“Outlaws” guitarist Freddie Salem has died, and his cause of death was given by the band as cancer, according to a September 23 post on the “Outlaws” Facebook page. He was 70 years old.
“It’s with a heavy heart that we have to tell Outlaws fans about the passing of our former guitarist Freddie Salem. Freddie passed from complications due to cancer and will be remembered for his outgoing personality and passion for music,” the “Outlaws” wrote on Facebook.
“He first appeared with the Outlaws on the album Playin’ to Win and then remained in the band for the following 4 albums. He was an electric performer and beloved musician and he will be missed,” the band wrote.
Daily Mail called Salem a “legendary American rock guitarist.” The Akron Beacon Journal called him a “guitar god.” According to that newspaper, “The Outlaws” “sold more than 10 million albums worldwide and earned platinum and gold records” during Salem’s tenure with the band, even opening for “The Rolling Stones” and “Grateful Dead.”
After leaving the band, he did solo work and worked with other well-known bands and artists, the newspaper reported.
Freddie Salem Once Said His Memories With ‘The Outlaws’ Were ‘the Best of Times’
GettyEric Moore and Freddie Salem, of US hard rock band The Godz.
Salem discussed his time with “The Outlaws” on the Road to Jacksonville blog.
“I joined the Outlaws in 1977,” he said. “I had met the band a year earlier in Los Angeles. They asked me to fly down to Tampa and jam. I wasn’t aware at the time they were going through a personal change at the time. We rehearsed for one week and hit the road. First gig was Boston Gardens in Massachusetts. We continued from there. I was 23 years old at the time.”
He also said in that interview:
I definitely brought a harder rock edge to the band. At the time. I believe they were ready for the change. I never forgot the Billy and Hughie were the nucleus of the Outlaws. We couldn’t change that but just enhance it with a more aggressive approach. It paid off. Indeed. Hughies influences were vast. He loved the heavier bands that toured with us such as UFO, Thin Lizzy, Pat Travers and etc. We would always jam on Hendrix tunes at sound check. He was very diverse in his playing. Loved also loved Mark Knopflr guitar work as well. He and Billy were very unique in their musical tastes.
He concluded, “Most memories of my tenure with the Outlaws were the best of times. We became a magnificent recording and live headling Band selling out major arenas and coliseums worldwide. It was an exciting time to build the visibility and success of the band. As far as regrets, None.”
Freddie Salem Once Said Touring Was ‘Very Draining’
Salem spoke to the Akron Beacon Journal in the 1970s about the rocker lifestyle, the newspaper recounted in a recent article.
“Some people think it’s just a matter of ‘Let’s go to the gig and play, then party,’” he told the Beacon Journal in 1978. “But it’s so much more than that.
“We’re touring about six months out of every year and that’s very draining. You have to mentally and physically condition yourself for the road,” he said, according to the newspaper.
“Then there’s the stress of waiting for reaction to your music. There’s always a higher plateau to reach, whether it’s financial, artistic or whatever,” he added.
His website says he was the lead guitarist for “The Outlaws” for six years.
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