Freddy Fender
Encyclopedia
Freddy Fender born Baldemar Garza Huerta in San Benito, Texas
, United States
, was a Mexican-American Tejano
, country
and rock and roll
musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven
and the Texas Tornados
. He is best known for his 1975 hits "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and the subsequent remake of his own "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
".
's KGBS-AM radio station KGBT, when he sang a current hit, "Paloma Querida".
In January 1954, at age 16, Fender quit school, and when he turned 17 he enlisted for three years in the United States Marine Corps
. However, he was court-martialed in August 1956 and was discharged with rank of Private
(E-1). He returned to Texas and played nightclubs, bars and honky-tonks throughout the south, mostly to Latino audiences. 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 also recorded his own Spanish version of Hank Williams's "Cold Cold Heart" under the title "Tu Frio Corazon".
He became known for his rockabilly
music and his cool persona as Eddie Con Los Shades. In 1958, he legally changed his name from Baldemar Huerta to Freddy Fender. He took Fender
from the guitar and amplifier, and Freddy because the alliteration sounded good and would "...sell better with Gringos!" He then went to California.
"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
". 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
. After serving nearly three years in the Angola prison farm
, he was released through the intercession of then Governor Jimmie Davis
, also a songwriter and musician. Davis requested that Fender stay away from music while on probation as a condition of his release. 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.
By the end of the 1960s, Fender was back in Texas working as a mechanic, and attending a local junior college, while only playing music on the weekends.
". The single was selected for national distribution and became a number one hit on the Billboard
Country and Pop charts. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
by the R.I.A.A. in May 1975. 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. Between 1975 and 1983, Fender charted 21 country hits, including "Since I Met You Baby
", "Vaya con Dios
", "Livin' It Down", and "The Rains Came". "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" became Fender's second million-selling single, with the gold disc presentation taking place in September 1975.
Fender also was successful on the pop charts. Besides "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" reaching number 1 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. "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.
While notable for his genre-crossing appeal, several of Fender's hits featured verses or choruses in Spanish. Bilingual songs seldom hit the pop charts, and when they did it was because of novelty. Bilingual songs reaching the country charts was even more unusual.
sound from southern Louisiana and southeast Texas, as is shown by his recording swamp pop standards on his 1978 album Swamp Gold. One of his major hits, "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights", has a typical swamp pop ballad arrangement. Fender associated with swamp pop musicians like Paul C Saenz, Joe Barry
and Rod Bernard
, and issued many recordings on labels owned by Huey Meaux, a Cajun
who specialized in swamp pop. 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."
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. The group released four albums and won a Grammy in 1990 for 'Best Mexican American Performance' for the track "Soy de San Luis." Fender described the group as such: "You've heard of New Kids on the Block
? Well, we're the Old Guys in the Street". Following the death of Sahm, the Tornados' production slowed. A live 1990 appearance on TV's Austin City Limits
, one of three the group made, was released in 2005 as part of the Live From Austin, Texas series.
, with Los Lobos
' David Hidalgo
and Cesar Rosas
, Flaco Jiménez
, Ruben Ramos
, Joe Ely
, and country singer Rick Trevino
. The group won a 1998 Grammy in the Mexican-American Performance category for their self-titled disc.
that brought him a third Grammy award, this time in the category of Latin Pop Album
. Rose Reyes, who worked with Fender in 2004 for a Texas Folklife and Austin tribute titled "Fifty Years of Freddy Fender", said of the album, "When he did Mexican standards at that point in his career, I expected it to be good because he's a perfectionist. But that record is so beautifully recorded; his voice is perfection. I was so proud it was coming back to his roots."
transplant
in 2002 donated by his daughter and a transplant of the liver in 2004. Nonetheless, his condition continued to worsen. He was suffering from an "incurable cancer
" in which he had tumor
s on his lungs. On December 31, 2005, Fender performed his last concert and resumed chemotherapy
.
