Known for his unconventional and thought-provoking lyrics, Friedman, who referred to himself as the “Governor of the Heart of Texas,” wrote songs like “Meshugganah Rag,” “They Ain’t Makin’ Jews Like Jesus Anymore,” “Ride ‘Em Jewboy,” and “Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in the Bed” while playing with country bands King Arthur & the Carrots and later The Texas Jewboys.
According to Variety, Friedman previously called the group a “country band with a social conscience, a demented love child of Lenny Bruce and Bob Wills.”
Hattersley spent over 40 years touring with Friedman; their final trip together occurred just prior to the pandemic.
He revealed to News that Friedman passed away from Parkinson’s disease in his childhood home, surrounded by his loved ones.
Just ten days previously, Hattersley added, he and his wife Sweet Mary had performed a complete musical for Friedman at his deathbed.
Although Friedman began his musical career in Texas in the 1970s, he was reared in Texas after being born in Chicago in 1944. Throughout his career, he also played at the Grand Ole Opry and went on tour with Bob Dylan. He concentrated more on writing detective novels in the 1980s, such as “God Bless John Wayne” and “Elvis, Jesus, and Coca-Cola.”
