It really is about a girl who was kind of loose in the neighbourhood. The word Sue just fit for the song – you couldn’t use Roberta, or Alice, or whatever. I’m not going to mention who it’s really about, but between you and I, the girl called in to an interview show I was on about 20 years ago. She had married a rabbi, had six kids and sounded wonderful! And I thought how good it was to hear from her, you know. Chalk it up to being young and foolish, a lot of young people are, but she turned out wonderful.
– Dion
I was reunited with the legendary ‘doo-wop’ Runaround Sue when I read fellow blogger, Nancy’s article attached at the end of this post. Here are some extracts from her first – hand observations growing up on Belmont Avenue in the Bronx, NY just a smidgen after Dion DiMucci’s time there:
We’d usually go to Sal’s Pizzeria on Belmont Avenue where the pizza was like nothing you ever tasted. It was thin and soft and light as a feather. On just about every street corner, doo-wop groups would gather and sing song after song and everyone would dance. Man, those were some of the best times.
One singer from Belmont Avenue (sadly a little before my time) was an Italian kid named Dion DiMucci. Dion’s dad Pasquale was a vaudeville entertainer and Dion would accompany him whenever he went on tour. Dion developed a love of country music, particularly Hank Williams, but he was really into the blues, doo-wop and rock and roll. His singing was honed on the street corners and local clubs of the Bronx…
This success won a place for Dion and the Belmonts on the ill-fated “The Winter Dance Party” tour with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper and other performers. On February 3, 1959, after a concert stop in Clear Lake, Iowa, Buddy Holly and the others decided to charter a flight to the next venue rather than travel on the tour bus. Dion was invited to accompany the group but declined when he heard the price of the ticket was $36. That was the same amount of money his parents spent for one month’s rent for their apartment and Dion couldn’t justify the expense.
In 1961 Dion released “Runaround Sue” which stormed up the U.S. charts, reaching No. 1 and No. 11 in the UK, where he also toured. “Runaround Sue” sold over a million copies and was followed by “The Wanderer” another big hit for Dion.
In 2024, at the age of 84, Dion is still recording new songs and his career is going strong.
(For more information on the latest from Dion I point you to two articles from another blogger friend, Christian: The Wanderer Continues to March On and Dion Releases Incredible Blues Album)
Without further ado, I present Nancy’s dazzling article on the origins of Runaround Sue. Much like the pizza from her hometown, this article is so rich, you can practically taste the music in the air where she grew up.
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
Observation Blogger 
Thanks for the shoutout and linking to my two posts. “Runaround Sue” is a nice doo-wop song. I knew it but didn’t realize it was by Dion. For the longest time, I had only known him because of “The Wanderer.” It wasn’t until four years ago when the first of his two most recent albums came out that I realized Dion not only is still active but also remains a compelling artist!
I was surprised to read that you weren’t aware this song was by Dion. I’ll turn this on its head because I didn’t know until researching the song that he sung The Wanderer – so there goes.
It’s impressive how long Dion has remained relevant and still producing good material.