Freddie Garrity, popster

LONDON – Freddie Garrity, the lead singer of the 1960s pop band Freddie and the Dreamers, has died in a British hospital.

He was 69. Garrity’s band hit the top of the US charts with the 1965 hit ‘I’m Telling You Now’.The singer had suffered from emphysema for several years.Garrity, originally from Manchester, in northwest England, formed Freddie and the Dreamers in 1959, and they were signed to Columbia Records.Some success in Britain prompted work in the US and eventually American television appearances, and his exuberant on-stage performance led to a minor dance craze inspired by the hit song, ‘Do the Freddie’.Chubby Checker also recorded a cover version of the song.- Nampa-APGarrity’s band hit the top of the US charts with the 1965 hit ‘I’m Telling You Now’.The singer had suffered from emphysema for several years.Garrity, originally from Manchester, in northwest England, formed Freddie and the Dreamers in 1959, and they were signed to Columbia Records.Some success in Britain prompted work in the US and eventually American television appearances, and his exuberant on-stage performance led to a minor dance craze inspired by the hit song, ‘Do the Freddie’.Chubby Checker also recorded a cover version of the song.- Nampa-AP