Johnny Gentle

b. John Askew, 1941, Liverpool, England. Askew was a merchant seaman who sang as a semi-professional before he was spotted and rechristened by the celebrated '50s Svengali, Larry Parnes. Beginning with 1959's "Boys and Girls Were Meant for Each Other" on Philips Records, this square-jawed hunk's singles all missed the U.K. chart, but he was often seen on British television pop series such as Oh Boy and Drumbeat and was, therefore, guaranteed a period of well-paid one-nighters. His backing groups for these included fellow Merseysiders the Beatles and Cass and the Cassanovas with entertainments that embraced mutually familiar rock & roll standards and the simpler sides of Gentle's singles, such as the self-penned "Wendy." Without a recording contract in 1963, Gentle replaced Gordon Mills in the Viscounts before retiring from show business by the mid-'60s. Askew died on February 29, 2024, at the age of 87, taking Johnny Gentle with him.