He died in 2006 at the age of 69 of lung cancer at his home in Corpus Christi, Texas
, with his family at his bedside. He was buried in his hometown of San Benito.
International news coverage of the death cited an oft-expressed wish by the singer to become the first Mexican-American inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, with reporters noting that posthumous induction remains a possibility.
A Freddy Fender Museum and The Conjunto
Music Museum opened November 17, 2007 in San Benito. They share a building with The San Benito Historical Museum. His family is committed to continue the Freddy Fender Scholarship Fund and other philanthropic causes which the musician was passionate about.
-directed film The Milagro Beanfield War
. Fender also appeared in the prison movie Short Eyes
, a 1977 film directed by Robert M. Young. In this film adaptation of the Miguel Pinero play, Fender acted as "Tony", a minor character.
San Benito, Texas
San Benito is a city in Cameron County, Texas, United States. The population was 24,250 at the 2010 census. It is the birthplace of Country and Tex-Mex music icon Freddy Fender. San Benito celebrated the 100th anniversary of the naming of the city April 3, 2007. The post office was named Diaz...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, was a Mexican-American Tejano
Tejano music
Tejano music or Tex-Mex music is the name given to various forms of folk and popular music originating among the Mexican-American populations of Central and Southern Texas...
, country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven
Los Super Seven
Los Super Seven is a predominantly Latin American supergroup which debuted in 1998. The group won a Grammy Award for Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album in 1999 for its self-titled album. The group's musical style has changed with each incarnation, blending sounds from Tejano, mariachi, Cuban,...
and the Texas Tornados
Texas Tornados
Texas Tornados is a Tejano band. Its music is a fusion of rock, country and various Mexican styles.-History:The initial combination of musicians of the Texas Tornados happened almost by chance at a concert performance of a mutual acquaintance...
. He is best known for his 1975 hits "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and the subsequent remake of his own "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is an American country and pop song recorded by Freddy Fender. It is considered by many to belong to the swamp pop idiom of south Louisiana and southeast Texas that had such a major musical impact on Fender.-Song history:...
".
Early years
Born to Mexican-immigrant Serapio Huerta and his Texas-born wife Margarita Garza, Fender made his first radio appearance at age 10 on HarlingenHarlingen, Texas
Harlingen is a city in Cameron County in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, United States, about from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The city covers more than , and is the second largest city in Cameron County and the sixth largest in the Rio Grande Valley...
's KGBS-AM radio station KGBT, when he sang a current hit, "Paloma Querida".
In January 1954, at age 16, Fender quit school, and when he turned 17 he enlisted for three years in the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. However, he was court-martialed in August 1956 and was discharged with rank of Private
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
(E-1). He returned to Texas and played nightclubs, bars and honky-tonks throughout the south, mostly to Latino audiences. In 1957, then known as El Bebop Kid, he released two songs to moderate success in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
: Spanish-language versions of Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
's "Don't Be Cruel
Don't Be Cruel
-Legacy:"Don't Be Cruel" went on to become Presley's biggest selling single recorded in 1956, with sales over six million by 1961. It became a regular feature of his live sets until his death in 1977, and was often coupled with "Jailhouse Rock" or "Teddy Bear" during performances from 1969.Many...
" (as "No Seas Cruel") and Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
's "Jamaica Farewell." He also recorded his own Spanish version of Hank Williams's "Cold Cold Heart" under the title "Tu Frio Corazon".
He became known for his rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
music and his cool persona as Eddie Con Los Shades. In 1958, he legally changed his name from Baldemar Huerta to Freddy Fender. He took Fender
Fender
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, commonly referred to as simply Fender, of Scottsdale, Arizona is a manufacturer of stringed instruments and amplifiers, such as solid-body electric guitars, including the Stratocaster and the Telecaster...
from the guitar and amplifier, and Freddy because the alliteration sounded good and would "...sell better with Gringos!" He then went to California.
