NEW YORK (AP) — George Frayne, who as leader of Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airman enjoyed a cult following in the 1970s with such party and concert favorites as “Hot Rod Lincoln” and “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette),” has died.
According to Sue Casanova (his wife), Frayne passed away in Saratoga Springs on Sunday. He was 77 years old and had been diagnosed several years ago with cancer.
“As I lay my head upon his shoulder/George’s soul took to flight/I am heartbroken and weary/And I know your hearts break too,” Casanova wrote on her Facebook page on Sept. 26.
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airman were formed in 1967. They drew on influences from Western swing to jumpblues.
They were a very popular touring and recording group during the first half 1970s. They traveled around the country in a Greyhound bus. They specialized in uptempo remakes, notably the top 10 hit “Hot Rod Lincoln”; “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette),” a novelty song from the 1940s; “Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar” and “Diggy Liggy Lo.” The sound was country-rock boogie and the mood lighthearted and ready to get wild, as defined by Frayne’s witty talking-blues vocals.
Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel also paid tribute to the late Frayne on Facebook.
“The Commander, Commander Cody has left spaceship earth, but he left a treasure chest of music art and a POV that changed the face of music for sure! He made AATW possible in so many ways, and I/we owe him a debt of gratitude for all the love and inspiration he gave us,” The band wrote. “George and Chris Frayne together again now. RIP Old friend.”
More music news:Phoebe Bridgers sued for $3.8 million by music producer alleging defamation, past relationship
Frayne was a native of Boise, Idaho, who grew up in New York City and Long Island and had an early interest in piano and art and design. He attended the University of Michigan as an undergraduate and graduate student and was still living in Ann Arbor when he helped form Commander Cody along with Billy C. Farlow, Bill Kirchen and others he would call “neo-radicals who specialized in a form of quasi-social mayhem.”
Their name was lifted from old movie serials — including a science fiction adventure from the 1950s featuring space fighter Commander Cody.
They settled in the Bay Area of California in 1969. Their trippy names, Commander Cody and his Lost Plane Airmen, fit well with such groups as the Charlatans (Quicksilver Messenger Service), and (more famously) the Grateful Dead.
More music news:Charley Pride: A sketch of country music’s humble trailblazer, through the eyes of his son
They had success in the early 1970s with “Hot Rod Lincoln” and released six albums from 1971-75, including the acclaimed “Live from Deep in the Heart of Texas,” while resisting Warner Bros’ efforts to model themselves on the commercial country-rock of the Eagles.
The band broke up in the mid-1970s, but Frayne (still calling himself Commander Cody) continued to tour and record, performing with Jerry Garcia, Elvis Costello and Sammy Hagar among others and releasing such albums as “Dopers, Drunks and Everyday Losers” and “Worst Case Scenario.” He also painted, made films, and taught at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen were inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2009.
