“People tell me they like my music. People tell Cherie she changed their lives,” says punk stalwart Frank Meyer about Cherie Currie of The Runaways. “I get it. She certainly changed mine.” While it’s common for normal everyday people to fanboy/fangirl over their favorite musicians, it’s always refreshing to hear celebs gushing over other celebs. So when he was writing his new single “Piece of Me” from his solo debut LIVING BETWEEN THE LINES (release date: March 25, 2025 via Kitten Robot), he asked Cherie to sing with him. “It was an honor to have her write and sing this duet with me.”
“The Runaways were a gigantic early influence on me and she has been instrumental in my music career,” he says. “At one of the earliest gigs by my band the Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs, Cherie jumped onstage with us and sang her hit ‘Cherry Bomb‘ and shortly after asked us to support her and be her backing band on the road.”
Adds Cherie, “We just clicked when I met Frank at a Sandy West show at the Coconut Teaser in the early ’90s. Frank has turned me on to so many memorial gigs, sessions, and people during our three decades of friendship. He is an exceptional player, performer, singer and songwriter. A selfless human being that I am so proud to call one of my very best friends!”
While the late-night sway of “Piece of Me” hearkens last call in a dive bar while the final song is playing on the juke, the narrative of the song relates more to the push and pull of social media. “When I wrote the first pass at ‘Piece of Me,’ I was thinking about social media and how addicted we all have become to sharing our lives. It’s as if we are constantly giving a piece of ourselves away. But what do we keep for ourselves? At what point do we give it all away? What’s left?”
When Frank sent an early demo to her to help him finish out the lyrics, he kept the theme of the song close to his chest, resulting in musical kismet. “I didn’t tell her what inspired my parts,” he explains, “I just gave it to her to interpret on her own. When I got her parts back, I was blown away. When I read her lyrics, I felt like she was commenting on fame. Like, she has given so much of herself away on stage and in music and acting for so many years, what’s left for her?”
One of three duets with renowned musicians (the other two are “Partners in Crime” featuring Supersuckers’ Eddie Spaghetti and “Living Between the Lines” featuring Bellrays’ Lisa Kekaula), “Piece of Me” joins the other ten albums track in Frank’s first foray into solo material. While he has fronted seminal West Coast punk bands The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs and Trading Aces and played sideman in FEAR, Wayne Kramer and Cheetah Chrome, and lead vocalist for James Williamson (Iggy & The Stooges), Frank’s debut album fully displays his wide-ranging musical prowess which Rebel Noise calls “high-energy rock roots by adding shades of blues and soul.”
Living Between the Lines will be released on March 25, 2025 via Kitten Robot. “Piece of Me” is available now to purchase/stream on DSPs including Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, Amazon, and Deezer via Kitten Robot.