Initial success
In 1959, Fender recorded the blues balladBlues ballad
The term blues ballad is used to refer to a specific form of popular music which fused Anglo-American and Afro-American styles from the late 19th century onwards...
"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is an American country and pop song recorded by Freddy Fender. It is considered by many to belong to the swamp pop idiom of south Louisiana and southeast Texas that had such a major musical impact on Fender.-Song history:...
". 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
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
. After serving nearly three years in the Angola prison farm
Louisiana State Penitentiary
The Louisiana State Penitentiary is a prison farm in Louisiana operated by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections. It is the largest maximum security prison in the United States with 5,000 offenders and 1,800 staff...
, he was released through the intercession of then Governor Jimmie Davis
Jimmie Davis
James Houston Davis , better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as the 47th Governor of Louisiana...
, also a songwriter and musician. Davis requested that Fender stay away from music while on probation as a condition of his release. However, in a 1990 NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
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.
By the end of the 1960s, Fender was back in Texas working as a mechanic, and attending a local junior college, while only playing music on the weekends.
Number one on pop and country charts
In 1974, Fender recorded "Before the Next Teardrop FallsBefore the Next Teardrop Falls (song)
"Before the Next Teardrop Falls" is an American country and pop song written by Vivian Keith and Ben Peters, and most famously recorded by Freddy Fender.-Song history:...
". The single was selected for national distribution and became a number one hit on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Country and Pop charts. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the R.I.A.A. in May 1975. His next three singles, "Secret Love", "You'll Lose a Good Thing
You'll Lose a Good Thing
"You'll Lose a Good Thing" is an American song initially written by rhythm and blues artist Barbara Lynn Ozen, and made famous in the 1970s by country music-Tejano singer Freddy Fender....
" and a remake of "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is an American country and pop song recorded by Freddy Fender. It is considered by many to belong to the swamp pop idiom of south Louisiana and southeast Texas that had such a major musical impact on Fender.-Song history:...
", all reached number-one on the Billboard Country charts. Between 1975 and 1983, Fender charted 21 country hits, including "Since I Met You Baby
Since I Met You Baby (song)
"Since I Met You Baby" is an American rhythm and blues song written and recorded by pianist Ivory Joe Hunter. The song, which Hunter recorded in 1956, became an American standard, and saw renewed popularity in 1969 when country music artist Sonny James released his hit version.-Song...
", "Vaya con Dios
Vaya con Dios (song)
"Vaya con Dios" is a popular song written by Larry Russell, Inez James, and Buddy Pepper, and published in 1953....
", "Livin' It Down", and "The Rains Came". "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" became Fender's second million-selling single, with the gold disc presentation taking place in September 1975.
Fender also was successful on the pop charts. Besides "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" reaching number 1 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. "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.
While notable for his genre-crossing appeal, several of Fender's hits featured verses or choruses in Spanish. Bilingual songs seldom hit the pop charts, and when they did it was because of novelty. Bilingual songs reaching the country charts was even more unusual.
Swamp pop influences
Fender was heavily influenced by the swamp popSwamp pop
Swamp rock is a musical genre indigenous to the Acadiana region of south Louisiana and an adjoining section of southeast Texas. Created in the 1950s and early 1960s by teenaged Cajuns and black Creoles, it combines New Orleans-style rhythm and blues, country and western, and traditional French...
sound from southern Louisiana and southeast Texas, as is shown by his recording swamp pop standards on his 1978 album Swamp Gold. One of his major hits, "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights", has a typical swamp pop ballad arrangement. Fender associated with swamp pop musicians like Paul C Saenz, Joe Barry
Joe Barry
Joe Barry is the linebackers coach for the University of Southern California, former linebackers coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the former defensive coordinator for the National Football League Detroit Lions. He is the son of former Detroit Lions assistant offensive line coach Mike Barry...
and Rod Bernard
Rod Bernard
Rod Bernard is an American singer who helped to pioneer the musical genre known as "swamp pop", which combined New Orleans-style rhythm and blues, country and western, and Cajun and black Creole music...
