Early life and career

In 1958, at age eleven, Tommy's family moved to Niles, Michigan. In 1959, when he was twelve, James formed his first band called Tom and the Tornadoes. In 1963, the band changed their name to The Shondells. By 1964, a local DJ at WNIL radio station in Niles formed his own record label, Snap Records. The Shondells were one of the local bands the DJ recorded at WNIL studios. One of the songs was the Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich ditty Hanky Panky, which was recorded as The Raindrops. The song was a hit locally, but the label had no resources to promote it nationally and was soon forgotten.

In 1965, a DJ in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, found a copy of Hanky Panky and played it as a station exclusive. Listener response was positive, with many wanting to know where they could get a copy of the new single. Another DJ started playing the song at local dance parties. Meeting the demand, a local bootlegger taped the song off the radio and began pressing copies of it. Eventual sales of the bootleg are estimated at 80,000. Pittsburgh DJ Mad Mike Metro tracked down Tommy James and informed him that his record was number one in the city. James almost hung up on the DJ, but was convinced to come to Pennsylvania and make appearances promoting the no-longer-forgotten single. Soon, James was in New York, selling the original master of Hanky Panky to Roulette Records. By the late summer of 1966, it was the top-selling single in the nation.