1) Dion DiMucci, 1960s Italian-… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least 2 artists named Dion:
1) Dion DiMucci, 1960s Italian-American singer
2) Dion, Australian rapper and member of 1Team
1. Dion Francis DiMucci (b July 18, 1939), better known as Dion, is an Italian-American singer-songwriter now widely recognized as one of the top vocalists of his era, blending the best elements of doo-wop, traditional pop, and rnb styles, as well as a forerunner in the development of rock and roll.
Early years
Dion was born to an Italian-American family in the Bronx borough of New York City. As a child, he used to accompany his father, a vaudeville entertainer, on tour, and developed a love of country music – particularly Hank Williams – and the blues and doo-wop stars he heard in local bars and on the radio. His singing abilities were honed on the street corners of Crotona Avenue, where he rounded up other local singers inventing acapella licks, and in local clubs.
In early 1957 he auditioned for Bob and Gene Schwartz, who had just formed Mohawk Records. They recorded him with a vocal group, The Timberlanes, and released a single "The Chosen Few", arranged by Hugo Montenegro, which became a minor regional hit.
With the Belmonts, 1957-1960
Schwartz also signed up Dion's friends, The Belmonts, named after nearby Belmont Avenue. Their breakthrough together came in early 1958, when "I Wonder Why" made # 22 on the national US charts, followed up with "No One Knows" and "Don’t Pity Me" which were also chart hits.
This success won Dion and the Belmonts a place on the "Winter Dance Party" tour with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. On 2 February 1959, after playing at Clear Lake, Iowa, Dion decided that he could not afford the $36 cost of a flight to the next venue [1]. The plane crashed, and Holly and the other stars were killed.
In March 1959, Dion and the Belmonts’ next single, "A Teenager In Love", was released, making # 5 in the US pop charts and # 28 in the UK. Their biggest hit, "Where or When", was released in November 1959, and reached #3 on the US charts. However, in early 1960, Dion checked in to hospital for heroin addiction, a problem he had had since his mid-teens. Further single releases for the group that year were less successful, there were musical and financial differences between Dion and members of the Belmonts, and in October 1960 Dion decided to quit for a solo career.
Solo stardom, 1960-1964
1961 album coverBy the end of 1960, Dion had recorded and released his first solo album, Alone With Dion, and the single "Lonely Teenager", which rose to # 12 in the US charts. Follow-ups "Havin’ Fun" and "Kissin’ Game" had less success, and the signs were that Dion would drift onto the cabaret circuit. However, he then recorded, with new vocal group the Del-Satins, an up-tempo number co-written with Ernie Maresca. The record, "Runaround Sue", stormed up the charts, reaching # 1 in the US charts in September 1961, and # 11 in the UK, where he also toured.
For the next single, the record company promoted the A-side, "The Majestic", but it was the B-side, Maresca’s song "The Wanderer", which received the radio plays and again rose swiftly up the charts, reaching # 2 in the US charts in December 1961 and # 10 in the UK. As a classic oldie, it made the UK top twenty again in 1976.
By the end of 1961, Dion was a major star, with a worldwide touring schedule, and he followed up with a string of hit singles – "Lovers Who Wander" (# 3), "Little Diane" (# 8), "Love Came To Me" (# 10) and "Ruby Baby" (# 2) all making the top ten in 1962. Several of these were written or co-written by Dion. He also had successful albums with Runaround Sue and Lovers Who Wander.
At the end of 1962, Dion moved from Laurie to Columbia Records, the first rock and roll artist ever signed to that label. Although the first single, Leiber and Stoller’s "Ruby Baby", was a big hit, reaching # 2, several follow-ups were less so, although "Donna the Prima Donna" and "Drip Drop" both reached # 6 in the charts in late 1963. Nevertheless, problems with his addiction and changing public tastes did cause him to enter a period of commercial decline.
