Editing Del Shannon

{{short description|American musician (1934–1990)}}
{{for|the novelist under the pen name Dell Shannon|Elizabeth Linington}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Del Shannon
| image             = Del Shannon 1965.jpg
| caption           = Shannon in 1965
| image_size        = <!-- Only for images narrower than 220 pixels -->
| birth_name        = Charles Weedon Westover
| alias             = 
| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1934|12|30|mf=yes}}
| birth_place       = [[Coopersville, Michigan]], U.S.
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|1990|02|8|1934|12|30|mf=yes}}
| death_place       = [[Santa Clarita, California]], U.S.
| instrument        = {{hlist|Vocals|guitar}}
| genre             = {{hlist|[[Rock and roll]]|[[country music|country]]}}
| occupation        = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter}}
| years_active      = 1954–1989
| label             = {{hlist|[[Bigtop Records|Bigtop]]|[[Al Coury#Network Records label|Network]]|[[London Records|London]]|Twirl|Berlee|[[Amy Records|Amy]]|[[Liberty Records|Liberty]]|[[Dunhill Records|Dunhill]]|[[United Artists Records|United Artists]]|[[Island Records|Island]]|[[Elektra Records|Elektra]]|[[Silvertone Records (1980)|Silvertone]]}}
| website           = {{URL|delshannon.com}}
}}

'''Charles Weedon Westover''' (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name '''Del Shannon''', was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' hit "[[Runaway (Del Shannon song)|Runaway]]", which was covered later by various major artists including [[Elvis Presley]] and the [[Traveling Wilburys]]. In 1999, he was posthumously inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]]. In addition to his music career, he had minor acting roles.

==Biography==
Shannon was born Charles Weedon Westover on December 30, 1934, in [[Coopersville, Michigan]], to Bert and Leone Mosher Westover.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Del Shannon {{!}} American musician|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Del-Shannon|access-date=2020-06-21|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> He learned to play the [[ukulele]] and guitar and listened to [[country music|country-and-western music]] by artists such as [[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 for a furniture factory. He found part-time work as a rhythm guitarist in singer Doug DeMott's group, The Moonlight Ramblers, working at the Hi-Lo Club.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.delshannon.com/hiloclub.htm |title=The Hi-Lo Club |publisher=Delshannon.com |date=September 29, 1990 |access-date=August 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516214603/http://delshannon.com/hiloclub.htm |archive-date=May 16, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

When DeMott was fired in 1958 for drunkenness, Westover took over as leader and singer, giving himself the name '''Charlie Johnson''' and renaming the band the Big Little Show Band.<ref name=del>{{cite web|url=http://www.delshannon.com/fulllengthbiography.htm |title=Full Length Biography |publisher=Delshannon.Com |access-date=August 18, 2015}}</ref> In early 1959 he added the keyboardist [[Max Crook]], who played an instrument he called a Musitron (an early synthesizer of Crook's own invention, though modeled on the commercially released [[Clavioline]]<ref name="SOS_March07">{{cite magazine |ref={{sfnref|Sound On Sound|(March 2007)}} |last=Reid |first=Gordon |title=The Story of the Clavioline |url=https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/story-clavioline#para6 |magazine= [[Sound on Sound]]|publication-date= March 2007|access-date=January 22, 2018}}</ref>). Crook had made recordings, and he persuaded [[Ann Arbor]] disc jockey Ollie McLaughlin to listen to 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 for [[Bigtop Records]]. 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.<ref name=del/>

===Success===
[[File:Del Shannon - Cash Box 1961.jpg|thumb|Shannon on the cover of ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]]'', 29 July 1961]]
He flew to New York City, but his first sessions were not successful. McLaughlin then persuaded Shannon and Crook to rewrite and re-record one of their earlier songs, originally called "Little Runaway", using the [[Clavioline|Musitron]] as lead instrument. On January 21, 1961, they recorded "Runaway", which was released as a single in February 1961, reaching number 1 on the ''[[Billboard magazine|Billboard]]'' chart in April. Shannon followed with "[[Hats Off to Larry]]", which peaked at number 5 on the ''Billboard'' chart and number 2 on the ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]]'' chart in 1961, and the less popular "So Long, Baby", another song of breakup bitterness. "Runaway" and "Hats Off to Larry" were recorded in a day.<ref name=shannon>{{cite news|title=Shannon's Back—It's On the Record|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=December 20, 1981|page=M92}}</ref>

===Berlee Records and Amy Records===
By August 1963, Shannon's relationship with his managers and Bigtop had soured, so he formed his own label, Berlee Records, named after his parents.<ref>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Brian|title=The Complete Recordings 1960–70. Del Shannon, "Home and Away" (book accompanying the eight-CD box set)|publisher=[[Bear Family Records]]|year=2004|isbn=3-89916-078-9}}</ref>

