Gene Pitney , His Climb to International Success

by Joseph A. Angiolillo

THE FULL PRICE BOOK COMES WITH A CD OF THE MAY 24, 2002 TWENTY MINUTE "INTERVIEW" OF GENE PITNEY! The only complete biography of Gene Pitney. Dick Clark rates Gene as one of the top 100 rockers of all time. Jason Rowe of Connecticut's Journal Inquirer states, "Gene Pitney fans finally have a definitive book on the life of their favorite rock 'n' roller." Brad Davis of WDRC AM Hartford, CT states, "Where did you get these pictures? You've got everything in here. Peter Kerensky of WHUS FM Storrs, CT (UConn) states, "It's a wonderful, well-detailed, well-written book...I wouldn't be surprised if Hollywood turned it into a movie." Stu Bryer of WICH AM Norwich, CT states, "According to Gene Pitney,...[Joe] is the man who probably knows more about Gene Pitney than he does Angiolillo's book has all kinds of nostalgia ... It's a great book." Tom Monahan of WVIT channel 30 TV Hartford, CT states, "It's a really terrific book and also highlights some of the other people who were in the arena at that particular time...research is very, very thorough." Gene is the first rock star to sing at the Academy Awards "Town Without Pity" took the Golden Globe in 1962. Gene sang and wrote hits. His three best compositions, "He's A Rebel", "Rubber Ball", "Hello Mary Lou", and his 1958 doo-wop songs rise from the written page as priceless memorabilia. Stories paint a glowing portrait of 50s & 60s (Gene's taxidermy of a skunk, his trapping business, water skiing flops, and jam with the Rolling Stones to record "Little By Little" and return to the US with the first Stones hit "That Girl Belongs to Yesterday"). Gene sang for the Queen. 260 photos compliment the 58 stories( photo of Gene on stage, original guitar, and Genials; "DA" haircut, singing at the Academy Awards, induction into the Rock Hall of Fame)help prove that Gene Pitney, "The Elvis of England" is one of the best rock stars in the world.

280 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[J Koch · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book has Climb to International Success in its subtitle, but it's misleading. 90% of the book deals with Pitney's regional starts in first Rockville, then Hartford, Conneticut. However that doesn't mean it's uninteresting. Not many biographies go into such detail about s performer before he gets famous.