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Frankie Lymon (1942-1968) and the Teenagers were a New York doo wop group consisting of Joe Negroni, Herman Santiago, Jimmy Merchant, and Sherman Garnes, but centered around the extraordinary talents of their lead singer, 13-year-old Frankie Lymon. Lymon was credited with their first big hit, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (in the early '90s, a federal judge ruled after a lengthy trial that Lymon hadn't written "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" -- another member of the Teenagers had). His wise-beyond-his-years vocal and performing abilities not only made the Teenagers a group several notches above the competition but made Lymon the first Black teenage pop star. Though only together for a brief 18-month period, Lymon & the Teenagers exerted an enormous influence, spawning several "kid" vocal groups and providing initial inspiration to <a href="spotify:artist:4xRLKAf96K6YdGDWjY6ra8">Berry Gordy</a> to model his entire <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Motown%22">Motown</a> production approach around Lymon's original vocal style. Inexplicably, the group split into two factions at the height of their success, and neither had a hit again. Lymon died from a drug overdose at age 26. <a href="spotify:artist:3MdG05syQeRYPPcClLaUGl">Diana Ross</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0h9smro0z3HqUbD94jotU8">Smokey Robinson</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7mXnN0kZ67wigGTn1OuNkD">Len Barry</a>, and his principal protégé, <a href="spotify:artist:3fMbdgg4jU18AjLCKBhRSm">Michael Jackson</a> (whose early recordings with <a href="spotify:artist:2iE18Oxc8YSumAU232n4rW">the Jackson 5</a> are virtual re-creations of the early Lymon sound, merely updated) all show the influence of <a href="spotify:artist:40Zt6u0Ig5vXtrq0htgqvt">Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers</a>' groundbreaking work. ~ Cub Koda, Rovi
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