The man who sang “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,” “Town Without Pity,” and “24 Hours From Tulsa” was found dead in his hotel room his morning, after having played a show the previous evening. Pitney had been on tour in the UK, where he’d maintained a significant level of popularity since duetting with Soft Cell frontman Marc Almond on a cover of his ’60s hit, “Something’s Gotten Hold Of My Heart.”
In tribute, I went immediately to CDBaby.com and ordered He’s A Rebel: The Gene Pitney Story Retold, which features covers of Pitney’s songs by the underground power pop community, including contributions from Mark Johnson, the Waking Hours, Michael Shelley, Chris Von Sneidern, Al Kooper, Ed James, Barry Holdship, and Jeremy, among others.
Goodbye, Gene.
