Early Years
Dion was born to an Italian-American family in the Bronx, New York. As a child, he used to accompany his father, a vaudeville entertainer, on tour, and developed a love of country music – particularly Hank Williams – as well as a fondness for the blues and doo-wop stars he heard in local bars and on the radio. His singing was honed on the street corners and local clubs of the Bronx, where he and other neighborhood singers created a cappella licks.
In early 1957, he auditioned for Bob and Gene Schwartz, who had just formed Mohawk Records. They recorded Dion singing lead for a song that had been arranged by Hugo Montenegro and completely pre-recorded with only the lead part missing. The vocal group was called The Timberlanes, who Dion never met. The single "The Chosen Few" was released under the name of Dion and the Timberlanes and became a minor regional hit. Dion stated in his book The Wanderer that he never even knew then, or later, who The Timberlanes were.
Read more about this topic: Dion DiMucci
Famous quotes containing the words early years, early and/or years:
“Even today . . . experts, usually male, tell women how to be mothers and warn them that they should not have children if they have any intention of leaving their side in their early years. . . . Children don’t need parents’ full-time attendance or attention at any stage of their development. Many people will help take care of their needs, depending on who their parents are and how they chose to fulfill their roles.”
—Stella Chess (20th century)
“Early to rise and early to bed makes a male healthy and wealthy and dead.”
—James Thurber (1894–1961)
“The time passes so quickly during these full and active middle years that most people arrive at the end of middle age and the beginning of later maturity with surprise and a sense of having finished the journey while they were still preparing to commence it.”
—Robert Havighurst (20th century)