Fred Carter, Jr.

American guitarist, producer and songwriter. Born December 31, 1933 in Winnsboro, Louisiana. Died July 17, 2010. Father [a=Deana Carter].

President of [l=Nugget Records (2)] and owner of [l=Nugget Studios].

Carter landed a gig on the Louisiana Hayride during the 1950s, and cut a few rockabilly-oriented singles before joining Roy Orbison's band. He performed on several records with the rock icon and later toured with roots-rocker Ronnie Hawkins and his band, the Hawks - a group that eventually morphed into The Band. Years later, Carter was recruited to play in drummer Levon Helms' easygoing jam-band, the RCO All-Stars.

In the early 1960s, Carter moved to Nashville and became one of the town's most in-demand musicians, playing on sessions such as Bob Dylan's pioneering country-rock records, and perhaps most famously on Simon & Garfunkel's mega-hit, "The Boxer."

In 1968 he purchased the Nugget record label from the country comedy team of Lonzo & Oscar. Carter owned the label and ran his own Fred Carter Studios in Goodlettsville, Tennessee from 1968-1975, when financial pressure made him fold up shop. Afterwards, he continued working steadily as a session player

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