Sunday Morning Country Classic Spotlight to Feature Freddy Fender [VIDEO]

Welcome to the Country Classic Show. Today we’re featuring Freddy Fender at 11 am on the Country Classic Spotlight.

We get started at 9 am with the Country Classic Show at 98.1 FM Minnesota’s New Country, online and on your mobile device.

Freddy Fender was born June 4, 1937, in San Benito, Texas. He dropped out of school at age 16 in 1953. When he turned 17, he enlisted for three years in the Marine Corps. He had problems with drinking and served time in the brig. He was court-marshaled in August of 1956.

In 1959 he recorded “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” which he penned himself. In 1960, Vivian Keith and Ben Peters wrote, “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” and was recorded by various performers. Fender recorded the song and was released to country radio in January of 1975. The song also caught on just as strongly on the top 40 stations around the country.

1975 was Fender's most successful year -- a remake of “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” also reached the number one spot on the country chart. “The Bebop Kid” -- as he was known around the Texas/Mexican border -- died from lung cancer on October 14, 2006, at age 69. Over the years, he grappled with drug and alcohol abuse and was treated for diabetes and underwent a kidney transplant.