He returned to the charts immediately with "[[Handy Man (song)|Handy Man]]" (a 1960 hit by [[Jimmy Jones (singer)|Jimmy Jones]]), "[[Do You Wanna Dance?]]" (a 1958 hit by [[Bobby Freeman]]), and two originals, "[[Keep Searchin']]"  (number 3 in the UK; number 9 in the U.S.), and "[[Stranger in Town (Del Shannon song)|Stranger in Town]]" (number 40 in the UK). In late 1964, Shannon produced a demo recording session for a young fellow Michigander named [[Bob Seger]], who would go on to stardom much later. Shannon gave [[Acetate disc|acetates]] of the session to [[Dick Clark]] (he had performed in one of Clark's tours, in 1965) and, by 1966, Seger was recording for Philadelphia's famed [[Cameo Records]], resulting in some regional hits, which eventually led to a deal with a major label, [[Capitol Records]]. Also in late 1964, Shannon paid tribute to one of his own musical idols with ''[[Del Shannon Sings Hank Williams]]'' (Amy Records 8004). The album was recorded in hard-core country honky-tonk style, and no singles were released. Shannon opened for [[Ike and Tina Turner]] at [[Dave Hull]]'s [[Hullabaloo (club)|Hullabaloo]] club in Los Angeles, California, on December 22, 1965.<ref>{{cite news|title=Del Shannon, Guests, Slated at Hullabaloo|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=December 22, 1965|page=E6}}</ref>

===Liberty Records, United Artists Records and Island Records===
Shannon signed with Liberty in 1966 and revived [[Toni Fisher]]'s "[[The Big Hurt (song)|The Big Hurt]]" and the [[the Rolling Stones|Rolling Stones]]' "Under My Thumb". [[Peter and Gordon]] released his song "[[I Go to Pieces]]" in 1965.<ref name=del/>

In September 1967, Shannon began laying down the tracks for ''[[The Further Adventures of Charles Westover]]'', which was highly regarded by fans and critics alike despite disappointing sales. The album yielded two 1968 singles, "Thinkin' It Over" and "Gemini". In October 1968, Liberty Records released their tenth (in the United States) and final Shannon single, a cover of [[Dee Clark]]'s 1961 hit "[[Raindrops (Dee Clark song)|Raindrops]]". This brought to a close a commercially disappointing period in Shannon's career. In 1972, he signed with [[United Artists Records|United Artists]] and recorded ''Live in England'', released in June 1973. Reviewer Chris Martin critiqued the album favourably, saying that Shannon never improvised, was always true to the original sounds of his music and that only [[Lou Christie]] rivaled his [[falsetto]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Del Shannon's River Still Flows|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=December 23, 1973|page=H-51}}</ref> In April 1975, he signed with [[Island Records]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Pop News|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=April 6, 1975|page=M-59}}</ref>

After he and his manager jointly sought back royalties for Shannon, [[Bug Music]] was founded in 1975 to administer his songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.songwriteruniverse.com/bug.htm |title=Fred Bourgoise of Bug Music |publisher=Songwriteruniverse.com |access-date=March 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320200414/http://www.songwriteruniverse.com/bug.htm |archive-date=March 20, 2012}}</ref> By 2011, when Bug was acquired by [[BMG Rights Management]], its catalogue had grown to include 250,000 compositions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2011/music/news/bmg-acquires-publisher-bug-music-1118042654/|title = BMG acquires publisher Bug Music|date = September 12, 2011}}</ref>

A 1976 article on Shannon's concert at the [[the Roxy Theatre|Roxy Theatre]] described the singer as "personal, pure and simple rock 'n' roll, dated but gratifyingly undiluted." Shannon sang some of his new rock songs along with classics like "Endless Sleep" and "The Big Hurt". The ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote, "Shannon's haunting vignettes of heartbreak and restlessness contain something of a cosmic undercurrent which has the protagonist tragically doomed to a bleak, shadowy struggle."<ref>{{cite news|author=Cromelin, Richard|title=At The Roxy—Undiluted Aura of Del Shannon|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=January 21, 1976|page=E11}}</ref>

