Posted on 04/05/2006 5:41:25 AM PDT by GeneD
LONDON - Gene Pitney, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame whose hits included "Town Without Pity" and "Only Love Can Break a Heart," died Wednesday at a hotel in Wales after playing a show, his agent said. He was 65.
Pitney was found dead in his hotel room in Cardiff, Wales. Police said the death did not appear suspicious.
"We don't have a cause of death at the moment but looks like it was a very peaceful passing," said Pitney's tour manager, James Kelly.
"He was found fully clothed, on his back, as if he had gone for a lie down. It looks as if there was no pain whatsoever."
He added: "Last night was generally one of the happiest and most exuberant performances we've seen out of him. He was absolutely on top of his game and was really happy with the show."
Born in Hartford, Conn., on Feb. 17, 1941, Pitney had his first success as a songwriter with "Rubber Ball," a Top 10 hit for Bobby Vee in 1961. Later that year, Ricky Nelson had a hit with Pitney's "Hello Mary Lou."
As a performer, Pitney had his first success that same year with "Love My Life Away."
But Burt Bacharach and Hal David provided the songs that put Pitney in the Top 10: "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" and "Only Love Can Break a Heart."
"Only Love Can Break a Heart" was Pitney's biggest U.S. hit, peaking at No. 2 on the charts in 1962. The No. 1 song at the time was The Crystals' "He's a Rebel," written by Pitney.
He had more than a dozen Top 40 hits and even contributed to an early Rolling Stones recording session.
Pitney waited until 1990 for his first British No. 1 — he rerecorded "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" with Marc Almond.
Pitney also had some success as a country singer, pairing with George Jones to record "I've Got Five Dollars and It's Saturday Night" and "Louisiana Man."
He recorded in Italian and Spanish, and twice took second place at the San Remo Song Festival in Italy. He also had a regional hit with "Nessuno Mi Puo' Giudicare."
Pitney was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.
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"Only Love Can Break a Heart" Truck load of memories there.. Too soon.. RIP Gene Pitney.
"The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence" was not only a great song, it was a really good movie.
Here in Maine, in the mid 60's, we had a rock band that signed a national contract with SMASH Records, a subsidiary of MERCURY. They were the BARRACUDAS. The b-side of their only single was "No Matter What You Do" written by Gene Pitney. The band & song sound just like The Buckinghams!! Anyway, I've never heard Gene's version or if he ever even recorded it himself. The song was test-marketed in Chicago I think, but nothing ever came of it...
From CNNews (sorry!) :"Pitney's agent told Reuters that his wife, Lynne, had been told of his death. Pitney also leaves three sons, David, Todd and Chris."
I saw him last year at Mohegan Sun and he was incredible, great voice, pesonality and great show. I wish I had taped it. I remember when visiting my cousins [teenage girls] in Rockville when I was a kid and how they would sit on the front porch and wait to see him arrive home [they lived just a few houses away from his].
Didn't he also record She Lets Her Hair Down that later was used in a Breck commercial in early 1970?
His great song,Every Breathe I Take was written by Carol King.I think Heartbreaker,from May,1968,was his last big Top 40 hit.
Favorite line from Town without Pity-
"If we stop to wish upon a star
People talk about how bad we are
Ours is not an easy age
We're like tigers in a cage
When these little minds tear you in two
What a town without pity can do"
I'm pretty sure Half Heaven,Half Heartache was from 1961.Heard it first when I was in the Eight Grade that year.
Yep,Summer of 1963.You got that right.
Man,I have to leave for work now but I need your help in identifying two songs for me:
Que Sera Sera by the Five Keyes-I THINK they did it-from Summer of 1963 and a song that went "Beware,beware,you better beware or you ain't a gonna get nowhere"by an R and B group from around 1960.
Thanks,speedy.
Riverman -- yep, "She Lets Her Hair Down"was done by him, and yes, "Heartbreaker" was his last hit, from the spring of 1968. Two other middling later hits for him were "Princess In Rags" and "Backstage." And I think everything he did that charted was on Musicor Records.
We have the same favorite line. It stays in your head, doesn't it? Gene Pitney and Roy Orbison both had that great ability to be melodramatic but still make it work. "I'm Gonna Be Strong" is my favorite in the "build to a crescendo" school, but I like pretty much every major song he did. Most under-rated to me is "True Love Never Runs Smooth" from 1963, mostly forgotten. That croak in his voice made him fun to try to mimic. Such a fine craftsman that he was somewhat taken for granted. It's great to see his fans coming out of the woodwork with the memories.
Riverman -- the only R&B song I know like that is "Beware" by Louis Jordan, which of course would have been earlier than 1960, but somebody could have remade it. I'm probably not being much help here.
A 1963 R&B (sort of) favorite of mine was "I Know, I Know" by Pookie Hudson. Also Baby Washington "That's How Heartaches Are Made."
I too have fond memories of his music. I saw him 10 years or so ago in Vegas. Thanks for the post.
I know Faithfull has one son, born before Pitney married. No one is quite sure if the father is art dealer John Dunbar or Pitney.
"Gene Pitney and Roy Orbison..."
I loved the music of both. Both had amazing range. Roy could've done a bang-up job of "Half Heaven, Half Heartache" or "I'm Gonna Be Strong". Try listening to him doing them in your mind. Sounds great, doesn't it?
The most surprising aspect of Pitney's career is, as Pete Townshend himself noted once, his appearance as a boogie woogie piano player on a couple of Rolling Stones recordings.
Another tidbit is that The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, was hated by the film's director John Ford when it was submitted and never included in the movie. I suspect that Frankie Laine (who else?!) was the intended performer, but I don't think he ever recorded it, did he?
And finally, That Girl Belongs to Yesterday may have been the very first Jagger-Richards composition (and not As tears Go By as the legend would have it.) Sounds like it...
... who was no slouch himself and is still kicking. Another surprise: Bob Dylan reveals in his recent Chronicles Volume One book that he briefly played piano in Bobby Vee's band back in 1959 (they're from the same area), but they didn't really need a piano player (thank heavens for that!) So, alittle later, early 1960s, Dylan goes backstage at some main New York venue, when he is a nobody and Bobby Vee is the Big Star, having just scored the biggest hit of his career, past and future Take Good Care of My Baby, they chat, Zimmy withdraws, so as not to steal the spotlight, and they don't see each other for another 30 years. Imagine that meeting (which is not described in the book.)
You're right, beelzepug. Not hard to imagine at all. Out of the same school as "Running Scared."
Good story, cat. I'm sure you're familiar with Vee's first single release, "Suzy Baby." He does a rather haunting Buddy Holly, especially considering their sad link in music history.
"Town Without Pity" was a favorite in my squadron at Clark AB in the Philippines. We spent a lot of time in "Town," Angeles, and there wasn't a whole lot of Pity there.
I'm a bit surprised m'self at the reaction here to Gene Pitney's passing. I would have thought he was completely forgotten and more like a secret guilty pleasure for some, like, say, the fabulous Fleetwoods, or, hey, even Bobby Vee hisself! Over the years, I think, I never ever saw Gene Pitney's name referenced in any pop music stories or reviews.
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