b'B aldemarGarzaHuertawas$10 basket of food for his familyquite a prize for aAfter returning to Texas, Baldemar dove back into his borntosing.Thenativeof10-year-old in 1947! musical ambitions, playing concert halls and honky-SanBenito,locatedbetweenHuertacontinuedtosing,writesongsandexpandtonks throughout the state under the moniker El Be-HarlingenandBrownsville,his musical talent as a teenager, but he dropped outbop Kid. This was the era of the rise of Elvis Presley, wasthesonofanAmericanof high school when he was 16more accurately, heand his music producers sought to market Baldemar motherandMexicanfatherdecided not to return to school after he turned 17 overas the Spanish-singing Elvis. His version of Dont Be wholivedtheimpoverishedCruel became a number one hit in Mexico and South lifeofmigrantfarmworkers,travelingwhenandthe summer and instead joined the United States Ma- America,andwithhisotherSpanishrenditionsof where they could to find work harvesting everythingrine Corps, in 1953. His military career lasted only apopular American songs like Hank Williams Cold, from watermelons to cotton. As a young child labor- year, when he was dishonorably discharged for drink- Cold Heart and Harry Belafontes Jamaica Farewell, er, Baldemar was exposed to the culture and musicing too much while stationed on Okinawa, the begin- El Bebop Kid was quickly making a name for him-of not only his Latin brethren, but to those of Blacks,ning of Baldemars pattern of substance abuse thatselfright as Baldemar decided to change his name.Cajuns,Hillbillies,andotherswhoenduredtheirwould cast a shadow over much of the rest of his life.In 1959, Freddy Fender was born after Baldemar Huerta shared, treacherous way of life. Decades later, the Marine Corps would reverse hiswasrecruitedbytheHollywoodrecordcompany Baldemars wickedly sharp memory and natural vo- discharge status to honorable. known as Imperial Records, whose top artists included cal acumen made him a natural singer, which was theFats Domino and Ricky Nelson, and he wanted a name gift he put to work to earn money to help his family,This was the era of thethatGringoswouldlikebetter.Fenderwastaken from his guitar and amp, and Freddy just sounded singing on the streets of San Benito and Harlingen asrise of Elvis Presley, andgreat placed in front of Fender! The next year, Wasted a boy. At age 10, Baldemar Huerta was introduced to the world when he was asked to sing live on KGBThis music producers soughtDays and Wasted Nights was released by Imperial and radio, performing Paloma Querida, a Mexican hitshot to the top of the national charts, being played on of the day. His radio appearance led to an encoreto market Baldemar as thehundreds of radio stations across the country.performance of the same song in a talent contest atSpanish-singing Elvis. Irony is seldom anything less than sad, as their apt-the Grand Theater in Harlingen, for which he won aly-titled hit would describe the next three years for TheCoastalBend.com THECOASTALBENDMAGAZINE91'