In Memory of:
Bert Frilot
April 24, 1939 – October 31, 1999
Recording Engineer/Record Producer
Bert Frilot
Bert Frilot is the founder and former owner of Pure Cajun Products.
Bert Frilot – John Travolta – Mickey Gilley
While filming the movie “Urban Cowboy”
Jerry Lee Lewis, Bert Frilot, Mickey Gilley, and Jimmy Swaggart
(The three cousins)
Bert Frilot & Tom Brokow (NBC News)
At Gilley’s Club
Bert’s daughter Lisa Frilot, has taken over Pure Cajun Products and knows that her father would want her to continue the company’s success. Bert will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
Gilley’s Recording Studio – Designed and Built by Bert Frilot
Bert Frilot & Willie Nelson while recording the album “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” at Gilley’s Recording Studio
(The late Bucky Meadows in the background)
Bert Frilot, owner of Pure Cajun Products is an award-winning recording engineer and record producer with over 35 years experience. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, he started his recording and producing career in 1961, after a five-year tour of duty with the U.S. Navy.
Bert received his electronics training from the Navy’s electronics school at San Francisco’s, Treasurer Island Navy base. He was then assigned to a heavy cruiser, the Flag Ship for the Navy’s 7th fleet operating in the Far East and South Pacific, and was responsible for the operation and repair of the ships radar controlled gun firing systems.
Bert Frilot & Johnny Lee
Receiving Gold Album for
“Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places”
in the “Urban Cowboy” movie
with John Travolta
Bert Frilot & Kenny Rogers
“At the console”
(Guitarist Bobby Brown standing)
His first civilian job was with Cosimo’s Recording Studio’s in New Orleans, Louisiana. His primary duty was to maintain all the tape recorders, amplifiers, speakers, microphones and other necessary electronic equipment in the studio. Within just a few short months, Bert’s job description changed. His natural ability for engineering recording sessions was immediately recognized by Cosimo Matassa, owner of Cosmo’s Studios. Cosimo’s Studio is known as the “hit making” studio of that era. Bert, Cosimo and the studio stayed busy day and night, recording such hit artist as Fat’s Domino, Al Hirt, Pete Fountain, Aaron Nevelle, Dr. John, Jimmy Clanton, Frankie Ford (Sea Cruise), Clarence “Frog Man” Henry (Ain’t Got No Home), Wilber Harrison (Gone To Kansas City), Barbara George (I Know, You Don’t Love Me No More), Ernie K-Doe (Mother In Law), Barbara Lynn (If You Should Loose Me, You’ll Lose A Good Thing), Benny Spellmen (Lipstick Traces), Irma Thomas (It’s Raining), The AFO Executives, and many more internationally known New Orleans artist.
Charlene Tilton & Bert Frilot
From TV show “Dallas”
At her home in Hollywood
Mickey Gilley, Astronaut Alan Shepard
and Bert Frilot
(Gilley’s Studio Grand Opening Party)
In 1965, Bert moved to Houston, Texas, where his string of hit recordings continued with hit artist such as Billy Gibbins, (Then with a group called “The Moving Sidewalks” and now know as “ZZ Top”), B.J. Thomas, Kenny Rogers, Bobby Blue Bland, Lightning Hopkins, Screaming Jay Hawkins and Archie Bell And The Drells (Tighten Up), Dale & Grace (“I’m Leaving It All Up To You” and “You Better Stop And Think It Over”), Gene Thomas (Baby’s Gone Away”) and Gene and Debbie (Playboy, To Me You’re Just A Playboy”) to name a few.
In the later years of 1960, a then “local” singer named Mickey Gilley, who was part owner of a recording studio named “Jones Recording Studio”, on the North side of Houston, asked Bert if he would start recording all his freelance sessions at Jones Studio. Bert accepted the proposal and started recording all his sessions at Jones Studio. He later designed a recording console for the studio around 1968, long before there was any such thing as a “stock built” console as can be purchased today.
Bert Frilot, Freddy Fender, and Leo O’Neil
(Gilley’s Club Band Leader)
Bert’s daughter Lisa, Aaron Neville & Bert
While performing at the
New Orleans Super Dome
for Willie Nelson’s “Farm Aid”
Bert was known as “the one to engineer your session” if you wanted a “hit” recording. By the late 60’s, even the Tejano artist were coming to Bert for their recordings. Artist such as “Little Joe & The Latinaires” (Now known as “Little Joe & La Familia”), Big Lu, Neto Perez, Sunny (Ozuna) and The Sunliners (Talk To Me), Sunny and The Sunglows, Rene & Rene, Freddie Fender, Freddie Martinez, Conjunto Bernal, Mexico’s TV star Veronica Castro and others. After Mickey Gilley’s first national hit, “Room Full Of Roses” in the early 70’s (Recorded at Jones Studio by a new engineer trainee Bert was training in the engineering field named Lonnie Wright), things started rolling like a snowball. After “Room Full Of Roses” became a regional hit, Bert and Mickey proudly went to Nashville, TN to try and make a record deal with a major record company. After three days of making appointments with the majors, and is either “stood up” or laugh out of their offices, Bert and Mickey were on their way back to Houston, but first stopped in to see an old friend from Houston who worked for Playboy Records’ Nashville office at the time. The rest is history . . . Playboy took on the record and it was Playboy’s first hit record after losing about three million dollars prior to Mickey’s release.
