Fred Martinez is waxing nostalgic inside Summer Fox Brewing’s Tower District taproom.
It’s a place he knows well. During the 1990s, he ran it as a bar and music venue known as Club Fred — a name that still resonates in the neighborhood and city. He rattles of the names of musicians, locals and others, who played the Club Fred stage.
That same stage still sits just off the front door.
“For me, it’s all about the history,” Martinez says.
“I just want this place to retain its history.”
Enter the “mural of Freds,” a 30-foot art piece that hung on the back wall of Martinez’s club for more than a decade. It was re-installed inside Summer Fox this week.
The mural depicts a collection of famous Freds, Freddys and Fredricks, as if they all saddled up to the same dive bar.
Patrons used to argue over who could name the most Freds.
Fred Martinez, in a picture from Club Fred in 2000, sits in front of a mural of famous “Freds.” The 30-foot mural was recently re-installed inside Summer Fox Brewery. ZIA NIZAMI The Fresno Bee
Martinez can still get through most, if not all.
Bluesman Freddie King is the mural’s centerpiece. He appears on his knees, as if he crawled onto the bar top mid solo. There’s also Fred Flintstone (Martinez’s favorite), a leather-jacketed Freddie Mercury and Fred Gwynne, depicted here more famously as his character Herman Munster.
Fred Rogers is depicted, as is Freddy Kruger, Redd Foxx’s Fred Sanford (from the TV show “Sanford and Son”) and Raiders icon Fred Biletnikoff.
Some of the Freds are more obscure.
Fat Freddy Freekowtski and his cat can both be found in the mural. They’re pulled from The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers, an underground comic series from the late ‘60s that was popular with Martinez and his friends.
Martinez’s brother Danny painted the mural in his garage, as a surprise.
It hung on the back wall through Martinez’s full run as owner and became and iconic part of the nightclub. It went with him when he sold Club Fred in the 2000s.
In recent years, it was on display inside Tower District Records across from Fresno High School.
Martinez got the idea to return the mural after coming to Summer Fox to watch his friend Glen Delpit perform for this year’s Mardi Gras celebration. He was impressed by what the taproom is trying to bring to the neighborhood.
For him, the artwork is a reminder of the history and importance of this venue, which exists regardless of the name or any particular set of owners. “It’s the place,” Martinez says, “the address — 1426 Van Ness.”
The Fred R Back concerts at Summer Fox
In conjunction with the mural’s return, Martinez has curated a four-night run of concert performances with some of his favorite local bands and musicians.
It kicks off Friday night with rock bands Dying Suns, Low Spell and Palm Sugar.
On Saturday, there’s a lineup of local heavy hitters including Blue Crown, Anderson Safre and The Flatlanders, John Clifton Blues Band and Roger Perry.
Sunday night features the Santana tribute Heavy Weather and Raw, a tribute to War.
And on Monday night Martinez plays with his band the Champs, along with Home Before Dark and the Hillbilly Jazz Band.
Tickets for the shows are $10-$20.
This story was originally published September 4, 2026 at 3:43 PM.
The Fresno Bee
Joshua Tehee covers breaking news for The Fresno Bee, writing on a wide range of topics from police, politics and weather, to arts and entertainment in the Central Valley.