Ferdinando Dominick Bello, known as Freddie Bell, (September 29, 1931 – February 10, 2008), was an American musician, whose group,

Freddie Bell and the Bellboys Freddie Bell and the Bellboys were an American vocal group, influential in the development of rock and roll in the 1950s. Their recordings include " Hound Dog", "The Hucklebuck" and " Giddy Up a Ding Dong". Career The group were established in 195 ...

, were influential in the development of

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm ...

in the 1950s. He was a prominent performer with the group on the

Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas cit ...

in the 1950s and 1960s, and continued to perform in Las Vegas into his later years after the demise of the group.

Biography

Bell was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, Pennsylvania to Italian American parents, who were shopkeepers. He grew up in New Jersey. He became a

trombonist The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

, bassist, drummer, and singer, playing in various bands including that of Ernie Ventura. In 1952 he formed his own group, the Bellboys, with Jack Kane (saxophone), Frankie Brent (bass / guitar), Russ Conti (piano), Chick Keeney (drums), and Jerry Mayo (trumpet). They were one of the first white groups to play the R&B

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

of the day, and honed their act in the Midwest before landing a booking at the Sands Hotel and Casino in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

. In 1955, the group made their first

recordings A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, r ...

for the Teen Records label, including a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...

of Leiber and Stoller's " Hound Dog" (first recorded by

Big Mama Thornton Willie Mae Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984), better known as Big Mama Thornton, was an American singer and songwriter of the blues and R&B genres. She was the first to record Leiber and Stoller's " Hound Dog", in 1952, which becam ...

). When performing the song in Las Vegas, they were seen by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

, who was impressed and decided to record the song himself. Freddie Bell and the group became closely associated with Las Vegas in the 1950s and 1960s, performing regularly at The Sands, the

Desert Inn The Desert Inn, also known as the D.I., was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, which operated from April 24, 1950, to August 28, 2000. Designed by architect Hugh Taylor and interior design by Jac Lessman, it was th ...

, the Sahara Hotel, the

Flamingo Hotel Flamingo Las Vegas (formerly The Fabulous Flamingo and Flamingo Hilton Las Vegas) is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. The property includes a casino along with 3,4 ...

and other venues. The group were later joined by Roberta Linn, who was married to Bell from 1961 to 1973. He continued to perform in Las Vegas into his later years after the demise of the group in the mid 1960s. Bell’s last recording was Those Were The Nights (2006), a tribute song written by Richard Friedland and Ray Stribe which showcased Las Vegas legends Babe Pier, Carme and Peter Anthony along with Freddie. Freddie Bell was married four times and had six children (Angela, Fred, Lisa, Debbie, Andrew, and Marianna) and a stepson. Freddie Bell died, aged 76, on the 10th of February 2008. He is buried in Palm Memorial Park, Las Vegas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Freddie American rock musicians Musicians from Philadelphia 1931 births 2008 deaths American people of Italian descent