I want to thank Lisa for inviting me to write for her Women Music March. She posted this on March 20, 2025. She has been doing this for years and it gets better and better. Thanks, Lisa! She has had some great artists this month.
Joe Elliott: “I had no idea who they were, but this four minutes of music, and I was hooked.”
Kathy Valentine: They made 5 records. The Go Gos get a lot of attention for what we did and we only made 3 records.
Earl Slick: It’s always the ones that start it gets f**ked
David Bowie: They were one of the finest fucking rock bands of their time, they were extraordinary: They wrote everything, they played like motherfuckers, they were just colossal and wonderful, and nobody’s ever mentioned them. They’re as important as anybody else who’s ever been, ever; it just wasn’t their time.
When you hear about an all-female band…the Bangles, Runaways, and Go-Go’s come to mind but this band was completely different. These women rocked…not pop-rock but some hard blues rock. They were pioneers and had a huge impact on those other female bands, and those bands all cited Fanny as an influence.
They had a blues edge about them and weren’t as commercial. They never got that one big hit single to break them to the masses. They had a few songs with a pop flavor that really should have made it, such as All Mine… that would get my vote.
Early Life and Musical Beginnings:
They were formed in the late sixties in Sacramento by two Filipina sisters (their family left the Philippines in 1961 while kids), Jean and June Millington. June Millington was the lead guitar player and her sister Jean was the bass player. They started out in high school with the name The Svelts and then Wild Honey but the band was then renamed Fanny, not with a sexual connotation but to denote a female spirit.
Career
Fanny released their self-titled debut album in 1970, making them one of the first all-female bands to be signed to a major label and record a full album with complete creative control. Their blend of rock, funk, blues, and pop set them apart. They would be the first all-female band to release an album on a major label (Reprise) and land four singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and two in the top 40.
Like any other band, they had to pay their dues. They opened up for artists such as Jethro Tull, Humble Pie, Slade, Leon Russell, Van Morrison, Chuck Berry, Deep Purple, and many more. When you are opening for artists of that caliber, you are very good. Their range was incredible. They played on Barbra Streisand’s 1971 album Barbra Joan Streisand. So they could play almost anything.
They went on to release an album every year from 1970 to 1974, making it 5 studio albums in total in the 1970s, while touring relentlessly. By their third album,m Mother’s Pride, guitarist June Millington quit after it was released because she felt restrained by the band. After some changes, with her sister Jean still playing bass, the band released their last 1970s album, Rock and Roll Survivors. The album contained their highest charting single with Butter Boy, which charted at #29.
Fanny broke up in 1975, reunited in 2018, and released an album titled Fanny Walked the Earth. I simply adore these women because they could keep up with anyone in any field. One night Deep Purple missed a gig and Fanny filled in for them for that night without complaints.
Discography: (wiki)
Studio Albums
- Fanny (1970)
- Charity Ball (1971) (No. 150)
- Fanny Hill (1972) (No. 135)
- Mothers Pride (1973)
- Rock and Roll Survivors (1974)
- Fanny Walked the Earth (2018, as Fanny Walked the Earth)
Live Albums
- Fanny Live (1998; recorded 1972) (reissued as Fanny: Live in 1972)
- Live on Beat-Club ’71-’72 (2024)
Singles
- “Ladies’ Choice” / “New Day” (1970)
- “Nowhere to Run” / “One Step at a Time” (1970)
- “Changing Horses” / “Conversation with a Cop” (January 1971)
- “Charity Ball” / “Place in the Country” (September 1971) (No. 40)
- “Ain’t That Peculiar” / “Think About the Children” (March 1972) (No. 85)
- “Wonderful Feeling” / “Rock Bottom Blues” (July 1972)
- “Young and Dumb” / “Knock on My Door” (October 1972)
- “All Mine” / “I Need You Need Me” (January 1973)
- “Last Night I Had a Dream” / “Beside Myself” (April 1973)
- “I’ve Had It” / “From Where I Stand” (June 1974) (No. 79)
- “Butter Boy” / “Beggar Man” (January 1975) (No. 29)
In recent years, Fanny has participated in reunion events, introducing their songs to new audiences. These performances have served both as a tribute to their historical impact and as a celebration of their music. They have a documentary out…watch it! It’s called FANNY: The Right To Rock that I placed at the top.
