How Freddy Fender’s Biggest Hit Completed an Unlikely Comeback Story

Freddy Fender’s music career had all but expired when he scored his biggest success. That it came with a song that the performer didn’t think was all that special only makes this story even more unlikely.

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Yet there was Fender in 1975, riding high with not only a country chart-topper but also a No. 1 pop single. Here’s the surprising story of how he struck it big with “Before The Next Teardrop Falls”.

Interrupted Career Path

Freddy Fender’s career started out with so much promise that it seemed like stardom would come to him at an early age. Born Baldemar Garza Huerta in Texas, he adopted his stage name to attract white audiences to the rockabilly music that he favored.

While he tried to break through in America, his songs, some of which he sang in Spanish, gained popularity in Mexico and South America. He even recorded an early version of something he co-wrote called “Wasted Days And Wasted Nights”, a song that would turn into a big hit for him many years down the road.

But before all that occurred, Fender’s career was interrupted by a marijuana possession conviction that landed him in jail for three years. He tentatively returned to the music scene in the late 60s, recording under a pseudonym. But he was forced to work day jobs just to make ends meet. Stardom seemed a long way off.

A Touching “Teardrop”

Fender’s musical career received a lifeline from a producer named Huey P. Meaux, who owned a label known as Crazy Cajun. Meaux hired Fender to mostly sing demos on tracks that the producer was looking to pitch elsewhere.

One of these was for a song called “Before The Next Teardrop Falls”, which had been written by Vivian Faith and Ben Peters in 1967. A couple of other artists had scored minor country hits with the song. Fender, perhaps because of his origins singing grittier music, sang the demo without thinking it would make any impact.

During the demo, Fender had the inspiration to split up singing the lyrics between English and Spanish. “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” was released in 1974, a time when country crossover songs were doing very well on mainstream radio. By the middle of 1975, Fender’s song had ascended to the top of both the country and pop charts in America.

Behind the Lyrics of “Before The Next Teardrop Falls”

“Before The Next Teardrop Falls” comes from the perspective of a narrator whose former lover is now with somebody new. But he takes the high road. “If he brings you happiness,” Fender sings. “I wish you all the best/It’s your happiness that matters most of all.”

Just don’t think for a second he’s forgetting about her. “But if he ever breaks your heart,” Fender sings. “If the teardrops ever start/I’ll be there before the next teardrop falls.” That’s quite the promise, both for its loyalty and its haste. “If he ever leaves you blue,” Fender reinforces. “Just remember, I love you.”

Maybe he didn’t originally consider himself a country artist. But Freddy Fender certainly took that genre by storm in the latter half of the 70s, releasing a stretch of 15 straight Top 40 country hits. As such, “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” served as the catalyst for one of music’s greatest comeback stories.

Photo by David Redfern/Redferns