‘60s Rocker Del Shannon an Apparent Suicide Victim

Rock singer Del Shannon, who topped music charts in 1961 with the song “Runaway,” was found dead Thursday, an apparent suicide, authorities said today.

Shannon, 55, was found about 11:25 p.m. by his wife, Bonnie, in the den of his home in the affluent Santa Clarita Valley enclave of Sand Canyon. The singer died from a gunshot wound to the head that appeared to be self-inflicted, said Deputy Bill Linnemeyer of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

A .22-caliber rifle lay by Shannon’s side, Linnemeyer said. He said no suicide note was found.

Sheriff’s homicide detectives were investigating Shannon’s death this morning, and an autopsy was planned.

Before adopting the stage name Del Shannon, the singer was known as Charles Weeden Westover. With his falsetto voice, Shannon became a major star on the American rock scene prior to the British rock ‘n’ roll band invasion of the early 1960s.

Shannon, who was born in Grand Rapids, Mich., began his music career by singing in clubs in his home state after his discharge from the Army in 1959.

His first hit came in 1961, with the gold record “Runaway.” The song topped music charts for four weeks in 1961. It was his biggest hit.

Although he never duplicated that success, Shannon hit the charts with “Do You Want to Dance,” “Keep Searchin’,” and “Hey Little Girl.”

Other songs included “Hats Off to Larry,” “Little Town Flirt” and “Handy Man.” He also composed the 1965 hit “I Go to Pieces” for the English duo Peter and Gordon.

In 1982, Shannon attempted an unsuccessful comeback with the album “Drop Down and Get Me.” It was the old Shannon people wanted to hear, and the singer worked throughout the 1980s singing his hits from two decades earlier.

“He was somebody who still had a lot of talent and a lot to contribute, but apparently couldn’t find an outlet for it,” Jay Rose, a disc jockey for KODJ, an oldies radio station in Los Angeles, told United Press International.