Freddy Cannon, an early rock and roll singer known for upbeat hits including "Palisades Park" and "Tallahassee Lassie," has died at the age of 89. He passed away on Friday at a hospice facility in Oxnard, California, shortly after being diagnosed with cancer, according to his longtime friend and iHeart Radio's Tom Cuddy. His death matters as a marker of rock and roll history, given his influence on later stars and his reputation as a performer who never slowed the tempo for a ballad.

Cannon's breakthrough came with "Tallahassee Lassie," which reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1959, followed that year by "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans" at No. 3. His biggest hit, "Palisades Park," peaked at No. 3 in 1962 and was later covered by artists including the Beach Boys and the Ramones. He continued charting into the mid-1960s and briefly returned to the Hot 100 in 1981, and counted Mick Jagger, Robert Plant and Stephen King among those who cited his influence.