===Later career===
Shannon's career slowed down greatly in the 1970s, owing in part to his alcoholism.<ref name="Del Shannon Biography">{{cite web|url=http://www.delshannon.com/delbio.htm |title=Full Length Biography |publisher=Delshannon.Com |access-date=August 18, 2015}}</ref> The Welsh rock singer [[Dave Edmunds]] produced the single "And the Music Plays On" in 1974.<ref name=del/> In 1978 Shannon stopped drinking and began work on "Sea of Love", released in 1982 on his album ''Drop Down and Get Me'', produced by [[Tom Petty]]. The album took two years to record and featured Petty's band, the Heartbreakers, backing Shannon. However, [[RSO Records]], to which Shannon was signed, folded. Further work on the LP was done for [[Al Coury#Network Records label|Network Records]] (distributed by [[Elektra Records]]). Seven songs are Shannon originals with covers of songs recorded by the [[Everly Brothers]], the [[the Rolling Stones|Rolling Stones]], and [[Frankie Ford]], along with [[Sea of Love (Phil Phillips song)|"Sea of Love"]] by [[Phil Phillips]]. It was Shannon's first album in eight years.<ref name=shannon/>

In February 1982, Shannon appeared at the [[the Bottom Line (venue)|Bottom Line]]. He performed pop-rock tunes and old hits. Stephen Holden, a reviewer for ''[[The New York Times]]'', described an "easygoing pop-country" style. On "Runaway" and "Keep Searchin'", Shannon and his band rediscovered the sound "in which his keen falsetto played off against airy organ [[obbligato]]s." In the 1980s, Shannon performed "competent but mundane country-rock".<ref>{{cite news|title=Pop:Del Shannon, 60's Teen-Age Star|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 22, 1982|page=C16}}</ref>

Shannon had a resurgence of popularity after re-recording "Runaway" with new lyrics as the theme for the [[NBC-TV]] program ''[[Crime Story (American TV series)|Crime Story]]''. In 1988, Shannon sang "The World We Know" with the [[the Smithereens|Smithereens]] on their album ''[[Green Thoughts]]''. Two years later, he recorded with [[Jeff Lynne]] of the [[Electric Light Orchestra]], and there were rumors he would join the [[the Traveling Wilburys|Traveling Wilburys]] after the death of [[Roy Orbison]].<ref name="Del Shannon Biography"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Washburn |first=Jim |date=1989-04-07 |title=Never a 'Runaway' : Rocker Del Shannon's Still Writing, Recording, Performing Worldwide |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-04-07-ca-1314-story.html |access-date=2023-03-03 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Previously, in 1975, Shannon had recorded tracks with Lynne, along with "In My Arms Again", a country song he wrote and recorded for [[Warner Bros. Records]], which had signed Shannon in 1984.<ref name=del/>

==Death and legacy==
In January 1990, Shannon was pushing himself to finish a new album and schedule upcoming concerts, resulting in troublesome stress. On the advice of his doctor, on January 24, Shannon began taking [[Prozac]], an antidepressant. Fifteen days later, he died by suicide, shooting himself with a [[.22 caliber]] rifle at his home in [[Santa Clarita, California]], on February 8, 1990.<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=1997|edition=Concise|isbn=1-85227-745-9|page=1075}}</ref> "He was very much in charge of his business, but within days after he started taking Prozac I noticed a personality change in him. He developed severe insomnia, extreme fatigue, chills, racing heart, dry mouth, and upset stomach," testified LeAnne Westover, Shannon's widow. "Suicide was totally out of character for my husband. There was no note and no goodbye."<ref>LeAnne Westover, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiF4Pd6rat8&ab_channel=INTERNATIONALCOALITIONFORDRUGAWARENESS testimony before the Food and Drug Administration], Sept. 1991.</ref>

Following his death, the Wilburys honored him by recording a version of "Runaway".<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Bak |first=Richard |date=2011-06-30 |title=Del Shannon's 'Runaway' Success Led to His Downfall |url=https://www.hourdetroit.com/community/del-shannons-runaway-success-led-to-his-downfall/ |access-date=2023-03-03 |website=Hour Detroit Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>  Jeff Lynne also co-produced Shannon's posthumous album, ''Rock On'', released by [[Silvertone Records (1980)|Silvertone Records]] in 1991.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.elofanclub.es/lynneprod.html |title=Jeff Lynne Produces Final Album by Del Shannon |publisher=Jeff Lynne website |access-date=April 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403014920/http://www.elofanclub.es/lynneprod.html |archive-date=April 3, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Shannon was inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in 1999<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rockhall.com/inductees/del-shannon |title=Del Shannon: Inducted in 1999 |publisher=The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. |access-date=June 17, 2012}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> and into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2005.<ref>{{Cite web |title=MRRL Hall of fame – Del Shannon |url=https://www.michiganrockandrolllegends.com/mrrl-hall-of-fame/73-del-shannon |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190905214626/https://www.michiganrockandrolllegends.com/mrrl-hall-of-fame/73-del-shannon |archive-date=2019-09-05 |website=Michigan Rock and Roll Legends}}</ref>

