La Lupe & Freddy

Fredesvinda Garc?a Herrera, commonly known as Freddy, was a Cuban female singer of the upmost quality. Born in C?spedes, a small village in Camag?ey, Cuba to a poor peasant family, she sang a-cappella in cabarets and nightclubs in La Habana and recorded only one album before her death from a heart attack. In 2002, an album was released featuring Freddy and La Lupe and some of their songs aptly named "Ellas." Her weight, which was over 300lbs, gave a very distinctive and androgynous sound to her voice. She was, almost entirely, a singer of boleros and canciones.

At the age of 12 Freddy moved to Cuba's capital, La Habana, where she became a cook for the Bengochea family (Arturo Bengochea was the president of the Cuban League of Professional Base-Ball) but soon she found herself singing nights at the Bar Celeste, located on Humboldt and Infanta Street, a place where many artists used to meet. There, she was spotted by the director of the Hotel Capri's casino, and given a contract. She opened at the Cabaret Capri with orchestration by Rafael Somavilla, in the review Piminta y Sal (Salt & Pepper) with other singers, dancers and a quartet directed by pianist Carlos Faxas. Freddy appeared in several key TV programs, like Jueves de Partagas (1959), which she was remembered for dearly. On that show she appeared with Benny Moré and Celia Cruz,

Freddy later travelled within Central and South America with a company led by dancer and choreographer Roderyco "Rodney" Neyra . From there, she got several contracts:
She appeared as "Estrella Rodrigues" in Guillermo Cabrera Infante's book on Habana's nightlife during the years of the Revolution called Tres Tristes Tigres (published in English as Three Trapped Tigers). Portions of the book, mostly featuring Freddy, were later republished as "Ella Cantaba Boleros."

Her only album is known variously as "La Voz del Sentimento" or "Ella Cantaba Boleros." It was recorded in 1960 for Puchito Records under the reference: Puchito MLP 552. Humberto Suarez did the musical arrangements and conducted the orchestra. The following tracks were on it with their respective writers.

El hombre que yo amo (The man I love), by George Gershwin
Tengo, by Marta Valdes
La cita, by Gabriel Ruiz
Noche y Dia (Night and day), by Cole Porter
Vivamos hoy, by Wilfredo Riquelme
Freddy, by Ela O'Farril (specially written for her)
Noche de ronda, by Agustin Lara
Tengo que decirte, by Rafael Pedraza
Debi Llorar, by Piloto y Vera
Sombras y mas sombras, by Humberto Suarez
Gracias mi amor, by Jesus Faneity
Besame mucho, by Consuelo Velazquez

A spanish article noting the life of Freddy http://www.cubanet.org/CNews/y05/dec05/23a9.htm