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PowerPop... An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture 
I did read this when it was posted by Lisa. I had seen that documentary and it was a really eye opener. You listened all the albums and I really had no idea there was that many!
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It’s a shame they are not as known now. Excellent musicians and good songs. Backup Babs and play with the top rock bands…pretty good.
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She took it in good spirit.
They were probably ahead of their time, but were superb live.
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Randy they have a comprehensive spotify playlist out there also.
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They played at my uni in 1973 and were fantastic. The guy in the next room to me acquired one of the band’s promo stickers and applied it to his girlfriend’s skirt, in the appropriate place. The name means something different here 😉
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Yea I know that meaning…
That is hilarious about the sticker. Clive, every live footage I’ve seen from them has been really good. They could play about anything.
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I actually first listened to Fanny based on June Millington’s post-Fanny work with Cris Williamson and others. When they first appeared I thought Fanny was just a Warner/Reprise gimmick. I was wrong.
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I bet a lot of people thought that at the time. I grew up with the Go Go’s and Bangles…but these ladies rivaled the harder rock/blues at the time with occasional pop…and yes…June is something else.
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Good one! Nice theme…I get it.
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Talented pioneers of rock that would have probably don much better if they were worse musicians and dressed sexier, it is really a shame they were not bigger than what they became.
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Thanks Jim. Everytime I’ve posted these ladies no one has ever said that. I agree with you on that…never thought about it in that way. If they would have played light pop and yea exploited themselves a little more…then yes…but they did it the right way and I respect them for that.
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They did their own thing, doing it their way and I respect the hell out of them for being who they are.
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Never heard of them! Ha! I love it though and I love it when you introduce me to some new/old band! Wow!
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These women were the real deal Sheila. They could play with Streisand or Deep Purple. Awesome musicians. Thanks for reading!
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They did a great version of ‘Ain’t That Peculiar’ if I remember?
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ah! I’ve just seen it in your list
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Yes they do…a very good one.
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Thanks again, Max, for writing your guest feature on Fanny for Women Music March 2025. They rock out and laid the groundwork for what came next with female musicians and rock and roll. Each one of the members are so talented!
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Thank you for publishing it…Steve said he thought they were a gimmick by the record company when they came out but soon found out they were not…and I bet a lot of people were like that…but they were anything but a gimmick.
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You’re welcome. I appreciate the record company allowing them an opportunity to be heard.
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I’ve heard of them, but this is the first time I’ve heard them. I really like them. I’m going to delve into some of their albums. Thanks to Max and Lisa!
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Thanks Pam I appreciate it! They are worth the time.
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I remember them well from “back in the day.” They played Mother Blues in Dallas often. A far and above better band than the Bangles and Go Go’s. Real musicians.
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I totally agree…it’s hard conveying that to non musicians at times…they think you are knocking those bands…no…it’s just these ladies could play with the hardest and softest….
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Lawdy, just listen to that mean slide on ‘Ain’t That Peculiar,’ in fact the whole band kick it along beautifully. Yep, wrong place, wrong time, and that is a damn shame for them.
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That sums it up…how many bands could play for Babs while living up to Deep Purple lol.
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Excellent pick, Max. These ladies really rocked and were true trailblazers for women in rock. And, as none other than the great guitarist Bonnie Raitt said, they could REALLY PLAY!
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Thanks man…yes I agree…when you can backup Streisand and Deep Purple…you are talented.
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Great writeup Max. Certainly were a legit rock band back then & noticed by their peers if not the public. I’d never heard of them until you first wrote about them , maybe three years ago
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What made me feel good is members from the Runways, Go Go’s, and Bangles cite them as an influence…hell they have to because they were the first female BAND… and musician wise…probably the best….but never got played. They had pop songs as well.
PS…can’t believe the Dodgers won last night.
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Whoa!!
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I didn’t realize they made five albums, always assumed they were a one-album wonder.
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I liked their sound plus they were pioneers. It’s not a slap against The Runaways, Bangles, or Go Gos…but Fanny had some serious music skills over just being a pop band.
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