Freddie Roulette
| Freddie Roulette | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Frederick Martin Roulette |
| Born |
May 3, 1939 Evanston, Illinois, United States |
| Genres | Chicago blues, electric blues |
| Occupation(s) | Guitarist |
| Instruments | Lap steel guitar |
| Years active | 1960s–present |
| Labels | Janus, Rykodisc, others |
| Associated acts | Daphne Blue / Ray Bronner, Henry Kaiser, Harvey Mandel, Earl Hooker, the Holmes Brothers |
Frederick Martin "Freddie" Roulette (born May 3, 1939) is an American electric blues lap steel guitarist and singer. He is best known as an exponent of the lap steel guitar. He is a member of the band Daphne Blue, and has collaborated with Earl Hooker, Charlie Musselwhite, Henry Kaiser, and Harvey Mandel. He has also released several solo albums. One commentator described Roulette as an "excellent musician".
As of August 12, 2013, VidStatsX, a video statistics company, reported that Roulette's work with Daphne Blue had approximately 55,000 views on the video sharing site YouTube.
Roulette's family was originally from New Orleans, but he was born and raised in Evanston, Illinois. He learned to play the steel guitar in high school. He started playing in clubs in Chicago in his teens, and in 1965 began work in Earl Hooker's backing band, continuing to tour and perform with him until 1969.
Hooker's band, with pianist Pinetop Perkins, harmonica player Carey Bell, vocalist Andrew Odom, and Roulette, was "widely acclaimed" and "considered one of the best Earl had ever carried with him". Roulette performed on several of Hooker's singles; his 1967 album, The Genius of Earl Hooker; and the 1969 follow-up, Two Bugs and a Roach.
Roulette later developed a friendship with Charlie Musselwhite and (credited as Fred Roulette) recorded with him on the 1969 album Chicago Blue Stars. He toured with Musselwhite and backed him on the albums Tennessee Woman and Memphis, Tennessee, before relocating to the San Francisco, California, area where he has lived ever since. He played there in a band with Luther Tucker and recorded with Earl Hooker's cousin, John Lee Hooker.
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