The Charlie Daniels Band & Mickey Gilley
Becky Shargo-Music Director of Paramount Pictures
Bert Frilot at the console
While recording “Devils’ Gone To Georgia”
for the movie “Urban Cowboy”
Bert Frilot & Crystal Gayle
After several more hit records, Mickey Gilley asked Bert to design, build and be the manager and chief engineer of a million dollar recording studio next to an unknown night club in Pasadena, Texas named “Gilley’s”. The studio was completed and opened in early 1978. Gilley’s partner, Sherwood Cryer (The real owner of Gilley’s Club), continued to pour money back into the club, building it into the world-famous landmark it became (Listed in the Guinness Book Of Records as “The Worlds Largest Night Club”). In 1979, Paramount Pictures contracted with Sherwood to film the movie “The Urban Cowboy” with John Travolta at Gilley’s Club. Several songs on the Urban Cowboy sound track album were recorded by Bert. One song Bert recorded (Orange Blossom Special) won a Grammy for Gilley’s “Urban Cowboy” band. Several songs that were used in the movie were recorded by Bert . . . Charlie Daniels song, “Devil’s Gone To Georgia”, “Orange Blossom Special” and “Cotton Eyed Joe”
Bert Frilot & Archie Bell & The Drells
While recording multi-million seller “Tighten Up”
Steve Tyrell (TV Music Director)
Bert Frilot and B.J. Thomas
(Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head)
At Van’s Ball Room, Houston, TX – 1965
During this rise of the Country Music popularity, Bert was right at the forefront. More hits were recorded . . . hit’s like the double platinum album by Willie Nelson, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” (for which Bert received the “Golden Reel Award”), “Cotton Eyed Joe” by the late Ike Sweat, and other artist such as David Allen Coe, Jerry Lee Lewis, Floyd Tillman and Johnny Lee (Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places). Bert was the engineer and Houston producer of the syndicated radio show “Live From Gilley’s” distributed by Westwood One in California. Live from Gilley’s was played on over 450 radio stations worldwide. For this radio show, Bert recorded such artist as Alabama, Conway Twitty, Ronnie Millsap, Bobby Goldsboro, Ray Stevens, Roy Orbison, Loretta Lynn, John Anderson Crystal Gayle, George Jones, Linda Ronstadt, Tammy Wynette, The Kindalls, Ernst Tubb, Bobby Bare, Johnny Paycheck, Gary Stewart, Moe Bandy, Joe Stampley, Brenda Lee, Faron Young, and just about every other country artist who was anybody, in the 1980’s.
Bobby Blue Bland & Bert Frilot
Bert in his office at Gilley’s Recording Studio
In 1993, Bert moved to Temple, Texas, 50 miles north of Austin, to go in business with, and build a recording studio for, Little Joe & La Familia, a 1992 Grammy-winning performer. At the end of 1995, Bert moved to Lake Charles, Louisiana to go in business with his longtime friend, Eddie Shuler, of Goldband Records and TEC Publishing. TEC Publishing has over 14,000 songs in its catalog. Eddie owns part publishing of the song “Sea Of Love” performed by Phil Phillip’s in 1957. Sea Of Love is a classic! It has been re-recorded hundreds of times by another artist over the years. It was also the theme song of the movie “Sea Of Love” with Al Pachino in the 1980s.
Eddie Shuler and Bert Frilot have joined forces to upgrade the Goldband recording studio facilities in Lake Charles. Goldband’s facilities include a 24 track studio, using a Studer, 2 inches, 24 track tape machine and a D&R 24 track console with computerized automated mixing.
Bert Frilot and Willie Nelson receive“Golden Reel Award” for recording double platinum album “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”
Sherwood Cryer, Bert Frilot,
Lana Nelson (Willie’s daughter
receiving the award for Willie)
and Mickey Gilley
Bert Frilot and Lana Nelson
(Willie Nelson’s daughter)
“celebrating” after receiving the award
(Mickey Gilley looking on)
A new custom computer system has just been purchased in order to do multiple jobs. One purpose for the computer will be for 16 track, hard disk digital recording and editing that can be synced up to the 24 track machine. Another will be for graphics editing, in order to produce CD booklets and cassette J-cards, posters, company brochures, and catalogs and any other type graphics work needed. Other work Bert will be doing with the new computer system is writing the computer programs for World Wide Web home pages for anyone wanting to have a presence on the Internet (WWW).
All this has not been enough for Bert. After traveling with Mickey Gilley for 21 years, Bert noticed how may “phony” Cajun food restaurants there were popping up all over the country. As he said, “Seems as though all these so-called “Cajun” restaurants think all you need to do is dump a bottle of cayenne pepper into the pot and the food magically changes into Cajun food. They are ruining the reputation of good Cajun cooking!”
How true this is! The unfortunate myth about Louisiana cooking is that it has to be hot or it’s not “Cajun.” This simply is not true! The true art of Louisiana seasonings is in the unique blend of herbs and spices that serve to enhance the flavor of vegetables, seafood, meats, poultry, and wild game, along with a “Cajun” cook that knows how to blend these spices.
Bert decided to put together an Internet web site. This web site would sell ONLY AUTHENTIC products that are made in Louisiana . . . “Pure Cajun Products“. Therein came the name of the new company . . . “Pure Cajun Products.” — Here you see the fruits of that adventure! Pure Cajun Products will only sell AUTHENTIC Louisiana products.
Bert wires up a new console in Gilley’s Recording Studio
Bert flying Gilley’s Club first plane Cessna 210 Centurion Turbo Prop
Bert flies Gilley’s Club Ultra Light
Bert flying Gilley’s Club Ultra Light
The end of an era “The worlds largest night club” burns down
Gilley’s Club burns down