'Ah! Leah!' Singer Donnie Iris Dies at 83 After Three-Year Battle With Bladder Cancer
PITTSBURGH — American rock singer Donnie Iris died on October 26 in Pennsylvania at the age of 83. Known for the Jaggerz's 1970 hit "The Rapper" and for "Ah! Leah!" with his own band, Donnie Iris and the Cruisers, he had battled bladder cancer for three years. Friends and a former bandmate confirmed his death to CBS and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, longtime concert promoter Rich Engler confirmed the news to WPXI, and former bandmate and drummer Joe Vitale posted a tribute on social media.
Iris was diagnosed with bladder cancer shortly after a sold-out 80th birthday show in 2023, and the illness forced him to cancel several dates, including a June 2023 concert in Youngstown with REO Speedwagon. After chemotherapy he returned to the stage in March 2024 and kept performing across Pennsylvania and Ohio. On October 9 of this year he announced his retirement from concert performances, citing recent health issues: "After much thought, and in light of recent health issues, I have made the difficult decision to retire from future concert performances. Music has given me far more than I could ever put into words." His final performance came on September 28, when he helped open Citizens Live at The Wylie, Pittsburgh's newest concert venue — an occasion he called "a meaningful and fitting moment" to share with his hometown fans.
Born Dominic Ierace on February 28, 1943, in New Castle, Pennsylvania, Iris grew up in nearby Ellwood City and was singing at weddings by the age of five. He formed the Jaggerz in the 1960s, and in 1970 "The Rapper," which he wrote and sang, reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned the band a gold record.
In the late 1970s Iris joined Wild Cherry, the funk-rock band known for "Play That Funky Music," as a guitarist, and there met keyboardist Mark Avsec. In 1980 the two formed Donnie Iris and the Cruisers. Their debut album, Back on the Streets, produced "Ah! Leah!," which reached No. 29 on the Hot 100, while the album itself reached No. 57 on the Billboard 200. In 1981, "Love Is Like a Rock" reached No. 37 and "My Girl" reached No. 25, his biggest solo Hot 100 hit. The run earned him the nickname "King Cool." He released eleven studio albums with the Cruisers and toured the Pittsburgh, Youngstown and Cleveland areas for decades.
Fellow Pittsburgh musician Joe Grushecky told the Post-Gazette: "For my money, he was the most beloved Pittsburgh musician of all time. I don't know anyone who was loved more than Donnie. He just had that warmth about him, and it came through in his performance."
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Donnie Iris 2011年8月26日在 Pittsburgh 近郊 South Park 露天剧场演出（Comic Book Runner 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons 使用）。Image: Donnie Iris performing at the South Park Amphitheater near Pittsburgh on August 26, 2011 (photo by Comic Book Runner, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons).
