Tony Butala, founding singer of the Lettermen, dies at 87

Tony Butala, a founding singer of the Lettermen, died on 1 November at age 87, a representative for the group confirmed to Billboard. No cause of death was reported.

Butala formed the vocal trio with Bob Engemann and Jim Pike in 1958. He was its last surviving original member: Engemann died in 2013 and Pike in 2019.

Hits and Grammy nominations

Born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, in 1938, Butala sang on Pittsburgh’s KDKA radio at seven. After moving to Los Angeles with his mother, he worked with the Mitchell Boys Choir.

The Lettermen’s first chart hit was their 1961 recording of “The Way You Look Tonight,” which reached No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. The group had 20 entries on the chart, including six top-40 hits, from the early 1960s through the early 1970s.

The group received 4 Grammy nominations: for best new artist in 1962; for best performance by a vocal group for “The Way You Look Tonight” and, separately, the album A Song For Young Love; and for best contemporary-pop performance by a vocal duo or group for “Goin’ Out of My Head/Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.”

Butala had stepped back from performing by 2019. He attended the ceremony at which the Lettermen received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star on 24 February 2020. The group continues with vocalists Donovan Tea, Bobby Poynton and Rob Gulack.

Plans to remember Butala

In its 3 November 2026 statement announcing his death, the Lettermen said Butala’s greatest joy was entertaining and sharing music with audiences around the world. The statement said he “never met a stranger.”

No public viewing is planned. Celebrations of his life will be held in Wisconsin and California at a later date.