He is a singer-songwriter born Thomas David Roe in Atlanta, Georgia, who initially started working wiring solder at the General Electric Company when he left school.
He entered the charts with a bullet in 1962 with a song he had penned when he was fourteen called “Sheila”. It was actually the side B of a record he had cut in Nashville with producer Felton Jarvis. Side A was called “Save Your Kisses” but it soon became clear which side disk jockeys, and audiences, preferred. ” Sheila” went to #1.
Five more top-ten hits would follow before the decade was out, culminating with “Dizzy” in 1969. A year later, he would crack the top forty for the last time, with “Jam Up And Jelly Tight”. Although he is regarded by many as a bubble-gum artist, this may just be a reflection of his handful of hits.
A psychedelic 1967 LP titled It’s Now Winters Day went largely ignored. He also dabbled in country and wrote tunes for The Tams, and has been honoured by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.
In the ’60s, he toured the U.K. with Chris Montez and The Beatles. Tommy is married to a French actress, Josette Banzet, a Golden-Globe winner for her supporting role in the 1976 mini-series, Rich Man, Poor Man. They live in Beverly Hills, California, and Roe continues to tour and recorded as recently as 2005.
He has sold over sixty million records in his lifetime, has four gold records to show for it, and was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. He announced his retirement in February 2018.
Tommy Roe recordings
Dizzy (Tommy Roe/Freddy Weller)
ABC Records – 45-11164 (US)
Sheila (Tommy Roe)
ABC-Paramount 45-10329 (AMP 45-10787)
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