Editing Black Francis (section)

===Frank Black and the Catholics===
{{Redirect|Frank Black and the Catholics|the album|Frank Black and the Catholics (album)}}
Thompson dubbed his new band "Frank Black and the Catholics" and recorded their [[Frank Black and the Catholics (album)|eponymous first album]] in 1997. Recorded live-to-two-track initially as merely a demo, he was so pleased with the results that he decided to release the sessions with no further production.<ref name="cathreview">{{cite web | url=http://www.yaleherald.com/archive/xxvi/10.23.98/ae/record3.html | title=Black's first holy communion for post-Pixies fans | access-date=2006-10-28 | author=McGarry, Daniel | publisher=The Yale Herald | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060917072626/http://www.yaleherald.com/archive/xxvi/10.23.98/ae/record3.html | archive-date=September 17, 2006 | df=mdy-all }}</ref> The album was delayed for over a year by conflicts at American, both internal and over its production,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://quimby.gnus.org/html/interview/BlackFrank.article.battle.html | title=A Frank Black internet radio show!?!? | access-date=2006-10-23 | date=August 10, 1997 | author=Rutherford, Eric}}</ref> and was ultimately released in late 1998 by [[SpinArt Records]] in the US. Since leaving American Recordings, Black has avoided long-term contracts with labels, and has maintained ownership of his album masters, licensing each album individually for release.<ref name="splendid">{{cite web|url=http://www.splendidezine.com/features/frankblack/ |title=Frank Black |access-date=2006-10-26 |author=Splendid Ezine |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061215162511/http://www.splendidezine.com/features/frankblack/ |archive-date=December 15, 2006 |df=mdy }}</ref>

''Frank Black and the Catholics'' became the first album to be posted to the [[eMusic]] service; they claim it is "the first album ever made legally available for commercial download".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.emusic.com/album/10889/10889232.html |title=Hey&nbsp;– Live Pixies, MP3 Album Music Download at eMusic |access-date=2006-10-28 |author=Strickler, Yancey. eMusic |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060207032017/http://www.emusic.com/album/10889/10889232.html |archive-date=February 7, 2006 }}</ref> Critical reception to the album was mixed, with some writers noting Thompson's seemingly deliberate turn away from the "quirkiness" of the Pixies and his early solo work for a self-consciously straightforward approach,<ref name="cathreview" /><ref>{{cite web | url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r351286|pure_url=yes}} | title=((( Frank Black and the Catholics > Overview ))) | access-date=2006-10-23 | author= Erlewine, Stephen Thomas}}</ref> and the "disappointingly straightforward [[punk-pop]]" musical style present on the album.<ref name="adPistolerioReview">{{cite web | url=http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/store/artist/album/0,,391605,00.html | title=Frank Black: Pistolero | access-date=2006-12-07 | author=Phares, Heather|website=Artistdirect.com}}</ref>

He would continue to eschew [[multi-track recording]] for the live-to-two-track technique for all subsequent releases under the group name. Live-to-two-track recording precludes the use of overdubs to correct errors or add texture; all takes are recorded continuously, and mixing is done "on the fly". On later albums, he incorporated more musicians into the sessions to allow for more varied instrumental textures. Explaining his rationale behind the method, he commented:<ref name="freew">{{cite web | url=http://www.freewilliamsburg.com/november_2002/frank-black.html | title=Frank Black | access-date=2006-10-23 | author=Kilian, Dan | archive-url=https://archive.today/20120525135344/http://www.freewilliamsburg.com/november_2002/frank-black.html | archive-date=May 25, 2012 | url-status=dead }}</ref>

{{Blockquote|Well, it's real. It's a recording of a performance, of a real performance between a group of people, an entourage, a band, as opposed to a facsimile of that, which is frequently what people do with multi-track recording&nbsp;... I prefer it. It's a little more real. It's got a little more heart.}}

Workman left the Catholics in 1998 to pursue session and sideman work; Rich Gilbert was added to the band to replace him.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.frankblack.net/bio/default.asp?page=rich | title=Rich Gilbert: Guitar Phenomenalist | access-date=2006-11-01 | author=Katsiris, Dean | date=December 23, 2005 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061012022704/http://www.frankblack.net/bio/default.asp?page=rich | archive-date=October 12, 2006 | url-status=dead }}</ref> Frank Black and the Catholics released ''[[Pistolero (album)|Pistolero]]'' in 1999<ref name="adPistolerioReview" /> and ''[[Dog in the Sand]]'' in 2001.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.medianugget.com/2001/06/dog_in_the_sand.html |title=Media Nugget : Dog in the Sand : Frank Black and the Catholics |access-date=2006-11-08 |quote=Dog in the Sand&nbsp;... is also one of his best. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061021040639/http://www.medianugget.com/2001/06/dog_in_the_sand.html |archive-date=October 21, 2006 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/blackfrankandthecatholics/doginthesand | title=Frank Black & The Catholics: Dog in the Sand (2001): Reviews | website=[[Metacritic]] | access-date=2006-11-08 | quote=Dog in the Sand' is unquestionably Frank Black's finest solo album.}}</ref> ''Dog in the Sand'' added Dave Philips on [[pedal steel guitar]] and lead guitar, and Santiago and Feldman began making occasional appearances with the group live and on record.<ref>Schabe, Patrick. "[https://www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/b/blackfrank-dog.shtml Frank Black and the Catholics: Dog in the Sand]" Popmatters, 2001. Retrieved on 2006-11-05</ref>

By this time, while dismissing the possibility of a Pixies reunion, Thompson had begun to incorporate an increasing number of the band's songs into Catholics concerts, as well as including Santiago in his solo work again.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.popmatters.com/music/concerts/b/black-frank.shtml | title=Frank Black and Catholics&nbsp;– Popmatters Concert Review | access-date=2006-12-11 | author=Thil, Scott | date=May 24, 2001}}</ref> Black and the Catholics continued to release records; two separate albums, ''[[Black Letter Days]]'' and ''[[Devil's Workshop]]'', were released simultaneously in 2002.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/blackfrankandthecatholics/blackletterdays/ | title=Frank Black and the Catholics | website=[[Metacritic]] | access-date=2006-12-11}}</ref> ''Devil's Workshop'' included the song "Velvety" ({{audio|FrankBlack-Velvety.ogg|sample}}), a version of the Pixies song "Velvety Instrumental Version" that  Black wrote as a teenager, with lyrics.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.freewilliamsburg.com/november_2002/frank-black.html | title=Frank Black | access-date=2006-12-13 | author=Kilian, Dan | publisher=Free Williamsburg | quote=It was an instrumental before. I think it originally had words when I wrote it when I was a teenager. I may have incorporated a line or two from the original lyrics when I was fifteen. | archive-url=https://archive.today/20120525135344/http://www.freewilliamsburg.com/november_2002/frank-black.html | archive-date=May 25, 2012 | url-status=dead }}</ref> The song was one of the first signs that he had acknowledged his past work with the Pixies in his solo output. A sixth album with the Catholics, ''[[Show Me Your Tears]]'', was released in 2003. ''Show Me Your Tears<nowiki>'</nowiki>'' title and many of the songs in it were inspired by Thompson's recent divorce and entry into [[psychotherapy|therapy]].<ref name="allmusicbio" />