80 today. Thanks to the huge success of Jersey Boys, the hit musical based around his life and work, we’re all familiar with his story. And we discovered that songs made famous by others like Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Bye Bye Baby and Working My Way Back To You were originally recorded by Frankie Valli. Having been largely forgotten for years, this song re-launched his career. But I remember it for its reckless use of the word “adore”. At school, Fr. Dominic forbade this word because “Adoration was for God alone” and that, for some reason, has stuck. The sweariest words in the world have never bothered me. Yet when I hear anyone say “I adore….”, I still flinch. So it’s going to take enormous courage to say this: I adore this record.
