In honor of the life and enduring legacy of the late Connie Francis, Republic/UMe is making much of her music available in a variety of formats. Francis, the top female artist of the late 1950s and early 1960s, died on July 16 at age 87.
Francis’ rediscovered gem “Pretty Little Baby” — which became a viral sensation on social media this spring — will be released on Aug. 29 as a limited-edition baby-pink 7-inch vinyl single. Her 1958 breakthrough hit “Who’s Sorry Now” will be on the flipside; the song reached No. 4 on a pre-Hot 100 pop chart in Billboard.
Christmas in My Heart, Francis’ 1959 holiday album, will be released on Oct. 17 as an expanded edition on CD with two bonus tracks, “Blue Winter” and “Happy New Year Baby,” along with two vinyl offerings: standard black vinyl or limited-edition “lipstick-red” color vinyl.
More than 100 songs, spanning singles and rarities released between 1955-60, are now available to stream for the first time ever on the compilations The Singles 1955-1957, The Singles 1958-1959, The Singles 1960-1961, Rarities 1957-1959 and Rarities 1960.
Additionally, both volumes of Francis’ The Italian Collection (Italian Favorites and More Italian Favorites, both of which made the top 10 on the Billboard 200 in 1960-61) will return to streaming soon after many years as one compilation.
Over the next few months, more of Francis’ albums will find their way to streaming for the first time, starting Sept. 12 with A New Kind of Connie (which made the Billboard 200 in 1964), along with newly expanded editions of Jealous Heart (1966), My Heart Cries for You (1967), and The Wedding Cake (1969).
Francis made a great deal of history on the Billboard Hot 100. In June 1960, she became the first female solo artist to land a No. 1 hit with “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool.” Three months later, when “My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own” reached the top spot, she became the first female solo artist to land two No. 1 hits. In March 1962, when “Don’t Break the Heart That Loves You” went all the way, she became the first female solo artist to land three No. 1 hits. She held that record all by herself until March 1974, when Cher tied the record by hitting No. 1 for the third time as a solo artist with “Dark Lady.”
“Pretty Little Baby,” which was never a hit for Francis or even released as a single, introduced millions of young listeners around the globe to Francis’ joyful artistry this spring when the song went viral thanks to its use on TikTok. At its peak, “Pretty Little Baby” averaged 600K+ daily creates on TikTok alone, including posts from celebs and influencers alike, including Kim Kardashian & North West, Kylie Jenner and others.
The song broke into Spotify’s Global and U.S. charts for the first time the week of May 10. It peaked at No. 13 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart that same month.
Originally released in 1959, Christmas in My Heart found Francis teaming with Geoff Love’s orchestra to capture two distinct sides of the holidays. Side A features secular favorites while Side B focuses on reverent material. The album charted on Billboard’s Top Christmas/Holiday Albums chart in both 1963 and 1964. The album was reissued in 1966 as Connie’s Christmas.
The new expanded edition includes four songs that weren’t on the original 1959 release: “Baby’s First Christmas,” “I’m Gonna Be Warm This Winter,” “Blue Winter” and “Happy New Year Baby.” Francis’ recordings of the first three of these songs made the top 30 on the Hot 100. “I’m Gonna Be Warm This Winter” was revived in 2015 when Kylie Minogue covered it on her album, Kylie Christmas, which charted on the Billboard 200.
Here’s the complete track listing for the expanded edition CD of Christmas in My Heart.
“White Christmas”
“Winter Wonderland”
“The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)”
“I’ll Be Home for Christmas”
“The Twelve Days of Christmas”
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”
“Adeste Fidelis”
“The Lord’s Prayer”
“Silent Night”
“O Little Town of Bethlehem”
“The First Noel”
“Ave Maria”
“Baby’s First Christmas”
“I’m Gonna Be Warm This Winter”
“Blue Winter”
“Happy New Year Baby”
