This quartet of Italian-Americans was originally known as the The Four Lovers and they enjoyed some modest successes with their quasi doo-wop sound in the 1950s. It wasn’t until Bob Gaudio, a talented songwriter, joined Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi that things really started to cook.

The newly christened Four Seasons—named after a bowling alley in New Jersey—recorded Gaudio’s song, “Sherry”, which quickly rose to #1 in the pop charts and stayed there for five weeks. The following single, “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, also topped the charts, in both pop and R&B. Gaudio’s songs were splendid vehicles for Valli’s unbelievably high falsetto singing, a signature sound to this day. A third single, “Walk Like a Man”—released in 1963 repeated its predecessors’ success and became a smash #1. Truly on a roll after these three consecutive hits, the Four Seasons covered the Fats Domino tune “Ain’t That a Shame” which only made the Top 40. Their fortunes took an upswing with the next release: the calypso-flavored “Candy Girl” went to #3.

In 1964, the British Invasion besieged American audiences but the Four Seasons weathered the onslaught with panache. In fact, it was one of their most triumphant years with no less than six songs squarely in the Top 20 and one more in the Top 40. Some of the best selling singles on the list were “Dawn”, “Stay”, “Ronnie” and “Rag Doll”, the latter going all the way to the #1 spot. British, shmitish.

The following year, the group provided their fans with further hits. “Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby, Goodbye)” hit #12 and the Motown-influenced “Let’s Hang On!” hung on to #3 for quite a while. The chart toppers continued to come in 1966 when the Four Seasons released “Working My Way Back To You” and “Opus 17 (Don’t You Worry ‘Bout Me)”, which had a decidedly classical flavor. The late 60s saw many more popular tunes from the group, most of them Top 10, 20 and 40 successes. Their style varied from the soulful “Beggin’” to a cover of the Shirelles’ catchy hit “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow”. In 1967, Frankie Valli had a solo hit with “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” but continued to tour with the group.

As the Four Seasons’ sales tapered, they experimented with psychedelic sounds—but really, who didn’t experiment in the 60s?—releasing Genuine Imitation Life Gazette, an odd album that came packaged with a made up, yet detailed, newspaper covering pertinent social issues. In the 70s, the group signed briefly with Motown Records but all their releases—an album and a few singles—failed dismally. The Four Seasons broke up soon after, but Valli and Gaudio continued their singing/writing partnership. One of their collaborations, the sentimental ballad “My Eyes Adored You”, became a #1 hit. The duo resurrected the Four Seasons with new members and had two major disco hits with “Who Loves You" and the memorable (and nostalgic), “December 1963 (Oh What a Night)”. Valli enjoyed further solo fame by performing the theme song from the movie musical Grease.

The Four Seasons continued to tour in the 80s and 90s but more importantly, their influence became apparent in the new crop of pop and rock artists. Many singers and bands, including Barry Manilow and the Bay City Rollers, re-recorded various Four Seasons classics and found their appeal undiminished by time.