, and issued many recordings on labels owned by Huey Meaux, a Cajun
Cajun
Cajuns are an ethnic group mainly living in the U.S. state of Louisiana, consisting of the descendants of Acadian exiles...
who specialized in swamp pop. As music writer John Broven observed, "Although Freddy was a Chicano
Chicano
The terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...
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."
Texas Tornados
In 1989, Fender teamed up with fellow Tex-MexTejano music
Tejano music or Tex-Mex music is the name given to various forms of folk and popular music originating among the Mexican-American populations of Central and Southern Texas...
musicians Doug Sahm
Doug Sahm
Douglas Wayne Sahm , was an American musician from Texas. Born in San Antonio, Texas, he was a child prodigy in country music, but became a significant figure in blues rock and other genres. Today Sahm is considered one of the most important figures in what is identified as Tejano music...
, Flaco Jiménez
Flaco Jiménez
Leonardo "Flaco" Jiménez is a Tejano music accordionist from San Antonio, Texas. Jiménez's father, Santiago Jiménez Sr. was a pioneer of conjunto music. He began performing with his father at age seven and recording at age fifteen, as a member of Los Caporales...
, and Augie Meyers
Augie Meyers
August "Augie" Meyers is an American musician. He is best known as keyboard-player with the Sir Douglas Quintet and the Texas Tornados.-History:...
to form the Texas Tornados
Texas Tornados
Texas Tornados is a Tejano band. Its music is a fusion of rock, country and various Mexican styles.-History:The initial combination of musicians of the Texas Tornados happened almost by chance at a concert performance of a mutual acquaintance...
, whose work meshed conjunto
Conjunto
Conjunto literally translates as "group," and is regionally accepted in Texas as defining a genre of music that was born out of south Texas at the end of the 19th Century, after German settlers introduced the button accordion. The bajo sexto has come to accompany the button accordion and is...
, Tejano
Tejano
Tejano or Texano is a term used to identify a Texan of Mexican heritage.Historically, the Spanish term Tejano has been used to identify different groups of people...
, R&B, country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, and blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
to wide acclaim. The group released four albums and won a Grammy in 1990 for 'Best Mexican American Performance' for the track "Soy de San Luis." Fender described the group as such: "You've heard of New Kids on the Block
New Kids on the Block
New Kids on the Block are an American boy band from Boston, Massachusetts, assembled in 1984 by producer Maurice Starr. The band currently consists of brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood.New Kids on the Block enjoyed success in the late 1980s and...
? Well, we're the Old Guys in the Street". Following the death of Sahm, the Tornados' production slowed. A live 1990 appearance on TV's Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits is an American public television music program recorded live in Austin, Texas by Public Broadcasting Service Public television member station KLRU, and broadcast on many PBS stations around the United States...
, one of three the group made, was released in 2005 as part of the Live From Austin, Texas series.
Los Super 7
In the late 1990s, Fender joined another supergroup, Los Super SevenLos Super Seven
Los Super Seven is a predominantly Latin American supergroup which debuted in 1998. The group won a Grammy Award for Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album in 1999 for its self-titled album. The group's musical style has changed with each incarnation, blending sounds from Tejano, mariachi, Cuban,...
, with Los Lobos
Los Lobos
Los Lobos are a multiple Grammy Award–winning American Chicano rock band from East Los Angeles, California. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional Spanish and Mexican music such as cumbia, boleros and norteños.-History:The...
' David Hidalgo
David Hidalgo
David Hidalgo is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his work with the band Los Lobos. He is also a member of the supergroup Los Super Seven and of the Latin Playboys, a side project band made up of some of the members of Los Lobos...
and Cesar Rosas
Cesar Rosas
César Rosas is a singer, songwriter and guitarist for Los Lobos. Rosas also participates in the Latin supergroup Los Super Seven. Perhaps the most recognizable member of Los Lobos, Rosas is known for his trademark black sunglasses and slicked-back, black hair. His singing voice is reminiscent of...
