Freddy Fender

Freddy Fender (born Baldemar Garza Huerta; June 4, 1937 – October 14, 2006) was an American Country and Tejano singer and songwriter, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven and the Texas Tornados. His signature sound fused country, rock, rockabilly, swamp pop and Tex-Mex styles.

Active since the 1950s, when he got his start playing Spanish-language rock and roll for Tejano audiences, Fender's mainstream breakthrough came in 1975 with the crossover hit "Before the Next Teardrop Falls," which topped Billboard's pop and country charts. He recorded further country hits such as "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights," "Secret Love," "You'll Lose a Good Thing," "Living It Down," and "The Rains Came."

Fender was born in San Benito, Texas, United States, 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."

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. 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 stating that he wrongfully received a dishonorable discharge because of alcoholism, and he was given a general discharge. 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' "Cold, Cold Heart" under the title "Tu Frío Corazón" ("Your Cold Heart").

He became known for his rockabilly music and Eddie con los Shades persona. In 1958, he legally changed his name from Baldemar Huerta to Freddy Fender. 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 relocated to California.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.