''Born Funky Born Free'' is the debut album from Australian singer/songwriter

Loene Carmen Loene Carmen (born 1970), better known by stage name Lo Carmen, is an Australian singer-songwriter, musician, music producer, author and actress with multiple albums in the indie rock vein. She records, performs and tours solo or with long tim ...

. It was independently released in 2002 on Chiquita Records in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It was recorded in Carmen's home studio, Loose Connections, in

Darlinghurst Darlinghurst is an inner-city suburb in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the Ci ...

NSW New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. T ...

and mixed and mastered at BJB Studios by Chris Townend. Carmen states this album was inspired by funk pioneer

Betty Davis Betty Davis (born Betty Gray Mabry; July 26, 1944 – February 9, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and model. She was known for her controversial sexually oriented lyrics and performance style, and was the second wife of trumpeter ...

. "I called my first album ''Born Funky Born Free'' in some kind of homage to Betty (Davis), and wrote a song from her imagined point of view called ''My Friends Call Me Foxy''. Performing it always makes me stand up a little straighter." "Mainly it was just me alone with headphones on, in my own little world..." In 2022 she reflected on the recording process for

Talkhouse ''Talkhouse'' is a digital media outlet and online magazine created in 2013 by Ian Wheeler and Tim Putnam. Musicians, actors, and filmmakers share their experiences in their respective fields in personal essays, discuss their peers' work in edi ...

"I knew I was making a really weird-sounding album that was not likely to find many listeners, but I couldn’t stop. I was in love with it, and with the whole process. It felt like a statement album: This is who I am, if you don’t like the heat, get out of the kitchen. I’d always been a weirdo, I was just letting it all hang out — half girl, half beast. I didn’t even think about trying to find a label to release it; I just got it all ready for release, got quotes from CD printing places, squirreled away what funds I could towards it, and put the rest on a shonky credit card. Once I’d paid it off, I was ready to make the next one."

Personnel

- vocals, guitar, organ, beats *Cathy Green - bass, vocals *Simon Day - guitar *

James Cruickshank James George Watson, who performed as James Cruickshank (1962 – 8 October 2015), was an Australian musician. He was the long-term guitarist and keyboardist for indie rock group, the Cruel Sea. As a solo artist he released three albums, ''Hym ...

- guitar, organ *Kristyna - guitar

Track listing

# "Born Funky Born Free" (3:39) # "My Friends Call Me Foxy" (4:24) # "Rock On" (4:56) # "Half Girl Half Beast" (4:41) # "Chiquita Dub" (3:25) # "Girl You Feel Alright To Me" (4:47) # "The Doctor" (3:48) # "I've Got Those Tickets You Wanted" (3:28) # "The Green Ray" (4:09) # "Gemini" (3:51) # "Drag the River" (4:15) # "White Wine & Cigarettes (Rest Hard)" (2:42) # "How Close Are You?" (4:24)

References

{{Authority control 2002 debut albums Loene Carmen albums