Lou Christie, chart-topping singer and teen idol, dies aged 82
Breakthrough in 1963
Lou Christie was one of those voices you never forget — and boy, could he hit those high notes.
If you grew up in the 1960s, chances are you remember him not just for his chart-topping falsetto, but also for being quite the heartthrob back in the day.
Born Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco in Glenwillard, Pennsylvania, he got his start singing in a church choir before transforming into Lou Christie — a name that would soon be lighting up the pop charts. His breakthrough came in 1963 with “The Gypsy Cried,” and he followed it up with “Two Faces Have I.”
But it was the explosive hit “Lightnin’ Strikes,” co-written with musical partner Twyla Herbert, that cemented his place in pop history.
According to his official website, Lou Christie’s journey into music didn’t begin in some big-city recording studio — it started in a tiny two-track setup in his hometown of Glenwillard.
With no formal musical training, he relied purely on raw talent and passion.
In a 2016 interview with the Beaver County Times, Christie recalled his very first time performing in public — a first-grade Christmas pageant where he sang “Away in a Manger.”
”I thought everyone could sing,” he said. ”When I finished, I heard all this applause, and I was like, ‘Oh, what is this? This is kind of cool.’”
”I’m not a liquor drinker”
That moment, simple as it was, sparked something special — and the world would soon hear the voice that could stop people in their tracks.
“Lightnin’ Strikes” shot all the way to No. 1 in the U.S. and it hit that milestone on Lou Christie’s 23rd birthday, February 19.
