Leaving the chaos of the Clinton camp behind, Fred Wesley joined the Count Basie Orchestra in the late 70s and played with a variety of artists both on stage and in the studio throughout the 80s.

In 1980 he released the album 'House Party' featuring the all-time Funk club classic of the same name. He also kept working with George Clinton after the demise of Parliament in 1980. Fred Wesley recorded with Earth, Wind & Fire, Dr. John, Barry White, the Gap Band and many others and joined Ray Charles, The Temptations, Aretha Franklin and The Red Hot Chili Peppers live on stage. Besides joining his old bandmates Maceo Parker and Pee Wee Ellis for an European tour with Bobby Byrd he started to shift his focus to Jazz in the late 80s.