Born Eddie Platakis in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in Rossford, Ohio, he began playing saxophone and clarinet in his High School band at age 16. After serving in WWII he formed his own band, which played "The Hotel Manager in Cleveland from 1957-67. He originally played Polkas and later made the transition to Rock n Roll. He wrote and recorded the standard "Waddleing Duck Polka". In the R n R genre, he covered "The Champs" recording of "Tequila". His version reached #20 on Billboards' Pop singles in 1958. He performed "Tequila" on "The Saturday Night Dick Clark Show" and "The Perry Como Show" that same year and many years later at a "Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame" ceremony, in his native Cleveland. Over the years, his band played back up to many top acts that came to the Ohio area, including Elvis Presley, The Everly Brothers, Bobby Darin and Walter Egan. His recording of "Chu Hua Hua" is featured on the soundtrack of "The Iron Giant"(1999).
