By Randal C. Hill
Freddy Fender had just one year of mainstream stardom, but, man, it was a humdinger! Born Baldemar Huerta in 1937 in San Benito, Texas, he left high school and joined the Marine Corps. Much of his military time was wasted in an Okinawa brig due to his drinking binges. But during that confinement he learned of a new type of music that sometimes wafted through the prison corridors.
Music that would change his life. Early rock ‘n’ roll.
He returned to Texas. “I grew my sideburns, put 50 pounds of wax on my hair, and I thought I was Elvis Presley. That lasted several years. I was nothing but rhythm-and-blues and rock ‘n’ roll.”
In 1959, he adopted the stage moniker Freddy Fender, after the well-known brand name etched on his electric guitar. (“I thought it would sell better with gringos.”) A year later, he composed a catchy tune in the restroom of a Harlingen, Texas, joint called the Starlight Club. The song was “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights,” and it would serve him well later.
However, as he prepared to release a single of “Wasted,” Fender and his bass player were busted in Louisiana for marijuana possession. Sentenced to five years each in Angola Prison, both served fewer than four. The future, though, still seemed anything but bright for the San Benito singer.
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Back in his hometown, Fender met Huey Meaux, a shady businessman who owned the record label Crazy Cajun. In 1974, Meaux had Freddy cut a countrified single called “Before the Next Teardrop Falls.” It had been around since 1967, but it was Fender’s fervent rendition–sung in both English and Spanish—that drew interest from recording powerhouse ABC/Dot Records. When ABC/Dot leased Meaux’s disc, Fender was on his way.
In early 1975, his signature tune reached Number One on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. He followed with his own “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights,” a Top Ten single, and ended the year with a version—sung partly in Spanish—of Doris Day’s “Secret Love.”
“I was just having fun,” Fender admitted later. “I never thought of becoming a great singer.”
