![]() The audition was nearly a bust, because he played country music and that was not what the executives were looking for. Records, Fender did not think that the group was strong enough, so he brought his own band. When the Texas Tornados went to audition for Warner Bros. In 1989, Fender teamed up with fellow Tex–Mex musicians Doug Sahm, Flaco Jiménez, and Augie Meyers to form the Texas Tornados, whose work meshed conjunto, Tejano, R&B, country, and blues to wide acclaim. As music writer John Broven observed, "Although Freddy was a Chicano from Texas marketed as a country artist, much of his formative career was spent in South Louisiana spiritually, Fender's music was from the Louisiana swamps." Later years Texas Tornados Fender associated with swamp pop musicians such as Joe Barry and Rod Bernard, and issued many recordings on labels owned by Huey Meaux, a Cajun who specialized in swamp pop. One of his major hits, "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights", has a typical swamp pop ballad arrangement. Swamp pop influences įender was heavily influenced by the swamp pop sound from southern Louisiana and southeast Texas, as is shown by his recording swamp pop standards on his 1978 album Swamp Gold. Bilingual songs reaching the country charts were even more unusual. Bilingual songs seldom hit the pop charts, and when they did, it was because of novelty. While notable for his genre-crossing appeal, several of Fender's hits featured verses or choruses in Spanish. "Since I Met You Baby", "You'll Lose A Good Thing" (his last pop top 40), " Vaya con Dios", and "Livin' It Down" (his last to reach the pop top 100) all did well on the pop charts. Besides "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" reaching number one on the pop charts in May 1975, "Wasted Days And Wasted Nights" went into the pop top 10 and "Secret Love" into the top 20. įender also was successful on the pop charts. "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" became Fender's second million-selling single, with the gold disc presentation taking place in September 1975. ![]() Between 19, Fender charted 21 country hits, including "Since I Met You Baby", " Vaya con Dios", "Livin' It Down", and "The Rains Came". His next three singles, "Secret Love", " You'll Lose a Good Thing", and a remake of "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights", all reached number one on the Billboard Country charts. It sold over a million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA in May 1975. The single was selected for national distribution and became a number one hit on the Billboard Country and Pop charts. In 1974, Fender recorded "Before the Next Teardrop Falls". ![]() However, in a 1990 NPR interview on Fresh Air with Terry Gross (rebroadcast October 17, 2006), Fender said that the condition for parole was to stay away from places that served alcohol.īy the end of the 1960s, Fender was back in Texas working as a mechanic, and attending a local junior college, while playing music only on the weekends. Davis requested that Fender stay away from music while on probation as a condition of his release. After serving nearly three years in the Angola prison farm, he was released through the intervention of then-governor Jimmie Davis, also a songwriter and musician. The song was a hit, but he was beset by legal troubles in May 1960 after he and a band member were arrested for possession of marijuana in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In 1959, Fender recorded the blues ballad " Wasted Days and Wasted Nights". He took the name Fender from the guitar and amplifier, and Freddy because the alliteration sounded good and would "sell better with Gringos!" He then went to California. In 1958, he legally changed his name from Baldemar Huerta to Freddy Fender. He became known for his rockabilly music and his cool persona as Eddie con los Shades. He also recorded his own Spanish version of Hank Williams's " Cold Cold Heart" under the title " Tu Frío Corazón". In 1957, then known as El Bebop Kid, he released two songs to moderate success in Mexico and South America: Spanish-language versions of Elvis Presley's " Don't Be Cruel" (as " No Seas Cruel") and Harry Belafonte's "Jamaica Farewell". He returned to Texas and played nightclubs, bars, and honky-tonks throughout the south, mostly to Latino audiences. Department of the Navy saying that he had been wrongfully discharged dishonorably because of alcoholism, and he was given a general discharge. According to Fender, he later received a letter from the U.S. He served time in the brig on several occasions because of his drinking, and he was court martialed in August 1956 and discharged with rank of private (E-1). įender dropped out of high school at age 16 in 1953, and when he turned 17, he enlisted for three years in the U.S. He made his first radio appearance at age 10 on Harlingen's radio station KGBT, singing a then hit, "Paloma Querida". Fender was born in San Benito, Texas, United States to Margarita (Garza) Huerta and her Mexican immigrant husband Serapio Huerta.
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