Lou Christie

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Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco (born February 19, 1943), known professionally as Lou Christie, is an American singer-songwriter best known for three separate strings of pop hits in the 1960s, including his 1966 hit "Lightnin' Strikes".

Christie was born Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco on February 19, 1943, in Glenwillard, Pennsylvania,  and grew up in suburban Pittsburgh. While attending Moon Area High School, he studied music and voice, served as student conductor of the choir and sang solos at holiday concerts. His teacher Frank Cummings wanted him to pursue a career in classical music, but Sacco wanted to cut a record to get on American Bandstand. At age 15 he met and befriended Twyla Herbert, a classically trained musician 20 years his senior, who became his regular songwriting partner and wrote hundreds of songs with her over the next 30 years until her death in 2009. Sacco performed with several vocal groups and between 1959 and 1962 released several records on small Pittsburgh labels, achieving a local hit with "The Jury" by Lugee & The Lions (a group consisting of Sacco, Twyla Herbert's daughter Shirley, and two others) released on the Robbee label.  After graduating from high school in 1961, Sacco traveled to New York and worked as a session vocalist.

In 1962,  Sacco approached Nick Cenci with some demo tapes. Cenci liked his falsetto voice and suggested that he listen to the Four Seasons' recent hit "Sherry". Sacco and Herbert used the song as a model to write an original song called "The Gypsy Cried." Cenci produced a recording of Sacco performing the song at Gateway Studio in Pittsburgh and initially released it on his own C & C label as a single in 1962, credited to "Lou Christie," the name Sacco would use thereafter. The name "Lou Christie" was chosen by C & C Records, and "The Gypsy Cried" was credited to "Lou Christie" before they had consulted with Sacco about the name.


"The Gypsy Cried" became a regional hit, selling 30,000 copies in Pittsburgh. Cenci contacted Morris Levy of Roulette Records, saying that he had a hit that needed national distribution. Levy released the single on Roulette, but initially nothing happened. Airplay slowly spread across the country, and "The Gypsy Cried" reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Selling over one million copies of the song, Christie was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. Cenci produced additional recording sessions for Christie in 1963 that generated two more hits. "Two Faces Have I," his second million-seller, reached number 6 on the chart in June 1963.  Roulette released an album of 12 Lou Christie / Twyla Herbert songs in 1963 that reached 124 on the Billboard 200. With those hits, Christie joined Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars Tour.


During this pre-Army phase of his career, the female vocalists featured on Christie's records were The Tammys, a trio from Pleasantville, Venango County, Pennsylvania. Christie and Herbert wrote the single "Egyptian Shumba" for the group, and although it was not a hit, it became a cult favorite in the Northern Soul scene in the early 1970s.

Christie's third Roulette release, "How Many Teardrops" (written by Milan), stalled at #46 as Christie's career was temporarily derailed by his induction into the US Army. Christie would not have another charting single for two and a half years.

"Lightnin' Strikes" and "Rhapsody In The Rain": 1965-1966

Christie's career was quickly re-established after his discharge from the military when he signed with the MGM label. MGM reportedly disliked Christie's first single for the label, the Christie-Herbert song "Lightnin' Strikes." But Christie's new management promoted the record in California, and when it gained some traction (eventually reaching #2 on KHJ the last two weeks of 1965), MGM released it. "Lightnin' Strikes" reached #1 in the U.S. on Christie's 23rd birthday on February 19, 1966, entered the UK Top 20, becoming his first hit in that country, and peaked at #1 in Canada. The song featured his signature falsetto and included a female chorus (Bernadette Carroll,

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w05w1XbZTG8


Two Faces Have I" is a song written by Twyla Herbert and Lou Christie and performed by Christie. It reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, #11 on the R&B chart, and #20 in Australia in 1963.  It was featured on his 1963 album, Lou Christie.

This song was the inspiration behind Bruce Springsteen's "Two Faces", which featured on his 1987 album, Tunnel of Love.

The song was produced by Nick Cenci.

Other versions
Frank Alamo released a version in 1963 entitled "Tout Se Sait Un Jour" as part of the EP Surf!
Ol' 55 released a version as a single in 1980. It reached #15 in Australia.

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Beyond the Blue Horizon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSrYIfMMoRw

"Beyond the Blue Horizon" is a 1930 song composed by Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting, and W. Franke Harling. Jeanette MacDonald introduced the song in the 1930 film Monte Carlo. Her version reached #9 in the United States.