Dion & The Belmonts

The Belmonts were an American doo-wop group from the Bronx, New York, that originated in the mid-1950s. The original group consisted of Angelo D'Aleo, Carlo Mastrangelo, and Fred Milano. They took their name from Belmont Avenue, the Bronx street in which Mastrangelo lived, known as the Little Italy of the Bronx. From 1957 to 1960, Dion DiMucci served as lead vocalist, during which the group was billed as Dion and the Belmonts. At this time Mastrangelo sang the bass parts, Milano the second tenor, D'Aleo the falsetto, and DiMucci did lead vocals. During this period, the group released four studio albums and one live album, charting numerous songs on the Billboard Hot 100. The group briefly had limited success after DiMucci's departure, charting several moderate and minor hits during the early 1960s with Mastrangelo on lead vocals. Mastrangelo was replaced in 1962 by Frank Lyndon and Warren Gradus, but the original group reunited in 1966, and thereafter performed together in numerous reunions over the years. They occasionally recorded new singles into the 1980s and performed live into the 21st century. Gradus continued performing live under the moniker until his death in October 2023.