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Del Shannon
artist

Del Shannon

Del Shannon is a rock & roll artist formed in 1958. 13 releases are catalogued on Riffiter.

Rock & Roll · Best rock & roll albums

13
Releases
1961–1991
Active years
1958
Formed

Discography

13Rank them 1 vs 1 →Two covers at a time. Pick the one you rate higher, we build the order.
Runaway / One Thousand Six-Hundred Sixty-One Seconds cover

Most popular

Runaway / One Thousand Six-Hundred Sixty-One Seconds

24 tracks

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More about Del Shannon

Del Shannon at a glance

Born in
Grand Rapids
From
United States
Active since
1958
Instruments
voice
Labels
Island Records, Elektra, Dunhill, BigTop Records

Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Children listed are those with their own public record, so the list may be incomplete.

About

Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), known professionally as Del Shannon, was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who is best known for his No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961. Westover was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and grew up in nearby Coopersville. He learned ukulele and guitar and listened to country and western music, including Hank Williams, Hank Snow, and Lefty Frizzell. He was drafted into the Army in 1954, and while in Germany played guitar in a band called The Cool Flames. When his service ended, he returned to Battle Creek, Michigan, and worked as a carpet salesman and as a truck driver in a furniture factory. He found part-time work as a rhythm guitarist in singer Doug DeMott's group called Moonlight Ramblers, working at the Hi-Lo Club.

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When DeMott was fired in 1958, Westover took over as leader and singer, giving himself the name Charlie Johnson and renaming the band into The Big Little Show Band. In early 1959 he added keyboardist Max Crook, who played the Musitron (his own invention of an early synthesizer). Crook had made recordings, and he persuaded Ann Arbor disc jockey Ollie McLaughlin to hear the band. McLaughlin took the group's demos to Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik of Talent Artists in Detroit. In July 1960, Westover and Crook signed to become recording artists and composers on the Bigtop label. Balk suggested Westover use a new name, and they came up with "Del Shannon", combining Mark Shannon - a wrestling pseudonym used by a regular at the Hi-Lo Club - with Del, derived from the Cadillac Coupe de Ville, his favorite car.

Del Shannon in brief

How many Del Shannon releases are on Riffiter?
13 releases are catalogued, spanning 1961 to 1991.
When was Del Shannon formed?
Del Shannon formed in 1958.
What genre is Del Shannon?
Del Shannon is catalogued under Rock & Roll.
What is the most recent Del Shannon release on Riffiter?
Rock On!, released in 1991.

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