I just read that Freddy Fender died. I knew he was sick, but you don't expect people to die at 69, though he had live his nine lives to the fullest, for good or ill.
He holds a small place in my heart. When I met Red in Tucson thirty years ago, we both rode motorcycles and tended bar, and spent a certain amount of our free time barhopping. Every jukebox carried "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" by Freddy Fender. It was always one of my first picks and it always evokes those years.
In the ensuing years, I liked to tell Red that it was our song. As much as he liked to tease others (me included), he was singularly humorless on that subject. I guess at some point he took our relationship seriously, and didn't like my poking fun at it. I, of course, still smile as I think of that as our song.
Fender had a big hit with that number, and with "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and "You'll Lose a Good Thing," and "Vaya Con Dios". He had hits on both the country and pop charts. Many of his songs had lines or verses in Spanish.
He had some rough times before hitting it big, even spending some time in prison. He had trouble with drugs and alcohol, developed diabetes, and eventually had a kidney transplant and a liver transplant. He died of lung cancer that was diagnosed in early 2006.
I'm playing "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" right now, from his Collections album.
Bye, Freddy.
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