In 1966, Gene Pitney married his childhood sweetheart, Lynne Gayton, and the couple had three sons together, Todd, Chris, and David. American superstar Gene Pitney has been found dead aged 65 in his bed in a Cardiff hotel. Photograph: Getty Richard Williams Thu 6 Apr 2006 05.09 EDT "He's a Rebel" would eventually reach number 1 in the UK and ironically deny Pitney the chance at a number 1 himself. When Was Only Love Can Break Your Heart released? Pitney's early influences were Clyde McPhatter and doo-wop groups such as The Crows. So, how much is Gene Pitney worth at the age of 66 years old? 14; production by David Mackay) were substantial hits. Unrivaled Mac notes apps for fuss-free note-taking, 6 Actionable Tips for Improving Your Websites SEO, Copyright 2023 | WordPress Theme by MH Themes. "Rubber Ball", another Pitney song, became a hit for Bobby Vee in the US and Marty Wilde in the UK. In 2000, Pitney sang harmony vocals on Jane Olivor's recording of his 1962 hit "Half Heaven Half Heartache", which was released on her 'comeback' album Love Decides. The cause of his death was ascertained to be a heart attack. In collaboration with songwriter Aaron Schroeder, he placed his songs with big artists. Gene Pitney died at age 65 of natural causes. Soon, his focus shifted to only music. The 65-year-old, who died in the Cardiff Hilton last week, was suffering from hardening of the arteries, according to his death certificate. The couple had three sons together. The funeral of singer Gene Pitney has been held in his home town of Somers, in Connecticut. Pitney's biggest hits included Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa, Town Without Pity and Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart, on which he duetted with Marc Almond. Official Sites. He was buried at Somers Center Cemetery in Somers, Connecticut. He married wife Lynee. "Only Love Can Break a Heart" was denied number 1 in the US charts by Pitney's own composition "He's a Rebel" sung by The Crystals. Gene Alan Pitney was born on the 17th of February, 1940 in Hartford, Connecticut. After high school, he studied electrical engineering while simultaneously focusing on music. "I've seen him quite a few times on this tour and he was fit and well. "He was a great, unique singer of great, unique songs. (Orlowsky) and Harold F. Pitney, a lathe operator. The song had been a UK No. The 66-year-old, who was found dead in his hotel room in Cardiff last week, was buried in Somers, Connecticut, after a service attended by friends, neighbours and lifelong fans. American singing legend Gene Pitney died of natural causes, a post-mortem examination has confirmed. Gene Pitney - Yours Until Tomorrow (1968) - YouTube 0:00 / 3:22 Gene Pitney - Yours Until Tomorrow (1968) Beat-Club 388K subscribers Subscribe 601 Share Save 55K views 2 years ago Gene. 17,029 pages were read in the last minute. Gene Pitney has one of the most distinctive voices in music. An autopsy found the cause of death to be a heart attack and that he had severely occluded coronary arteries. I was shocked and saddened to hear of the. 5 for Pitney in 1967. They were taken just a few days after Gene's funeral. After a long break, he made his comeback with a duet version of Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart with singer Marc Almond; it reached and stayed at No.1 in UK for four weeks in January 1989, and gained the No.1 ranking in Germany, Switzerland, Finland, and Ireland. 17 on the Hot 100. Sources include Joel Whitburn's Record Research material for the US Top 100, "Bubbling Under" and US Country charts; Tim Rice et al., Guinness Book of Hit Singles for the UK; CHUM Chart for Canada prior to mid-1964, and the Canadian RPM charts thereafter; and The Kent Report for Australia, Involvement with the Rolling Stones (1964), UK, Australian and European stardom (19661970s), Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 07:18, Gene Pitney Meets the Fair Young Ladies of Folkland, It Hurts to Be in Love and Eleven More Hit Songs, For the First Time! When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. [4] Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. (Photo by Mario Ruiz/Getty Images) Save. | More tickets released for It's a Sin star's play, Nope's Keke Palmer gives birth to first child, Strictly's Rachel Stevens talks split from husband, Stacey Solomon hits back at mum-shaming trolls, Paris Hilton shares unusual name for newborn son, Love Island stars spark engagement rumours, Ray Liotta given posthumous Walk of Fame star, Marvel's Karen Gillan posts first wedding pictures, DIGITAL SPY, PART OF THE HEARST UK ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK. I wanted to pay my respects by signing this book of condolence, which I know will reflect just how fondly thought of Gene was in Cardiff. Gene had a love of music from an early age. On September 20, 2007, a plaque to Pitney was unveiled at the town hall in his hometown of Rockville, Connecticut. He recorded a Bacharach and David song, Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa, which peaked at No. He followed up in December with "Half Heaven, Half Heartache", which reached No. He married his childhood sweetheart, Lynne Gayton, in 1966, and had three children with her. He grew up in Rockville, now part of Vernon, Connecticut. 