A Del Shannon Memorial Scholarship Fund was set up following Shannon's death.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2009/11/coopersville_historical_museum.html|title=Coopersville Historical Museum, Del Shannon Memorial Scholarship Fund get $5,000 donations|last=Cammel|first=Ron|date=November 26, 2009|website=Mlive.com|language=en-US|access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref> [[Coopersville, Michigan]], holds an annual Del Shannon Car Show.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/2010/08/coopersvilles_annual_del_shann.html|title=Coopersville's annual Del Shannon festival and car show, Kent County Youth Fair kick off Monday|date=August 8, 2010|website=Mlive.com|language=en-US|access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.coopersvilleandmarne.org/summerfestwristbandrides.php|title=Coopersville & Marne Railway – Del Shannon Memorial Car Show Shuttle Service|website=Coopersvilleandmarne.org|access-date=June 20, 2019|archive-date=June 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190620141026/https://www.coopersvilleandmarne.org/summerfestwristbandrides.php|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://visitgrandhaven.com/events/annual-events/del-shannon-days/|title=Del Shannon Days & Car Show|website=Grandhaven.com|language=en-US|access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref>

== Discography ==
{{further|Del Shannon discography}}
*''[[Runaway with Del Shannon]]'' (June 1961)<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Del Shannon Albums and Discography |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/del-shannon-mn0000194018/discography |access-date=2023-03-04 |website=AllMusic |language=en}}</ref>
*''[[Hats Off to Del Shannon]]'' (May 1963)<ref name=":0" /> – not issued in US. UK, New Zealand and Australia only 
*''[[Little Town Flirt (album)|Little Town Flirt]]'' (June 1963) ([[Billboard 200|US]] #12)<ref name="Awards">{{cite web|title=Del Shannon - Awards|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/del-shannon-mn0000194018/awards|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=6 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120928145107/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/del-shannon-mn0000194018/awards|archive-date=September 28, 2012}}</ref>
*''[[Handy Man (Del Shannon album)|Handy Man]]'' (October 1964)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[Del Shannon Sings Hank Williams]]'' (February 1965)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[1,661 Seconds With Del Shannon]]'' (April 1965)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[This Is My Bag]]'' (July 1966)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[Total Commitment]]'' (October 1966)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[The Further Adventures of Charles Westover]]'' (March 1968)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[Live in England]]''<ref name=":0" /> (June 1973)
*''...And the Music Plays On'' (1978)<ref name=":0" /><ref name="Del Shannon Biography" />
*''[[Drop Down and Get Me]]'' (October 1981) (US #123)<ref name="Awards"/>
*''[[Rock On! (Del Shannon album)|Rock On!]]'' (October 1991)<ref name=":0" />
*''[[Home and Away (album)|Home and Away]]'' (recorded in 1967, released in 2006)<ref>{{cite web |title=Home and Away Studio Session Photos |url=http://www.delshannon.com/homeandawaystudio.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303204509/http://www.delshannon.com/homeandawaystudio.htm |archive-date=2016-03-03 |accessdate=April 27, 2015 |work=Del Shannon Enterprises official website}}</ref>
*''[[The Dublin Sessions]]'' (recorded in 1977, released in July 2017)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Literature==
* {{cite web |first1=Richard |last1=Bak |url=http://www.hourdetroit.com/Hour-Detroit/July-2011/The-Flip-Side-of-Success/ |title=Del Shannon's Runaway Success Led to his Downfall |publisher=Hour Detroit |date=July 2011 |access-date=August 17, 2011}}
* {{cite book |first1=Howard A. |last1=DeWitt |title=Stranger in Town: The Musical Life of Del Shannon |place=Dubuque, Iowa |publisher=Kendall/Hunt Publ. |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7872-8854-9}}

==External links==
{{cc}}
* {{official website|http://www.delshannon.com/}}
* {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p5407}}
* {{Discogs artist|229195-Del-Shannon}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0788272}}

{{Del Shannon}}
{{1999 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shannon, Del}}
[[Category:1934 births]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:1990 suicides]]
[[Category:20th-century American singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American rock singers]]
[[Category:American rock songwriters]]
[[Category:Dunhill Records artists]]
[[Category:Elektra Records artists]]
[[Category:Island Records artists]]
[[Category:Liberty Records artists]]
[[Category:Musicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan]]
[[Category:People from Ottawa County, Michigan]]
[[Category:People from Santa Clarita, California]]
[[Category:Rock and roll musicians]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from California]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from Michigan]]
[[Category:Suicides by firearm in California]]
[[Category:United Artists Records artists]]
[[Category:United States Army soldiers]]