Wilton Frederick "Freddy" Weller (born September 9, 1943)[1] is an American rock and roll and country music and artist. He recorded for Columbia Records between 1969 and 1980. He had his highest charted single in 1969 with his debut release, "Games People Play".
Freddy Weller | |
|---|---|
 Weller in 1969 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Wilton Frederick Weller |
| Born | September 9, 1943 Atlanta, Georgia, United States |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Labels | Columbia |
Biography
editEarly career
editHe was born in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.[2] Weller played in a high school group, The Believers, which also included Joe South.[2] One of his first recording sessions was playing guitar on Billy Joe Royal's 1965 track, "Down in the Boondocks", which was written by South.[2]
Paul Revere & the Raiders
editHis recording career continued in 1967, as lead guitarist in the band Paul Revere & The Raiders.[2] Around the time he joined the band, the group's two main members, Mark Lindsay and Paul Revere, had just started hosting the show Happening '68. The other Raiders members, Charlie Coe, Keith Allison, and Joe Correro Jr, acted as the show's in-studio houseband. He penned their 1969 hit "We Gotta All Get Together".[3]
Weller remained in the Raiders until its split in 1975. The group soon reformed without Weller.
Solo
editWeller recorded many rock and roll and country songs, such as Joe South's "'Games People Play", which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1969;[2] Chuck Berry's "The Promised Land" and "Too Much Monkey Business", "She Loves Me Right Out Of My Mind", "Indian Lake", both 1971, and many others. Weller also played guitar backing for both South and Royal.[1] He co-wrote "Dizzy" and "Jam Up and Jelly Tight", which were hits for Tommy Roe in 1969 and 1970.[2]
After releasing his 1980 single "Lost In Austin" and his 1982 studio album Ramblin' Man, Weller would semi-retire from the music industry, not making another release for thirty years, when he released the single "Your Memory Walks Through Walls" in 2010.
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1967 | A Christmas Present ... And Past |
| 1968 | Goin' to Memphis |
| Something Happening | |
| 1969 | Hard 'N' Heavy (with Marshmallow) |
| Alias Pink Puzz | |
| 1970 | Collage |
| 1971 | Indian Reservation |
| 1972 | Country Wine |
Singles
edit| Song Titles | Year |
|---|---|
| "I Had A Dream"
b/w "Upon Your Leaving" |
1967 |
| "Peace Of Mind" /
"Do Unto Others" | |
| "Rain, Sleet, Snow"
b/w "Brotherly Love" Cancelled single | |
| "Too Much Talk"
b/w "Happening '68" |
1968 |
| "Don't Take It So Hard"
b/w "Observation From Flight 285 (In 3/4 Time)" | |
| "Cinderella Sunshine"
b/w "Theme From It's Happening" (Non-Lp track) | |
| "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon"
b/w "Without You" |
1969 |
| "Let Me"
b/w "I Don't Know" | |
| "We Gotta All Get Together"
b/w "Frankfort Side Street" (from Alias Pink Puzz) | |
| "Just Seventeen"
b/w "Sorceress With Blue Eyes" |
1970 |
| "Gone Movin' On" (re-recorded version of Lp track from Revolution!)
b/w "Interlude (To Be Forgotten)" | |
| "Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)"
b/w "Terry's Tune" (Non-Lp track) |
1971 |
| "Birds of a Feather"
b/w "The Turkey" | |
| "Country Wine"
b/w "It's So Hard Getting Up Today" (Non-Lp track) |
1972 |
| "Powder Blue Mercedes Queen"
b/w "Golden Girls Sometimes" | |
| "Song Seller"
b/w "A Simple Song" | |
| "Love Music"
b/w "Goodbye No. 9" |
1973 |
| "All Over You"
b/w "Seaboard Line Boogie" |
1974 |
| "Your Love (Is The Only Love)"
b/w "Gonna Have A Good Time" |
1975 |
| "Ain't Nothin' Wrong"/
b/w "You're Really Saying Something" |
1976 |
Solo
editAlbums
edit| Year | Album | Chart Positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US | ||
| 1969 | Games People Play | 8 | 144 |
| 1970 | Listen to the Young Folks | — | — |
| 1971 | Another Night of Love | 22 | — |
| 1972 | The Promised Land | — | — |
| The Roadmaster | 39 | — | |
| 1973 | Too Much Monkey Business | 32 | — |
| 1974 | Sexy Lady | 24 | — |
| 1975 | Freddy Weller's Greatest Hits | 34 | — |
| Freddy Weller | 34 | — | |
| 1976 | Liquor, Love & Life | 44 | — |
| 1977 | One Man Show | — | — |
| 1978 | Love Got in the Way | — | — |
| 1980 | Go For the Night | — | — |
| 1982 | Ramblin' Man | — | — |
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Bubbling | CAN Country | |||
| 1969 | "Games People Play" | 2 | — | — | Games People Play |
| "These Are Not My People" | 5 | 13 | — | ||
| "Down in the Boondocks" | 25 | — | — | Listen to the Young Folks | |
| 1970 | "I Shook the Hand" | 75 | — | — | |
| 1971 | "The Promised Land" | 3 | 25 | 9 | The Promised Land / Another Night of Love |
| "Indian Lake" | 3 | 8 | 4 | ||
| "Another Night of Love" | 5 | — | 13 | ||
| 1972 | "Ballad of a Hillbilly Singer" | 26 | — | 12 | The Roadmaster |
| "The Roadmaster" | 17 | — | 29 | ||
| "She Loves Me (Right Out of My Mind)" | 11 | — | 3 | ||
| 1973 | "Too Much Monkey Business" | 8 | — | 7 | Too Much Monkey Business |
| "The Perfect Stranger" | 13 | — | 7 | ||
| 1974 | "I've Just Got to Know (How Loving You Would Be)" | 11 | — | 11 | Sexy Lady |
| "Sexy Lady" | 21 | — | 22 | ||
| "You're Not Getting Older (You're Getting Better)" | 16 | — | 20 | ||
| 1975 | "Love You Back to Georgia" | 64 | — | — | Freddy Weller |
| "Stone Crazy" | 52 | — | — | ||
| 1976 | "Ask Any Old Cheater Who Knows" | 42 | — | — | Liquor, Love and Life |
| "Liquor, Love and Life" | 44 | — | — | ||
| "Room 269" | 56 | — | — | ||
| 1977 | "Strawberry Curls" | 79 | — | — | One Man Show |
| "Merry-Go-Round" | 41 | — | — | ||
| "Nobody Cares But You" | 44 | — | — | ||
| 1978 | "Let Me Fall Back in Your Arms" | 93 | — | — | single only |
| "Bar Wars" | 32 | — | 58 | Love Got in the Way | |
| "Love Got in the Way" | 23 | — | 34 | ||
| 1979 | "Fantasy Island" | 27 | — | 32 | |
| "Nadine" | 40 | — | 53 | singles only | |
| "That Run-Away Woman of Mine" | 44 | — | — | ||
| "Go for the Night" | 33 | — | — | Go for the Night | |
| 1980 | "A Million Old Goodbyes" | 66 | — | — | |
| "Lost in Austin" | 45 | — | 51 | ||
| 2010 | "Your Memory Walks Through Walls" | — | — | — | single only |
References
edit- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 452. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
- ^ a b c d e f Colin Larkin, ed. (1993). The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 437. ISBN 0-85112-726-6.
- ^ "Collage - The Raiders | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
External links
edit- Freddy Weller at Allmusic.com
- Freddy Weller