Diane Renay

Diane Renay (born July 13, 1945), born Renee Diane Kushner, is an American pop singer, best known for her 1964 hit song, "Navy Blue".

Renay was born to a Jewish family in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She started singing at an early age and took voice lessons from Artie Singer, a voice teacher who also managed Danny and the Juniors (of "At the Hop" fame). Singer encouraged Renay to pursue a recording career. Renay attended Northeast High School (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania).

Record producer/songwriter, Pete DeAngelis was a frequent customer at the Kushners' family jewelry store, and Renay's parents arranged for her to audition for him. DeAngelis, impressed with her talents, got Renay signed to the Atco Records label. Under the new stage name Diane Renay, she released her first single, "Little White Lies", in 1962, but it failed to chart nationally, as did the follow-up, "Tender", and Atco dropped her from the label.

However, Bob Crewe, who had written and produced material for Renay's second recording session, then signed her to a new recording contract whereby he would write and produce records for her. Under Crewe's guidance and signed to the 20th Century label, Renay, then 17 years old, released her biggest hit, "Navy Blue", in late 1963. The song told the story of a girl, lonely for her steady boyfriend away from home in the U.S. Navy and anxious to see him again. "Navy Blue", composed by Crewe with Bud Rehak and Eddie Rambeau, became a national smash, reaching No. 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in February 1964, and soaring to No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary singles chart. The song was followed by Renay's debut album, also titled Navy Blue.

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