John Fred (born May 8, 1941 as John Fred Gourrier in Baton Rouge , Louisiana , USA ; † April 14, 2005 in New Orleans , LA ) founded his first band in 1956. He called this band John Fred & His Playboys .

The first single “Shirley” was released in 1958 and only came in at number 82 in the US charts. [1]

Nevertheless, the eight-man formation became so popular in their home country that they got a national record deal . John Fred & His Playboys was the name of the first album.