Changing fortunes, 1964-1968
Following a European tour, Dion returned to the USA and was introduced to classic blues music by Columbia’s John Hammond. To the consternation of his management, he began recording more blues-oriented material, including Willie Dixon’s "Hoochie Coochie Man" and "Spoonful", but these releases – some produced by Tom Wilson, with Al Kooper on keyboards - were not commercially successful.
In 1966, Dion briefly reunited with the Belmonts for the album Together Again on ABC Records. Again, this bombed, despite one classic self-penned song, "My Girl The Month Of May". Although by this stage Dion’s career appeared to be nearing an end, he retained enough credibility to be, along with Bob Dylan, the only pop artist featured on the album cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967.
In April 1968, Dion had a powerful religious experience. After getting clean from drug use, he approached Laurie Records for a new contract, and they agreed on condition that he record the song "Abraham, Martin and John", written by Dick Holler (also the writer of The Royal Guardsmen’s "Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron") in response to the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert F Kennedy during the summer of 1968. The success of this song – later recorded by many others including Marvin Gaye – which reached # 4 in the US charts, resuscitated Dion’s career.
The mature period, 1968-1986
Born To Be With You, 1975For the next few years, Dion’s music became radically different, moving to more contemplative and mature material. He released several albums essentially as a singer-songwriter, to critical acclaim but moderate sales, moving to the Warner Brothers label in 1969.
There followed a one-off live reunion show with the Belmonts at Madison Square Garden in 1972, released on album. This was followed in 1975 by the album Born To Be With You, eccentrically produced by Phil Spector. The album was a commercial failure, but has been subsequently praised by such artists as Jason Pierce of Spiritualized and Pete Townshend of The Who.
In 1978 Dion released an album drawing on many of his teenage influences, Return of the Wanderer, another critical success and commercial failure. In December 1979 he experienced a life-changing religious experience, documented in this article [1]. Thereafter, his recordings for several years were in a contemporary Christian music vein, in which he released a number of albums on the Dayspring label reflecting his religious convictions.
Recent work
In 1987 Dion agreed to do a concert of his old hits at Radio City Music Hall in New York. This helped free him to celebrate both his past and his future, and led to a series of special appearances, including a fundraiser for homeless medical relief. There he shared the stage with fans such as Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon and Lou Reed, all of whom cited Dion as one of their prime influences.
In 1988 Dion's autobiography (co-authored by Davin Seay) titled The Wanderer: Dion's Story was published. In the following year, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the induction speech being given by Lou Reed.
In 1989 he returned to secular rock music with the album Yo Frankie, and since then has released several albums with contemporary rock artists. His Déjà Nu album in 2000 found him covering Bruce Springsteen, a major follower over the years.
He joined Scott Kempner of the Del-Lords and Mike Mesaros of The Smithereens in a short-lived band called Little Kings. A live album was later released, but not widely circulated or promoted.
In January 2006 he released Bronx in Blue, an album of blues and country standards, which was critically acclaimed and nominated for a Grammy. As a practicing Catholic, Dion pursues prison ministry and reaches out to men going through addiction recovery.
www.diondimucci.com/
2. Dion is a musician from Sydney, Australia. Currently, he is part of the 1Team music collective alongside Joeyy, Bic Flame, Facy, B9 and Shotti. Dion has been active since 2016, though he has essentially quit music twice, with large time gaps between any new releases.
(as best we know) Dion has a producer alter-ego: Avail, previously known as Deadman.
Dion frequently collaborates with Sudi (another Sydney based artist), Scrap Club (a collective from Stockholm, Sweden) and Redpriest.
