Fred F. Carter Jr. (December 31, 1933 – July 17, 2010) was an American

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

, singer, producer and composer.

Early career

Carter was raised in the

delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

country in Winnsboro, the seat of Franklin Parish in northeastern

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, United States. Carter grew up with the musical influences of jazz, country & western, hymns, and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

. His first instrument was the mandolin which he began playing at the age of three. He later began playing fiddle. While in the Air Force in his late teens, he was the bandleader for the USO variety show entertaining troops across Europe. His bunkmate during the tour was the MC and fellow serviceman

Larry Hagman Larry Martin Hagman (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012) was an American actor, best known for playing ruthless oil baron J. R. Ewing in the 1978–1991 primetime television soap opera ''Dallas'', and the handsome astronaut Major Anthon ...

, who went on to television fame. After leaving the Air Force, Carter attended Centenary Music College on scholarship as a violist despite the fact he could not read music, but instead had to memorize all of his orchestral pieces. After leaving Centenary, Carter began his professional career in the 1950s, his first partner in music was another Franklin Parish native, Allen "Puddler" Harris. He started taking up guitar seriously in his early 20s and became a principal on the Louisiana Hayride. While on the Hayride, he formed lifelong friendships with many musicians including Slim Whitman,

Floyd Cramer Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "whole-step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signatur ...

Sonny James Jimmie Hugh Loden (May 1, 1928February 22, 2016), known professionally as Sonny James, was an American country music singer and songwriter best known for his 1957 hit, " Young Love", topping both the ''Billboard'' Hot Country and Disk Jockey s ...

, Hank Snow, Faron Young,

Johnny Horton John LaGale Horton (April 30, 1925 – November 5, 1960) was an American country, honky tonk, and rockabilly musician during the 1950s. He is best known for a series of history-inspired narrative country saga songs that became international ...

, Jim Reeves and many others. Carter met Roy Orbison during this time and became part of his band and moved to Hollywood with him. Later, he worked with Orbison in Nashville on the Monument Sessions, being heard on " Dream Baby" as the opening guitar. He subsequently worked with

Dale Hawkins Delmar Allen "Dale" Hawkins (August 22, 1936 – February 13, 2010) was a pioneer American rock singer, songwriter, and rhythm guitarist who was often called the architect of swamp rock boogie. Career Hawkins was born in Goldmine Plantat ...

of " Suzie Q" song fame, and then joined Dale's cousin Ronnie Hawkins whose group, The Hawks, later became The Band, (sans Hawkins). During this busy and formative time, Carter also toured and became lifelong friends with Conway Twitty. In the early 1960s, Carter settled into the

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

session scene. He quickly earned a place as part of Nashville's 'A Team'. His discography for the next three decades is extensive and wide-ranging: Carter played guitar and mandolin for two of

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

's albums in the late 1960s. He then worked on

Simon and Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

's '' Bridge over Troubled Water''. Notably, Carter provide numerous memorable guitar performances including five guitar parts for "

The Boxer "The Boxer" is a song written by Paul Simon and recorded by the American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fifth and final studio album, '' Bridge over Troubled Water'' (1970). Produced by the duo and Roy Halee, it was released as a stan ...

" by

, "I'm Just An Old Chunk Of Coal" by John Anderson, " I've Always Been Crazy" and "Whistlers and Jugglers" by

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

. He also played guitar and bass on the

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

albums ''

Self Portrait Self-portraits are Portrait painting, portraits artists make of themselves. Although self-portraits have been made since the earliest times, the practice of self-portraiture only gaining momentum in the Early Renaissance in the mid-15th century ...

'' and '' Nashville Skyline''; as well as on the

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ( ; born December 12, 1937), known as Connie Francis, is a retired American Pop music, pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more th ...

hit single, " The Wedding Cake". During this time Carter was also a member of the supergroup Levon Helm and the RCO All Stars, composed of Levon Helm, Booker T. Jones, Dr. John, Donald "Duck" Dunn, and the Saturday Night Live horns.

Later career

Carter owned Nugget Records in

Goodlettsville, Tennessee Goodlettsville is a city in Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson and Sumner County, Tennessee, Sumner Counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It was incorporated as a city in 1958 with a population of just over 3,000 residents; in 2020, its popul ...

, for many years. Songs including Jessi Colter's "I'm Not Lisa", were originally recorded at Nugget.

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

recut his famed '' Phases and Stages'' album with Carter at Nugget, after Nelson expressed dissatisfaction with the first version of the album cut in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Production credits for Carter include Levon Helm's '' American Son'' album on MCA Records, and Bobby Bridger's "Heal in the Wisdom". He helped

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

and Tanya Tucker land their first record deals. Carter was a member of the band Levon Helm and The RCO All-Stars. This band was composed of Helm, Carter, Steve Cropper, Booker T. Jones, Donald "Duck" Dunn, Dr. John, Paul Butterfield, and the NBC

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

horns. Carter also played with Helm on The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album with

Garth Hudson Eric Garth Hudson (August 2, 1937 – January 21, 2025) was a Canadian multi-instrumentalist best known as the keyboardist and occasional saxophonist for The Band. He was a principal architect of the group's sound and was described as "the mo ...

, Paul Butterfield, Bob Margolin, Pinetop Perkins Howard Johnson (on sax) He played the fiddle, when Sissy Spacek performed the song "Some small Crime", written by her, together with Levon Helm in the 1980 TV show The Midnight Special. He also played guitar and mandolin in that Midnight Special episode on more songs from the 1980 movie Coal Miner's Daughter He had small roles in several films including '' The Adventures of Huck Finn'' starring Elijah Wood. Carter's daughter is singer Deana Carter. In 2008, he was profiled in an extensive article in '' Fretboard Journal'', written by music journalist and historian Rich Kienzle. Carter died on July 17, 2010, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, following a stroke.

As sideman

* '' Sounds of Silence'' -

Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

(1966) * '' Any Day Now'' -

(1968) * '' David's Album'' -

(1969) * '' Bridge over Troubled Water'' -

(1970) * ''Rock and Roll Resurrection'' - Ronnie Hawkins (1972) * '' Angel Clare'' -

Art Garfunkel Arthur Ira Garfunkel (born November 5, 1941) is an American singer, actor and poet who is best known for his partnership with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Born in Forest Hills, Queens, New York, Garfunkel became acquainte ...

(1973) * ''Giant of Rock 'n' Roll'' - Ronnie Hawkins (1974) * '' The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album (bass, guitar)'' - Muddy Waters (1976) * ''

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...

'' -

(1976) * '' Love Lifted Me'' -

(1976) * '' Levon Helm & the RCO All-Stars'' - Levon Helm (1977) * '' Love or Something Like It'' -

(1978) * '' American Son'' - Levon Helm (1980)

Honors

A highway marker was placed in Carter's hometown of

Winnsboro, Louisiana Winnsboro is a town in, and the County seat, parish seat of Franklin Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of 2020, its population was 4,862. History Franklin Parish was created on March 1, 1843, from portions of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, Oua ...

, honoring him on Saturday, January 29, 2022, by the Northeast Louisiana Music Trail.

Early career

Later career

As sideman

Honors

References

Further reading