Lead singer of The Tokens Philip Margo
The singer of the world hit The Lion Sleeps Tonight passed away at the age of 79. Philip Margo was the lead singer of the American band The Tokens, who achieved worldwide success in 1961 with the song.
Margo’s family tells The New York Times that he died on Saturday from the consequences of a stroke. “The lion is sleeping,” the family wrote in a Facebook post.
Philip Margo was 19 when the song The Lion Sleeps Tonight was released. It instantly became one of the most recognizable songs ever. From the first seconds it is immediately clear which song it is.
After the success of 1961, the song regained popularity when it was used in the 1994 movie The Lion King. The song is inspired by the original version of South African singer Solomon Linda with the song Mbube from 1930.
In recent years Philip Margo wrote screenplays for television series.