Lonely Teenager
Dion Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
When I was 16 ran away
All alone on a stray
What can I do what can I say
I'm a lonely teenager
Now I'm 17 still alone
Or maybe stay out on my own
I'm a lonely teenager
I'd love to go back home (back home)
Where I belong (back home)
I know I'd be alright
If I just stay out of sight
I want to go home
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
(I want to go back home
Just let me go back home)
I'd love to go back home (back home)
Where I belong (back home)
I know I'd be alright
If I just stay out of sight
I want to go home
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
(I want to go back home
Please let me go back home)
Lonely teenager...[Fade]
The lyrics of Dion's song "Lonely Teenager" reveal a young person's longing for the comfort and familiarity of home. The singer is a runaway teenager who has been on their own for a year, first at 16 and now at 17. The feeling of loneliness is palpable throughout the song, especially in the repeated phrase "I'm a lonely teenager." However, the lyrics also suggest a conflicted sense of independence and uncertainty about whether to return home or continue to strike out on one's own.
The singer expresses the desire to "go back home" and "stay out of sight" suggesting that they are aware of the trouble they have caused or the disappointment they may have caused to those they left behind. Still, there is a sense that the teenager isn't quite ready to give up the freedom and adventure of being on their own. The final lines, "Just let me go back home/ Please let me go back home" are sung with a sense of desperation, as if the singer is now ready to admit that they can no longer make it alone.
Line by Line Meaning
I want to go home
The singer desires to return to their place of origin.
Where I belong
The singer longs to rejoin their loved ones and community.
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
The singer feels lonely and disconnected from the world as a result of leaving home.
When I was 16 ran away
The artist left home at the age of 16 without permission.
All alone on a stray
The artist was left to fend for themselves without any guidance or support.
What can I do what can I say
The singer feels helpless and uncertain about their future.
I'm a lonely teenager
The singer is a young person who lacks companionship and feels isolated from others.
Now I'm 17 still alone
The artist has been away from home for a year and remains without any companionship.
Wondering if I should go home
The artist is unsure whether to return home or not.
Or maybe stay out on my own
The artist is considering the possibility of remaining independent and continuing to live on their own.
I'd love to go back home (back home)
The singer deeply desires to return to their place of origin.
If I just stay out of sight
The artist believes that they would be able to avoid whatever led them to leave home if they were not visible.
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager (I want to go back home / Just let me go back home)
The singer is experiencing a sense of longing and desperation to return home and be among loved ones.
Lonely teenager...
The singer concludes the song by reiterating their loneliness and desire to return home.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music
Written by: BOBBIE CARROL, CHARLES FORESTER, MARY BARFIELD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@DaRedBaron2001
I want to go home
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
When I was 16 ran away
All alone on a stray
What can I do what can I say
I'm a lonely teenager
Now I'm 17 still alone
Wondering if I should go home
Or maybe stay out on my own
I'm a lonely teenager
I'd love to go back home (back home)
Where I belong (back home)
I know I'd be alright
If I just stay out of sight
I want to go home
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
(I want to go back home
Just let me go back home)
I'd love to go back home (back home)
Where I belong (back home)
I know I'd be alright
If I just stay out of sight
I want to go home
Where I belong
'Cause now I'm just a lonely teenager
(I want to go back home
Please let me go back home)
Lonely teenager...[Fade]
@mihael2270
17, on the train alone coming back home in northen Italy after three days spent in Rome during a not so romantic adventure; Listening to this song gave me a funny feeling.
@onikalyons9968
Hey
@Raszcal
I got this teleporter here, who wants to come with me to the late 50's?
@JosephN.
I'll join you for that ride. So long as you got a way back, so help me I'm not getting drafted into 'Nam.
@dannyhernandez265
Make that 1 more...
@Raszcal
+danny hernandez Ahhw yeah let's do this! ;)
@davidd8583
Wait a second wait for me!
@dannysordello
Count me in!!
@nuclearaurora
I’m one of the few people in my generation who really likes this type of music. I’m 16 and am currently in high school and I’m glad I get to through my teenage years listening to this amazing music.
@renovatioimperii4175
Enjoy those days kid. I remember when I was younger Dion was always so appealing to me and I was once that lonely teenager. Who would have guessed that this song would be listened by teens 50 years later