Lou Christie:
An oldie but goodie

By Rita Charleston
For the Times

His first million-selling song, The Gypsy Cried, transformed a local choirboy, Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco, into Lou Christie, a national teen idol while still a teenager himself.
And then, over the decade of the 1960s, Christie followed success with even greater success, with hits like Lightning Strikes, I’m Gonna Make You Mine, Rhapsody in the Rain and others.
"I know I was known as a teen idol. But at the time all that was happening to me, I wasn’t quite sure what it all meant. I remember all the girls were screaming but I didn’t quite get it in the beginning. I thought maybe it was because I was wearing tight pants," said Christie, who will appear at the Keswick Theatre in Glenside on Feb. 9 as part of a Valentine’s Evening of Doo Wop/Rock & Roll — Vol. 11.
Presented by Supreme Concerts, the show also features The Duprees, The Harptones, Bobby Lewis, and Barbara Harris & The Toys.
But the young singer with the falsetto voice soon found out what it all meant. As one of the decade’s first singer-songwriters, he began performing around the world, sharing the stage with many of the greats of rock ’n’ roll, including the Rolling Stones, The Who, Neil Diamond, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. He also traveled with Dick Clark’s Caravan of Stars, and even managed to fit in a command performance for Queen Elizabeth and the Royal Family.
"I was singing at a time when the Beatles first came over here, and they sort of wiped out a lot of American acts," Christie explained. "They became the teenage rage, but somehow my music managed to cut through all that. I had some of my biggest and best records right in the middle of the so-called British Invasion. In fact, I was doing so good with my music that people thought I was English myself at that point."
But Christie was anything but English. He was raised on a farm in rural Pennsylvania where his father worked in the mills, and where listening to music was fun, but growing up to become a performer was the furthest thing from Christie’s mind. However, not only did Christie eventually begin performing, but his talent has also been responsible for having a lasting effect on others. The late John Lennon repeatedly pointed out in his interviews that "Lou Christie was one of my influences." And Madonna thanks Christie in the liner notes of her 10-million-selling Immaculate Collection LP.
And when he wasn’t driving the teenage set wild, he enjoyed the fact that many films featured his songs, including Rain Man, Barcelona and The Last Days of Disco, in addition to Oliver Stone’s TV miniseries, Wild Palms.
After all these years and with no formal training to his credit, Christie said the most incredible thing of all is that he still seems to be going strong.
"When I look out at the audience I see teenagers, preteens, grandmothers, people of all ages who really seem to be enjoying what I do," he said. "I think it’s because my music is a lot of fun and was originally presented at a time when life was much easier. Whatever the reason I’m still attracting audiences, all I know is I always go onstage and give it my best. Every time I walk out onstage it’s like the very first time. It all seems to work like a good, well-oiled machine when I’m out there." ••
For ticket information, call 215-572-7650.