Irwin received his military discharge papers the following year. By that time, his fellow group members also had been released from duty, and Been So Long was doing extremely well on the charts. It reached the Top Five in RB and crossed over to pop, where it landed at number 24. Irwin and the others embarked on a tour of the southern states of the U.S., including stops in Florida and Louisiana. By then, Chess Records had reissued the record on the Argo label. Irwin led the group through a succession of live shows around the country. Several were staged at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, where they shared the stage with the Deltones, Little Willie John, and others. At the Uptown Theater in Philly, they were part of +the Georgie Woods Show along with Chuck Berry, the Chantels, Little Joe the Thrillers, among others. They also appeared in the lineup for concerts staged by rock roll showman Alan Freed across the U.S., alongside such acts as Buddy Holly the Crickets, Jerry Lee Lewis, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, the Diamonds, and Frankie Lymon. Irwin sang lead on the Pastels' next record, You Don't Love Me Anymore, which was issued in 1958, as well as So Far Away six months later. Irwin and the Pastels returned to the Apollo for a week's worth of gigs that same year, the first on Halloween night. When the Pastels fell apart the following year, Irwin remained in New York City to try for a solo career. Things started to click for him in 1963 when he recorded Swinging on a Star and headed to the U.K. for an extended tour. The refurbished Bing Crosby hit from 19 years earlier also featured vocals from Little Eva. She again joined the heavyset singer on Happy Being Fat. Irwin continued to record as a solo artist for the remainder of the decade. In addition, he penned numbers for Isaac Hayes, Ray Charles, Bobby Womack, and the Hollies, who included his What Kind of Boy on their first full-length release. By the mid-'70s, he had reinvented himself as DiFosco and was recording disco for Roxbury. Heart failure claimed his life in 1995. ~ Linda Seida, Rovi