Do My Heart Good: My Odyssey Through Country Music, Medicine, and History (Country Music Foundation Press)

Born to a struggling family in Jim Crow–era Louisiana, Cleve Francis followed his love for music and passion for science into parallel careers as a singer-songwriter and cardiologist. One of the few Black artists to record for a major country music label, Francis had four Billboard hits as a Capitol Nashville/Liberty Records artist in the 1990s.Francis’s account follows his “multidimensional life” through two milieus that rarely welcome Black men: country music and medicine. Merging rich storytelling with thoughtful insights, Francis shares the obstacles and triumphs he experienced through his lifelong love of performing music and writing songs, his abiding interest in science and medicine, and his determination to overcome racial barriers. He also offers an insider’s view of the 1990s country music world―the discipline of finding songs and recording in Nashville, the fight to get his music on the radio, and a whirlwind of shows and encounters with country music legends.Engaging and inspiring, Do My Heart Good is the story of how resolve, hard work, and joy composed a uniquely American success story. Read more