.

## Discography
### Albums

| Year | Album | Peaks | Label |
| Year | Album | US | Label |
| 1962 | Her Name Is Erma | — | Epic |
| 1969 | Soul Sister | 199 | Brunswick |
| 2015 | The Electric Flag Featuring Erma Franklin - Live 1968 (with The Electric Flag) | — | RockBeat |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. ||||

### Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name :
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Title | Year | US | US R&B /HH | BEL (FL) | DEN | IRE | NLD | SWE | UK | UK R&B | Album |
| "Hello Again" | 1961 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Her Name Is Erma |
| "What Kind of Girl" | 1961 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Her Name Is Erma |
| "Time After Time" | 1962 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Her Name Is Erma |
| "Dear Momma" | 1962 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "I Don't Want No Momma's Boy" | 1963 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Abracadabra" | 1963 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Big Boss Man" | 1967 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Piece of My Heart" | 1967 | 62 | 10 | 33 | 5 | 10 | 9 | 25 | 9 | 5 | Non-album single |
| "Open Up Your Soul" | 1968 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "I'm Just Not Ready For Love" | 1968 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "The Right to Cry" | 1968 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "It Could've Been Me" | 1969 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Saving My Love For You" | 1969 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Soul Sister |
| "Gotta Find Me a Lover (24 Hours a Day)" | 1969 | — | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 20 | Soul Sister |
| "Whispers (Gettin' Louder)" | 1970 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. ||||||||||||
* "(Take a Little) Piece of My Heart" did not chart in the UK until 1992, therefore the peak recorded here occurred on 31st October 1992