Born Robert Louis Ridarelli in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and as a preteen, he was on the Paul Whiteman show singing and doing imitations. As a teenager, he played with Frankie Avalon in a band known as Rocco and the Saints. He was later signed with Cameo Records and became an international star. In 1962, he was in the movie, Bye Bye Birdie with Ann Margret and Dick Van Dyke.

During the 1960s, he had 34 hits on Billboard magazine's top 40 including perhaps his most popular, the 1960 hit, "Wild One." Other songs include, "Volare", "Swingin' School", "Kissin' Time", "Sway", and "Forget Him". He still performs today to SRO crowds.