Lou Christie, the pop singer who certainly had lightning strike in a giant approach along with his “Lightnin’ Strikes” smash within the Nineteen Sixties, died Wednesday at 82, his household introduced on social media. No date or reason for dying was given.

Christie had three prime 10 singles within the U.S. throughout a interval of six years within the ’60s, the largest being “Lightnin’ Strikes,” which was launched in 1965 and hit No. 1 on the Billboard Sizzling 100 in February 1966. Written by Christie with Twyla Herbert, the MGM-label single was well-known for a hovering hook with a virtually Frankie Valli-level falsetto.

That profession peak was preceded in 1963 with “Two Faces Have I,” which reached No. 6. Additionally written by Christie and Herbert, the track was not usually lined, but Bruce Springsteen acknowledged it as an inspiration for his track “Two Faces” virtually a quarter-century later.

Christie closed out his run within the prime 10 in 1969 with “I’m Gonna Make You Mine,” which made it to No. 10 within the U.S., whereas doing higher within the U.Okay., peaking at No. 2 there.

However though it didn’t fairly crack the highest 10, Christie was additionally infamous for the No. 16 single “Rhapsody within the Rain,” which was banned by some radio stations in 1966 for its risque intimations of what youngsters is likely to be doing in an car on a wet evening, discovering extra favor when Christie re-recorded some lyric in a “clear” model that dropped the road “On this automotive, our love went a lot too far.”

The person pop followers knew as Lou Christie was born Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco on Feb. 19, 1943. He met his long-term songwriting collaborator Herbert when he was simply 15 and he or she was 20 years older, and their partnership took off. As a excessive schooler in suburban Pittsburgh, he even had a neighborhood hit with a gaggle referred to as Lugee & the Lions, which included Herbert’s daughter.

It was in 1962 that he was satisfied by a supervisor to tackle a stage identify, and his first single below that identify, “The Gypsy Cried,” got here out that yr, ultimately reaching No. 24 and promoting one million data after Morris Levy and Roulette picked it up.

Christie believed he was pulling up the rear within the age of minor idols. “They began disappearing. It was so fascinating that I stored going,” he stated in an interview with classicbands.com. “I hit the top of that entire period. I’ve at all times been between the cracks of rock ‘n’ roll, I felt. The lacking hyperlink…. We had the teenage idols. We had Frankie Avalon. We had Fabian. That factor was nearly closing down when numerous my data began hitting. … All of them disappeared, however my data stored going by that English Invasion. … I keep in mind we have been on tour and Paul and Paula had simply come again from England and so they stated there’s a gaggle over there referred to as the Beatles… That was just about the top of the folks I used to be touring across the nation with. We have been in teen magazines collectively. We have been kind of the cat’s meow there for all these years as being teenage idols, teenage princes and princesses.”

Christie toured with Dick Clark’s Cavalcade of Stars tour and others prefer it. “I used to be sitting on the bus with Diana Ross. She was sitting on the seat subsequent to me. She and I have been bus buddies. I at all times put it that approach…. Right here I used to be, sitting subsequent to all these individuals who, six months in the past I purchased their data and watched them on American Bandstand. Now, swiftly I’m certainly one of them. … I used to be with Gene Pitney and Johnny Tillotson, the Supremes, Paul and Paula, the Crystals, the Ronettes, Fabian, Frankie Avalon. To me, this was my graduating class and nonetheless is at present.”

After his chart success ran out, Christie tried nation music, and one track in that vein, “Past the Blue Horizon,” went prime 20 on the AC chart. He continued recording into the 2010s and did live performance appearances on the oldies circuit for many years.