, Flaco Jiménez
Flaco Jiménez
Leonardo "Flaco" Jiménez is a Tejano music accordionist from San Antonio, Texas. Jiménez's father, Santiago Jiménez Sr. was a pioneer of conjunto music. He began performing with his father at age seven and recording at age fifteen, as a member of Los Caporales...
, Ruben Ramos
Ruben Ramos
Ruben Ramos, also known as El Gato Negro, is an award-winning American Tejano music performer. Beginning his music career in the late '60s, Ruben fame as has grown throughout the years as he formed his own distinct sound of music. In March 1998, Ruben was inducted into the Tejano Music Awards Hall...
, Joe Ely
Joe Ely
Joe Ely is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist whose music touches on honky-tonk, Texas Country, Tex-Mex and rock and roll....
, and country singer Rick Trevino
Rick Trevino
Ricardo Treviño, Jr. , known professionally as Rick Trevino, is a Mexican American country music artist. Signed to Columbia Records in 1993, Trevino began his career that year with the release of his debut single, "Just Enough Rope", the first mainstream country music single to feature separate...
. The group won a 1998 Grammy in the Mexican-American Performance category for their self-titled disc.
Later work
In 2001, Fender made his final studio recording, a collection of classic Mexican boleros titled La Música de Baldemar HuertaLa Música de Baldemar Huerta
-Personnel:The following people contributed to La Música de Baldemar Huerta:*Michael Morales – percussion, vocals, producer, engineer, mixing*Ron Morales – vocals, producer, engineer, mixing*Joe Reyes – guitar, vocals, producer, engineer...
that brought him a third Grammy award, this time in the category of Latin Pop Album
Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album
The Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album was awarded from 1984 to 2011. The award has had several minor name changes:*From 1984 to 1991 the award was known as Best Latin Pop Performance*From 1992 to 1994 it was awarded as Best Latin Pop Album...
. Rose Reyes, who worked with Fender in 2004 for a Texas Folklife and Austin tribute titled "Fifty Years of Freddy Fender", said of the album, "When he did Mexican standards at that point in his career, I expected it to be good because he's a perfectionist. But that record is so beautifully recorded; his voice is perfection. I was so proud it was coming back to his roots."
Death and legacy
Freddy Fender underwent a kidneyKidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
transplant
Organ transplant
Organ transplantation is the moving of an organ from one body to another or from a donor site on the patient's own body, for the purpose of replacing the recipient's damaged or absent organ. The emerging field of regenerative medicine is allowing scientists and engineers to create organs to be...
in 2002 donated by his daughter and a transplant of the liver in 2004. Nonetheless, his condition continued to worsen. He was suffering from an "incurable cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
" in which he had tumor
Tumor
A tumor or tumour is commonly used as a synonym for a neoplasm that appears enlarged in size. Tumor is not synonymous with cancer...
s on his lungs. On December 31, 2005, Fender performed his last concert and resumed chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
.
He died in 2006 at the age of 69 of lung cancer at his home in Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
, with his family at his bedside. He was buried in his hometown of San Benito.
International news coverage of the death cited an oft-expressed wish by the singer to become the first Mexican-American inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, with reporters noting that posthumous induction remains a possibility.
A Freddy Fender Museum and The Conjunto
Conjunto
Conjunto literally translates as "group," and is regionally accepted in Texas as defining a genre of music that was born out of south Texas at the end of the 19th Century, after German settlers introduced the button accordion. The bajo sexto has come to accompany the button accordion and is...
Music Museum opened November 17, 2007 in San Benito. They share a building with The San Benito Historical Museum. His family is committed to continue the Freddy Fender Scholarship Fund and other philanthropic causes which the musician was passionate about.
