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.

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 Studio's.

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 Hurt, 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.

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 free-lance sessions at Jones Studio. Bert accepted the proposal and did all his recording 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 purchase today.

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 80'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 snow ball. After "Room Full Of Roses" became a reginal 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 being 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 loosing about three million dollars prior to Mickey's release.

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. In 1979, Paramount Pictures contracted with Sherwood to film the movie "The Urban Cowboy" with John Travolta. 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"

During this rise of the Country Music popularity, Bert Frilot 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 world wide. 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.

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 long time friend, Eddie Shuler, of Goldband Records and TEC Publishing. TEC Publishing has over 14,000 songs in it's catalog. Eddie owns part publishing in 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 other artist over the years. It was also the theme song of the movie "Sea Of Love" with Al Pachino in the 1980's.

In 1996, Bert decided to put together an Internet web site. This web site would sell ONLY products that are made in Louisiana - "Pure Cajun Products". Therein came the name of the company . . . "Pure Cajun Products." Since Bert's passing on October 31, 1999, his daughter Lisa now owns & operates Pure Cajun Products. She has worked as hard as he did for it's continued success.

See the fruits of that adventure! Click here and visit Pure Cajun Products and get AUTHENIC Louisiana products.

Contact Bert Frilot's daughter, Lisa, via e-mail at: purecajun@purecajun.com

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