5 in UK in 1964, marking his increasing popularity in UK. Pitney's career in the US took a downturn after mid-1966, when "Backstage" ended another run of Top 40 hits. Pitney continued to place records in the Australian charts through 1976, including the hit "Down This Road", written and produced by distant relative Edward Pitney. His maternal grandparents were Polish. Overcoming his nerves over the next few years, Pitney learned to play the guitar and piano and formed a schoolboy band. "Gene moved on quickly though and his first solo song came with "Cradle of My Arms" albeit under the name Billy Bryan. He recorded a Bacharach and David song, 'Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa,' which peaked at No. Because of his success on the music charts, and as he explained to his friend, oldies DJ 'Wild' Wayne, an unknown radio disc jockey at the time gave Pitney the nickname 'The Rockville Rocket', which caught on. 03:37 EST 13 Apr 2006, King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, Police: Urgent search for Constance Marten's missing baby, Shocking video shows machete fight in broad daylight, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Pupils take to TikTok as they stage protest at Shenfield High School, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York, Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout. Gene's career as an artist in his own right began with the self-penned "I Wanna Love My Life Away" which he recorded for $30 at a small recording studio in New York. In high school, he was part of the band "Gene Pitney and the Genials". In Australia, after a fallow period in the early 1970s, Pitney returned to the Top 40 in 1974, when both "Blue Angel" (No. "Only Love Can Break a Heart", "If I Didn't Have a Dime", "Half Heaven, Half Heartache", "Mecca", "It Hurts to be in Love" and "True Love Never Runs Smooth" were all hit records for Gene in the US. Almond said he was "saddened and shocked" at the news. In 1989, while performing live on ITV's This Morning show, he missed his cue for the song You're the Reason and couldnt mime with the beats in time! It reached number 5 in the UK charts and marked the beginning of his rise in popularity throughout the U.K. and Europe.Between 1963 and 1966, Gene consistently produced top 10 hits in the UK. He attended Rockville High School where he formed his first band, Gene & the Genials. Gene Pitney's income source is mostly from being a successful Soundtrack. Wiki User. He is also credited with helping the Rolling Stones break the American market with his endorsement of the band. Marc Almond recorded "Backstage (I'm Lonely)" for his 2007 covers album Stardom Road. Pitney, who was midway through a UK tour, was discovered in his bed at the Cardiff Hilton. However, his music and studies were coming into increasing conflict and Gene began to move more towards his musical ambitions. His songs gained notable popularity in US and UK and he was inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. He eventually gained fame as a singer when he recorded his self-penned song, I Wanna Love My Life Away. He recorded albums with country greats like George Jones and Melba Montgomery and was quite successful. Who was the host of Gene Pitneys funeral? With limited success as an artist, Gene began to find more success as a songwriter. 17,029 pages were read in the last minute. He is most remembered for Song, "Red Rubber Ball. The duet outdid the original which could only make number 5 in 1967. His big break came when Roy Orbison recorded Today's Teardrops as the B-side to Blue Angel. It was followed by Rubber Ball for Bobby Vee and Hello Mary Lou for Ricky Nelson. "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa" marked a significant shift in Gene's musical direction. He had a regional hit with "Nessuno mi pu giudicare". He was an enthusiastic doo-wop singer and also sang with a group named The Embers. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards wrote his hit That Girl Belongs to Yesterday which became the Stones duo's first composition to reach the American charts. The cause of his death was ascertained to be a heart attack. Mourning Joy: Q: What do you call the elephant witch doctor? His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. [10] Giving a performance of his track "You're the Reason", Pitney missed his cue and was seen "failing dismally to mime along in time to his backing track";[11] he continued with the song, and found humor in the incident. However, his music and studies were coming into increasing conflict and Gene began to move more towards his musical ambitions. Other massive hits for Pitney included 24 Hours From Tulsa and Im Gonna Be Strong. Gene Pitney's casket "Wild" Wayne's floral arrangement at the funeral for Gene Pitney Mark Howes of his management company In Touch Music said the singer was found in his bed. His songs were performed by many famous artists. He recorded a Bacharach and David song, Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa, which peaked at No. He recorded his self-penned song (I Wanna) Love My Life Away which was released on Schroeders Musicor label in 1961. He received a glowing review for the South Wales Echo - "non-stop enthusiastic performance" during what proved to be his final concert in Cardiff. Gene and his family. Pitney - who found fame with Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa - was pronounced dead at the Hilton hotel at 1000 BST. He was buried at the Somers Centre Cemetery following a service at the nearby All Saints Church. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 hit singles, including 11 in the top ten. What was even more amazing is that Gene recorded all 7 vocal tracks as well as playing the piano, guitar and drums on the song. On it Pitney not only sang but played all the instruments, in addition to recording the backup vocals (he didn't have the money to hire singers or musicians). Pitney was present with Phil Spector at some of the Rolling Stones' early recording sessions in London, including "Little by Little" and other tracks for their debut album;[6] he played piano, though the extent of this is uncertain. 7 and No. He is a member of famous Soundtrack with the age 66 years old group. Tap into Getty Images' global scale, data-driven insights, and network of more than 340,000 creators to create content exclusively for your brand. He also recorded songs in Italian, Spanish and German. (Photo by Keystone Features/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Get personalized pricing by telling us when, where, and how you want to use this asset. 5 in UK in 1964, marking his increasing popularity in UK. Also Known As: Gene Francis Alan Pitney Died At Age: 66 Family: Spouse/Ex-: Lynne Gayton (m. 1967) father: Harold F. Pitney mother: Anna A. The worlds defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking whats new and whats next since 1952. Despite this the song was well received and it's mix of the pop and country genres worked extremely well. This is to deny the true talent of the man and the extensive range he possesses. [13] It was re-aired on the 25th anniversary edition of This Morning in 2013, in which presenter Holly Willoughby "broke out into a cold sweat" while reliving the moment. His wife is Lynne Gayton (28 January 1967 - 5 April 2006) ( his death) ( 3 children) Gene Pitney Net Worth His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. American singing legend Gene Pitney died of natural causes, a post-mortem examination has confirmed. A post mortem examination showed that singer Gene Pitney died of natural causes, police said today. Lynne Gayton (28 January1967 - 5 April2006)( his death)( 3 children). Video Captures Gene Video's from Youtube. The cause of death is not yet known but is not suspicious. He returned one last time to the Top 40 with "She's a Heartbreaker" in mid-1968 and placed several singles in the lower reaches of the Hot 100 after that, but by 1970 he was no longer a hit-maker in the US. At one point he had hits in Europe, the UK, and the US pop and country charts with four different songs simultaneously. In October 2008, an international fan convention was held in Rockville. 2 in UK. On April 5, 2006, during his UK tour, he was found dead in his hotel room in Cardiff, Wales. They also collaborated in the production of the hit song "Days of Summer". In 1964, his song Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa peaked at No.5 in Britain and at No. In 1961, Gene Pitney recorded his first Top 20 single, Town Without Pity which had been penned by Tiomkin and Ned Washington. It won a Golden Globe Award and an Oscars nomination for the Best Song. The single made the top 40 in the US and Britain. "I know that he had many Welsh fans and his performances were always enthusiastically received. "Together we had one of the biggest hits of 1989 with Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart and it was an honour to have worked with him," he said. Further success would come with Ricky Nelson recording "Hello Mary Lou" (a Top 5 in the US) and "He's a Rebel" for Phil Spector's group, The Crystals. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. They were voted the most promising country-and-western duo of the year. 2 UK). Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In December the same year, his Half Heaven, Half Heartache reached No.12 on the Billboard chart. 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