Film credits
In 1988, Fender played the mayor of a small New Mexico town in the Robert RedfordRobert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
-directed film The Milagro Beanfield War
The Milagro Beanfield War
The Milagro Beanfield War is a 1988 American drama film based on the John Nichols novel of the same name, the first book in a trilogy. It was directed by Robert Redford and the screenplay was written by Nichols and David S. Ward...
. Fender also appeared in the prison movie Short Eyes
Short Eyes
Short Eyes is a Curtis Mayfield soundtrack to Robert M. Young's 1977 film, based upon the play of the same name by Miguel Piñero. The album contains one of Mayfield's last funk hits, “Do Do Wap is Strong in Here”.-Track listing:...
, a 1977 film directed by Robert M. Young. In this film adaptation of the Miguel Pinero play, Fender acted as "Tony", a minor character.
Albums
| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
CAN | RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
CRIA Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... |
||
| 1974 | Before the Next Teardrop Falls Before the Next Teardrop Falls (album) Before The Next Teardrop Falls is an album by Freddy Fender. His first album, it was released in 1974. The album includes the Number One hits "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights."- Track listing :... |
1 | 20 | 10 | Gold | Gold |
| 1975 | Recorded Inside Louisiana State Prison Recorded Inside Louisiana State Prison Recorded Inside Louisiana State Prison is an album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1975 on Power Pak Records and is composed of songs recorded in 1962.-Track listing:#"My Happy Day Have Gone"#"Our Pledge of Love"#"I Hope Someday You'll Forgive Me"... |
— | — | — | — | — |
| Are You Ready for Freddy? Are You Ready for Freddy? Are You Ready For Freddy? is an album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1975 on Dot Records and is a collaboration between the singer and producer Huey P. Meaux.-Overview:... |
1 | 41 | 34 | — | — | |
| Since I Met You Baby Since I Met You Baby (album) -Track listing:#Since I Met You Baby#A Man Can Cry#Louisiana Blues#Crazy Baby#I'm Gonna Leave#Little Mama#You're Something Else For Me#Too Late To Remedy#Find Somebody New#Go On Baby #The Wild Side of Life... |
10 | 203 | — | — | — | |
| 1976 | Rock 'N' Country Rock 'N' Country -Track listing:#"Vaya con Dios" #"You'll Lose a Good Thing" #"I Need You So" #"Mathilda" #"My Happiness"... |
3 | 59 | — | — | — |
| Your Cheatin' Heart Your Cheatin' Heart (Freddy Fender album) -Track listing:#Let The Good Times Roll#High School Dance#You Don't Have To Go#Lovers' Quarrel#Three Wishes#Your Cheatin' Heart#Crazy Kat#I Got A Woman#Whip It On Me... |
— | — | — | — | — | |
| If You're Ever in Texas If You're Ever in Texas -Track listing:#Don't Do It Darling#It's All In The Game#San Antonio Lady#What A Difference A Day Made#Living It Down#Pass Me By #If You're Ever In Texas#Sometimes#Just One Time#It's Too Late... |
4 | 170 | — | — | — | |
| 1977 | The Best of Freddy Fender The Best of Freddy Fender The Best of Freddy Fender is a greatest hits album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1977.-Track listing:#"Before the Next Teardrop Falls" #"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights"... |
4 | 155 | — | — | — |
| If You Don't Love Me If You Don't Love Me -Track listing:#We'll Take Our Last Walk Tonight #Louisiana Woman#How Are Things With You#If You're Looking for a Fool#If That's the Way You Want It#If You Don't Love Me#Think About Me#I Don't Want to Be Lonely#Faking the Feeling#Love Rules the Heart... |
34 | — | — | — | — | |
| Merry Christmas / Feliz Navidad Merry Christmas / Feliz Navidad Merry Christmas / Feliz Navidad is a Christmas album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1977.-Track listing:#Please Come Home for Christmas #Pretty Paper#Love Gets Better at Christmas#If Christmas Comes to Your House#Blue Christmas... |
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| 1978 | Swamp Gold Swamp Gold -Track listing:#The Clock#She's About a Mover#When It Rains It Really Pours#It's Raining#I'm Leaving It All Up To You#Tell It Like It Is#My Tears Are Falling Tonight Love#Talk To Me#These Arms of Mine#Breaking Up Is Hard... |
