《Ah! Leah!》歌手Donnie Iris逝世享年83岁：与膀胱癌抗争三年，上月刚完成告别演出
Pittsburgh——美国摇滚歌手 Donnie Iris 于10月26日在宾夕法尼亚州逝世，享年83岁。他以 Jaggerz 乐队1970年的热门单曲《The Rapper》和个人乐队 Donnie Iris and the Cruisers 的代表作《Ah! Leah!》闻名，生前与膀胱癌抗争了三年。他的朋友和前乐队成员向 CBS 与《匹兹堡邮报》（Pittsburgh Post-Gazette）证实了死讯，长期合作的演唱会推广人 Rich Engler 也向 WPXI 证实了这一消息，前乐队鼓手 Joe Vitale 在社交媒体上发文悼念。
Iris 在2023年80岁生日演出售罄后不久确诊膀胱癌，一度取消了包括与 REO Speedwagon 在 Youngstown 的演出在内的多场安排；经过化疗，他于2024年3月重返舞台，此后继续在宾夕法尼亚州和俄亥俄州演出。今年10月9日，他宣布因健康原因退出今后一切演唱会演出：「经过深思熟虑，鉴于近期的健康问题，我做出了退出今后演唱会演出的艰难决定。音乐给予我的，远比我能用言语表达的更多。」他的最后一场演出是9月28日在 Pittsburgh 新开的音乐厅 Citizens Live at The Wylie 为场馆揭幕的演出，他称那是与家乡歌迷分享的「一个有意义而恰当的时刻」。
Iris 本名 Dominic Ierace，1943年2月28日出生于宾夕法尼亚州 New Castle，在附近的 Ellwood City 长大，五岁起就在婚礼上唱歌。他在1960年代组建 Jaggerz 乐队，1970年由他创作并主唱的《The Rapper》登上 Billboard Hot 100 榜第2名，并为乐队赢得一张金唱片。
1970年代后期，Iris 加入以《Play That Funky Music》走红的 Wild Cherry 乐队任吉他手，并在那里结识键盘手 Mark Avsec。1980年，两人组建 Donnie Iris and the Cruisers，首张专辑《Back on the Streets》中的《Ah! Leah!》登上 Hot 100 第29名，专辑本身登上 Billboard 200 第57名；1981年的《Love Is Like a Rock》升至第37名，《My Girl》达到第25名，是他个人在 Hot 100 上成绩最好的一首。他由此获得「King Cool」的称号，与 Cruisers 共发行了11张录音室专辑，数十年间持续在 Pittsburgh、Youngstown 与 Cleveland 一带巡演。
同为匹兹堡音乐人的 Joe Grushecky 向《匹兹堡邮报》表示：「就我而言，他是有史以来最受爱戴的匹兹堡音乐人。我不知道有谁比 Donnie 更受爱戴。他身上就是有那种温暖，而且这种温暖会透过他的表演传递出来。」
'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."
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：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).
