Singer Johnny Maestro dies at 70

NEW YORK — Singer Johnny Maestro, who performed the 1958 doo-wop hit “16 Candles” with The Crests and enjoyed a decades-long career with The Brooklyn Bridge, has died of cancer. He was 70.

Les Cauchi, a friend and original Brooklyn Bridge member, said Maestro — born John Mastrangelo — died late Wednesday in Florida.

After beginning his career in the 1950s with The Crests — one of the first interracial singing groups — Maestro joined a local New York group, The Del-Satins. It merged with a Long Island band, The Rhythm Method, to form Johnny Maestro and The Brooklyn Bridge in 1968.

Hits by the rock ‘n’ roll and doo-wop group included “The Worst That Could Happen,” which Cauchi said earned “gold record” status with a million sales.

Cauchi said the group performed that song on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Other hits included “Blessed is the Rain,” “Welcome Me Love” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

Cauchi recalled that another well-known song, “Your Husband, My Wife,” drew controversy when it was released in 1969 because it dealt with infidelity — a touchy topic during that era.

The band got its name after a manager declared it would be “harder to sell than the Brooklyn Bridge,” Maestro once said.