44 | — | — | — | — |
| His Greatest Recordings His Greatest Recordings His Greatest Recordings is an album by Freddy Fender. This album was compiled exclusively for military personnel, it was released in 1978.-Track listing:#"Before The Next Teardrop falls"... |
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| 1979 | Tex-Mex Tex-Mex (Freddy Fender album) Tex-Mex is an album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1979.-Track listing:#You're Turning Down The Flame Of Love To Low#Leaning#If That's All That's Worrying You#Just Because#I Really Don't Want To Know#Walking Piece Of Heaven... A |
— | — | — | — | — |
| The Texas Balladeer The Texas Balladeer -Track listing:#Yours#Squeeze Box#My Special Prayer#Walk Under a Snake#Trapped#Share Your Love#He's Got Nothing On Me but You#Gotta Travel On#Turn Around#Rock Down in My Shoe... |
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| 1980 | Together We Drifted Apart | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1982 | The Border Soundtrack | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1991 | The Freddy Fender Collection The Freddy Fender Collection The Freddy Fender Collection is a greatest hits album by Freddy Fender. It was released in 1991. The songs on this album were re-recordings.-Track listing:#Wasted Days and Wasted Nights#It's All in the Game#Who Were You Thinking#Hey Baby, Que Paso... |
— | — | — | — | — |
| Favorite Ballads Favorite Ballads -Track listing:#Wasted Days and Wasted Nights#Release Me#Welcome To My World#Talk to Me#I Can't Stop Loving You#Since I Met You Baby#It's All In The Game#Please Help Me I'm Falling#Secret Love#Tell It Like It Is#Pledging My Love... |
— | — | — | — | — | |
| 2001 | Forever Gold | 70 | — | — | — | — |
- ATex Mex peaked at #6 on the RPMRPM (magazine)RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,...
Country Albums chart in Canada.
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
CAN Country RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
CAN AC RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
NZ | ||||
| 1975 | "Before the Next Teardrop Falls Before the Next Teardrop Falls (song) "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" is an American country and pop song written by Vivian Keith and Ben Peters, and most famously recorded by Freddy Fender.-Song history:... " |
1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 18 | 2 |
|
Before the Next Teardrop Falls |
| "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights Wasted Days and Wasted Nights "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is an American country and pop song recorded by Freddy Fender. It is considered by many to belong to the swamp pop idiom of south Louisiana and southeast Texas that had such a major musical impact on Fender.-Song history:... " |
1 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 1 |
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| "Since I Met You Baby Since I Met You Baby (song) "Since I Met You Baby" is an American rhythm and blues song written and recorded by pianist Ivory Joe Hunter. The song, which Hunter recorded in 1956, became an American standard, and saw renewed popularity in 1969 when country music artist Sonny James released his hit version.-Song... " |
10 | 45 | — | 52 | — | — | Since I Met You Baby | ||
| "Secret Love" | 1 | 20 | 1 | 38 | 7 | 10 | Are You Ready for Freddy? | ||
| 1976 | "The Wild Side of Life The Wild Side of Life "The Wild Side of Life" is a song made famous by country music singer Hank Thompson. Originally released in 1952, the song became one of the most popular recordings in the genre's history, spending 15 weeks at No... " |
13 | — | — | — | — | — | Since I Met You Baby | |
| "You'll Lose a Good Thing You'll Lose a Good Thing "You'll Lose a Good Thing" is an American song initially written by rhythm and blues artist Barbara Lynn Ozen, and made famous in the 1970s by country music-Tejano singer Freddy Fender.... " |
1 | 32 | — | — | — | 24 | Rock 'N' Country | ||
| "Vaya con Dios Vaya con Dios (song) "Vaya con Dios" is a popular song written by Larry Russell, Inez James, and Buddy Pepper, and published in 1953.... " |
