J. Frank Wilson

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For the American congressman, see J. Frank Wilson (politician).

J. Frank Wilson (December 11, 1941 - October 4, 1991) , was the lead vocalist for J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers.

Born in Lufkin, Texas, he joined the Cavaliers after his discharge from Goodfellow Air Force Base (San Angelo, Texas) in 1962. The Cavaliers' first number-one hit was Last Kiss. First released on Le Cam (722) and then on Tamara (761), it was released in June of 1964 on Josie Records (Josie 923). It reached the Top 10 in October — eventually earning the band a gold record.

Last Kiss was written by Wayne Cochran, who had based the song on a car accident in Barnesville, Georgia near where he lived. The song was originally performed by Wayne Cochran & the C.C. Riders with little success.

While they recorded many more songs [1], the band charted with only one other song, Hey, Little One, which reached #85.

Wilson, with or without the Cavaliers, continued to release records at least through 1978. While he continued to tour and play he, like Del Shannon, never got over his disappointment with his sagging career. Wilson died on October 4, 1991, from prolonged alcoholism.