Erma Franklin
Erma Vernice Franklin (March 13, 1938 – September 7, 2002) was an American gospel and soul singer. She 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 singer Aretha Franklin. |
Birth and Death Data: Born March 13, 1938 (Shelby (city in Mississippi, United States)), Died September 7, 2002 (Detroit (city in and county seat of Wayne County, and largest city in State of Michigan, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1969
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Decca | 121118 | 2/4/1969 | Gotta find me a lover (24 hours a day)-1 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121119 | 2/4/1969 | Change my thoughts from you-2 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121150 | 2/7/1969 | Son-of-a-preacher man-1 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121151 | 2/7/1969 | Light my fire | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121164 | 2/12/1969 | By the time I get to Phoenix | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121320 | 3/14/1969 | Hold on, I'm comin' | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121321 | 3/14/1969 | Baby I love you | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121400 | 3/19/1969 | Saving my love for you-4 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121401 | 3/19/1969 | Can't see my way-3 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121402 | 3/19/1969 | You've been cancelled- 2, 3 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 121403 | 3/19/1969 | For once in my life- 1, 2, 3 | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 122015 | 8/22/1969 | It could've been me | Erma Franklin | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 122016 | I just don't need you at all | Erma Franklin | vocalist | ||||
| Decca | 122217 | Higher and higher | Erma Franklin | vocalist | ||||
| Decca | 122218 | Whispers (Gettin' louder) | Erma Franklin | vocalist | ||||
| Decca | 122219 | (I get the) Sweetest feeling | Erma Franklin | vocalist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Franklin, Erma," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/316241.
Franklin, Erma. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/316241.
"Franklin, Erma." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Erma Franklin
Discogs: Erma Franklin
Allmusic: Erma Franklin
Apple Music: Erma Franklin
IMDb: Erma Franklin
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Franklin, Erma - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no98027241
Wikidata: Erma Franklin - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q446179
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/76506723
MusicBrainz: Erma Franklin - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/4ba12614-fcce-462b-8784-8dd1a92fbf2b
ISNI: 0000 0001 1448 5297 - http://www.isni.org/isni/0000000114485297
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1540218 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1540218
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