7 | 59 | 1 | — | 48 | — | |||
| "Living It Down Living It Down "Living It Down" is a single by American country music artist Freddy Fender. Released in 1976, it was the first single from his album If You're Ever in Texas. The song peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. It also reached number 1 on the RPM Country Tracks chart in... " |
2 | 72 | 1 | — | — | — | If You're Ever in Texas | ||
| 1977 | "The Rains Came The Rains Came (song) "The Rains Came" is a single by American country music artist Freddy Fender. Released in 1977, it was the third single from his album Rock 'n' Country. The song peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. It also reached number 1 on the RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada.-Chart... " |
4 | — | 1 | — | — | — | Rock 'N' Country | |
| "If You Don't Love Me (Why Don't You Just Leave Me Alone)" |
11 | — | 16 | — | — | — | If You Don't Love Me | ||
| "Think About Me" | 18 | — | 10 | — | — | — | |||
| 1978 | "If You're Looking for a Fool" | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Talk to Me" | 13 | 103 | 10 | — | — | — | Swamp Gold | ||
| "I'm Leaving It All Up to You" | 26 | — | 20 | — | — | — | |||
| 1979 | "Walking Piece of Heaven" | 22 | — | 13 | — | — | — | Tex-Mex | |
| "Yours" | 22 | — | 23 | — | — | — | The Texas Balladeer | ||
| "Squeeze Box Squeeze Box (The Who song) *The song is covered by English squeezebox players John Kirkpatrick and Chris Parkinson on their album Sultans of Squeeze.*Roxy Blue did a version on their 1992 album Want some?... " |
61 | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1980 | "My Special Prayer" | 83 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Please Talk to My Heart Please Talk to My Heart "Please Talk to My Heart" is a single by American country music artist Johnny "Country" Mathis. It was released in 1963 and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.... " |
82 | — | — | — | — | — | Together We Drifted Apart | ||
| 1983 | "Chokin' Kind" | 87 | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album song | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Honors
- Academy of Country Music (1975) - "Most Promising Male Vocalist"
- Country Music Association (1975) - "Single of the Year" for "Before the Next Teardrop Falls"
- Grammy nominations in 1975, 1976, and 1997
- Tejano Music Hall of Fame (1987)
- Inaugural Balls - Presidents Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and George H.W. Bush - Grammy Award for Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album (1990) - for the Texas Tornados
- European Walk of Fame (1993) - in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Freddy Fender Lane (1994) - dedicated in his hometown of San Benito, Texas
- Hollywood Walk of Fame (1999)
- Texas Music Hall Of Fame (1999)
- Nashville Sidewalk of Stars (1999)
- Grammy Award "Best Mexican/American Performance" (1999) - for Los Super Seven
- Louisiana Hall Of Fame (2001)
- Grammy Award "Best Latin Pop" (2002) - for La Musica de Baldemar Huerta
- Annual Freddy Fender Humanitarian Award
See also
- Hispanics in the United States Marine CorpsHispanics in the United States Marine CorpsHispanics in the United States Marine Corps, such as Private France Silva who during the Boxer Rebellion became the first Marine of the thirteen Marines of Hispanic descent to be awarded the Medal of Honor, and Private First Class Guy Gabaldon who is credited with capturing over 1,000 enemy...
External links
- Official website
- Freddy Fender Museum
- [ Allmusic]
- "Remembering Freddy", National Public Radio, Fresh AirFresh AirFresh Air is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States. The show is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its longtime host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to 450 stations and claimed 4.5 million listeners. The show...
with Terry GrossTerry GrossTerry Gross is the host and co-executive producer of Fresh Air, an interview format radio show produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and distributed throughout the United States by National Public Radio....
, October 17, 2006. A remembrance of Fender and his music with other links. - Fender's gravesite in San Benito, Texas.