“By the time I was 20, I had 12 gold records on the
wall, and I’d made a couple of million dollars, but I was empty. Something was
missing. But when Christ came in to my life, I understood who he was – that God
stepped in to history for a reason. When you open up to the wonder and awe and
mystery of life, and find out that God is a reality, it fills you. It filled my
heart, my mind and my spirit. I’ve never looked back. I thank God for what he
did for me.”—Rock ‘n’ roll singer-songwriter Dion DiMucci, on his conversion
experience, quoted in Rory Fitzgerald, “The Rock Star Who Met Christ on a Jog,” The
Christian Herald (U.K.), March
30, 2012
Today I celebrate Dion DiMucci, born 80 years ago today in The Bronx. He is best
known for hits like “Teenager in Love,” “Runaround Sue,” “The Wanderer,” “Ruby,
Ruby,” and “Abraham, Martin and John.”
He could also take a song strongly associated with someone
else—Tom Waits’ “The Heart of Saturday Night”—and make it all his own with an exultant
doo-wop rendition.
Maybe some of the unrestrained joy displayed in the latter
record resulted from Dion’s salvation from a harrowing heroin addiction. In any
case, I’m sure his fans are celebrating the idea of the longevity of this Rock ‘n’
Roll Hall of Famer.
No comments:
Post a Comment