Freddy Fender

Fender was born in San Benito, Texas, United States,[2] to Margarita Garza and her Mexican husband, Serapio Huerta. He made his debut radio performance at age 10 on Harlingen, Texas, radio station KGBT, singing a then-hit "Paloma Querida."[3]

Fender dropped out of high school at age 16 in 1953, and when he turned 17, he enlisted for three years in the U.S. Marine Corps.[3] He served time in the brig on several occasions because of his drinking, and he was court-martialed in August 1956 and discharged with the rank of private (E-1). According to Fender, he later received a letter from the Department of the Navy saying that he had been wrongfully discharged dishonorably because of alcoholism, and he was given a general discharge.[3] 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"[2] (as "No Seas Cruel") and Harry Belafonte's "Jamaica Farewell." He also recorded his own Spanish version of Hank Williams' "Cold, Cold Heart" under the title "Tu Frío Corazón" ("Your Cold Heart").

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.[2] He took the name Fender from the guitar and amplifier, and Freddy because the alliteration sounded good and would "sell better with Gringos!"[4] He then relocated to California.

In 1959, Fender recorded the blues ballad "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights."[2] His self-penned 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.[2] After serving nearly three years in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, he was released through the intervention 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),[5] 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 Corpus Christi, Texas, working as a mechanic and attending local institution, Del Mar College,[2] while playing music only on the weekends.

Freddy Fender performing in 1977

In 1974 Fender recorded "Before the Next Teardrop Falls."[2] The single was selected for national distribution and became a number-one hit on the Billboard Country and Pop charts. It sold over a million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA in May 1975.[6] 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 chart.[2] 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.[6]

Fender also was successful on the pop charts. Besides "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" reaching number one on the pop chart 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 chart.

At the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) Jukebox Awards in 1975, Fender was awarded "Artist of the Year" and "Record of the Year" for having the highest-earning songs played on jukebox machines in the United States.[7]

On March 13, 2001, Fender was erroneously reported to be dead by Billboard. He laughed off the magazine's error.[11] He underwent a kidney transplant in 2002 with a kidney donated by his daughter and underwent a liver transplant in 2004. Nonetheless, his condition continued to worsen. He was suffering from an "incurable cancer" in which he had tumors on his lungs.

On June 5, 2005, Fender was present for the dedication of a $1.4 million water tower in San Benito. The tower bears an image of Fender along with the words "San Benito Hometown of Freddy Fender," and is visible when driving east on U.S. Route 83 through San Benito.[12] On December 31, 2005, Fender performed his last concert and resumed chemotherapy.

He died on October 14, 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.[1]

He had said in a 2004 interview with the Associated Press that he wished to become the first Mexican American inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.[1]

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 maintains the Freddy Fender Scholarship Fund and donates to philanthropic causes that Fender supported.

In 1988, Fender played the mayor of a small town in the Robert Redford–directed film, The Milagro Beanfield War.[2] He appeared as Tony in the prison movie, Short Eyes, a 1977 film adaptation, directed by Robert M. Young, of the Miguel Pinero play. Fender also played the role of Pancho Villa in 1979's She Came to the Valley (later released as Texas in Flames). The movie was directed by Albert Band and based on the book by Cleo Dawson. Fender appeared as himself in an episode of the television series, The Dukes of Hazzard.

Fender's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

• 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 Clinton 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
• The Freddy Fender Water Tower in San Benito besides STEAM Academy (2009)
• Texas Historical Marker – for contributions to Tejano, rock, and country music (2023)

• Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps

• Tucker, Stephen R. (1998). "Freddy Fender." In The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp.–170–71.
• John Broven, South to Louisiana: Music of the Cajun Bayous (Gretna, La.: Pelican Press, 1983).
• Shane K. Bernard, Swamp Pop: Cajun and Creole Rhythm and Blues (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1996).

• Official website
• Freddy Fender Museum
• Allmusic
• "Remembering Freddy", National Public Radio, Fresh Air with Terry Gross, October 17, 2006. A remembrance of Fender and his music with other links.
• Freddy Fender at Find a Grave
• Freddy Fender at IMDb