Frankie Miller's Double Take

You may never have heard of Frankie Miller, but you definitely know his music. Artists as varied as Rod Stewart, The Traveling Wilburys and Ray Charles have recorded his songs, while Miller has collaborated with an array of rock legends, co-writing Thin Lizzy's 'Still In Love' with the late Phil Lynott, performing with Procol Harum, and attracting the attention of soul legend Allen Toussaint, who took Miller to New Orleans to record his 1974 album, High Life.

Not bad for a Glasgow-born vocalist who, despite never achieving the acclaim he deserved, embarked upon a 28-year career which was tragically cut short after he suffered a brain haemorrhage in 1994. Though Miller is making a remarkable recovery, learning to walk and talk again, and even making tentative forays back into songwriting, he also left a swathe of unreleased recordings that are only now finally being released - with a little help from some of his friends.

As Frankie Miller producer David Mackay recalls, it all began when Rod Stewart asked if he and any unknown Miller songs. A phone call to Annette Miller, Frankie's partner, promptly led to Mackay receiving two garbage sacks full of demos. "The tracks were simple," he recalls, "but the vocals were stunning. So I set about creating proper backing tracks with top musicians from around the world."

It's a testament to the high regard with which Miller's contemporaries hold him - and to Miller's own wide-ranging, genre-spanning talents - that so many of music's biggest names gathered together to help finish 19 of his previously unreleased songs. "The response was overwhelming," Mackay says. "Kid Rock heard about the idea and wanted to take part. Elton John thought 'Where Do The Guilty Go' was a classic. Willie Nelson loved the song and immediately went into the studio." Legendary soul guitarist Steve Cropper also came on board, as did one of Japan's biggest stars, Tomoyasu Hotei. As an added bonus, the solo Frankie Miller track, 'I Do', rounds the collection off.

Offering heartfelt tributes to their friend, the stars also assemble on the DVD documentary Frankie Miller: Sending Me Angels.