After an unsuccessful first single, the group were signed to Laurie Records. Their breakthrough came when "I Wonder Why" made # 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the group appeared for the first time on the Dick Clark TV show. They followed it with the ballads "No One Knows" (#19) and "Don't Pity Me" (#40).
This success won Dion and the Belmonts their first major tour in late 1958, with The Coasters, Buddy Holly and Bobby Darin, and this was followed up by the "Winter Dance Party" tour with 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. The plane crashed, and Holly and the other stars were killed. However, the tour continued, with Jimmy Clanton and Bobby Vee being added to the bill.
In March 1959, Dion and the Belmonts’ next single, "A Teenager in Love", was released, making #5 in the Billboard Hot 100 and #28 in the UK Singles Chart, and this was followed by an album, Presenting Dion and the Belmonts. Their biggest hit, "Where or When", was released in November 1959, and reached #3 on the U.S. chart.
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 disputes between Dion and members of the Belmonts, and in October 1960 Dion decided to quit for a solo career. The Belmonts also continued to release records, but with less success.
Dion and the Belmonts reunited in 1966 for the unsuccessful album Together Again on ABC Records, and again in 1972 for a one-off show at Madison Square Garden, recorded and released as a live album.
Teenager in Love
Dion & The Belmonts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cause I'm so afraid that we will have to part,
Each night I ask the stars up above,
Why must I be a teenager in love?
One day I feel so happy, next day I feel so sad.
I guess I'll learn to take the good with the bad.
Cause each night I ask the stars up above,
I cried a tear for nobody but you,
I'll be a lonely one, if you should say we're through.
Well, if you want to make me cry, that won't be so hard to do.
And if you should say goodbye, I'll still go on loving you.
Each night I ask the stars up above,
Why must I be a teenager in love?
I cried a tear for nobody but you,
I'll be a lonely one, if you should say we're through.
Well, if you want to make me cry, that won't be so hard to do.
And if you should say goodbye, I'll still go on loving you.
Each night I ask the stars up above
Why must I be a teenager in love?
Why must I be a teenager in love? (In love)
Why must I be a teenager in love? (In love)
Why must I be a teenager in love?
Dion & The Belmonts wrote and performed the classic hit song "A Teenager in Love" in 1959. The song became an instant hit and is now considered an archetype of the rock and roll genre. The lyrics to the song revolve around the innocence, insecurity, and vulnerability of teenage love. The singer is besotted with his love interest and is constantly asking the stars why he must go through the emotions of a teenager in love.
The song's simple, yet effective lyrics have a universal appeal, encapsulating the emotions that teenagers around the world experience when they fall in love. The song's opening line "Each time we have a quarrel, it almost breaks my heart, Cause I'm so afraid that we will have to part," speaks to the fear that young people often feel about the fragility of their relationships. Despite their passionate love for each other, they are still vulnerable, and a simple argument could cause their relationship to end.
The line "I cried a tear for nobody but you" highlights the intensity of the singer's emotions. He is willing to cry for nobody else but his love. The line, "I'll be a lonely one if you should say we're through," also demonstrates the depth of the singer's love. He is willing to bear the pain of a broken heart as long as he still has his love.
Overall, "A Teenager in Love" is a timeless song that still resonates with people of all ages to this day.
Line by Line Meaning
Each time we have a quarrel, it almost breaks my heart,
Whenever we argue, I get so upset that it feels like my heart will break.
Cause I'm so afraid that we will have to part,
I'm scared that our arguments will lead to us breaking up.
Each night I ask the stars up above,
Every night, I look up at the stars and ask the universe about my problems.
Why must I be a teenager in love?
I'm wondering why it's so hard to deal with these feelings of love as a teenager.
One day I feel so happy, next day I feel so sad.
My emotions are all over the place, and it's hard for me to stay positive sometimes.
I guess I'll learn to take the good with the bad.
I hope to learn how to balance my highs and lows in life.
I cried a tear for nobody but you,
I shed a tear because I care so much about you.
I'll be a lonely one, if you should say we're through.
If we break up, I know I'll be alone and it will be hard to move on.
Well, if you want to make me cry, that won't be so hard to do.
I'm so emotionally invested in you, it wouldn't take much to upset me.
And if you should say goodbye, I'll still go on loving you.
Even if you leave, I know I'll still have feelings for you.
Why must I be a teenager in love? (In love)
I'm still trying to understand why love as a teenager feels so intense and overwhelming.
Why must I be a teenager in love? (In love)
I can't help but wonder again, why is being a teenager and being in love so difficult?
Why must I be a teenager in love?
At the end of the day, I'm still questioning why love and adolescence have to be so complicated.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Doc Pomus, Mort Shuman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind