The Newark barber whose countertenor powered the Four Seasons

Frankie Valli was born Francesco Castelluccio in Newark, New Jersey, the eldest of three sons of a barber who also designed displays for Lionel model trains. At seven he decided to be a singer after his mother took him to see Frank Sinatra at the Paramount Theater in Manhattan. He worked as a barber until music could support him, and he took his stage name from “Texas” Jean Valli, a female hillbilly singer who mentored him.

His birth year is itself a small mystery. Publicity long used 1937, and his bandmates’ birth dates were also adjusted later than reality to appeal to a younger audience. Valli did not address the matter until 2007, and other sources, including a 1965 mug shot, give 1934. He started singing professionally in 1951 with the Variety Trio, which included Nickie and Tommy DeVito.

The Four Seasons turned him into a star. With Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi and Bob Gaudio he scored 29 top-40 hits, and his unusually powerful countertenor voice carried number-one singles such as “Sherry”, “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, “Walk Like a Man” and “Rag Doll”. A later hit, “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)”, reached number one in 1975. Alongside the group he had a solo career with nine top-40 hits, including the chart-toppers “My Eyes Adored You” and “Grease”. His recording of “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” reached number two in 1967.

The recognition came late and in layers. The original Four Seasons entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999, and Valli was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2010. In May 2024 he and the group received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In February 2025 came a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, his first Grammy of any kind.