Tommy James' rise to fame began when a Pittsburgh nightclub DJ played an old Shondells record, generating massive crowd enthusiasm. This led to radio airplay and a bootlegged version selling 80,000 copies in ten days. By May 1966, "Hanky Panky" was Pittsburgh's number one record, making Tommy James a sensation.

A Pittsburgh promoter encouraged Tommy to come to the city, leading him to form a new band and secure a record deal with Roulette Records. Their promotion turned "Hanky Panky" into a 1966 summer hit. Tommy James followed with two more million-sellers, "Say I Am (What I Am)" and "It's Only Love," and the gold-certified "Hanky Panky" album.

Tommy, along with producers Bo Gentry and Ritchie Cordell, produced seven consecutive hit singles, including "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Mony Mony." Their collaboration also resulted in three platinum albums.

In 1968, after campaigning with Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Tommy took creative control of his career, writing and producing the groundbreaking "Crimson and Clover" single and album. Released in early 1969, it went multi-platinum and produced hits like "Do Something To Me" and "Crystal Blue Persuasion," with "Sugar On Sunday" also charting high in a cover by The Clique.

Tommy followed the success of the "Crimson and Clover" album with "Cellophane Symphony," featuring the Moog Synthesizer and the hit single "Sweet Cherry Wine." In 1969, his four hits outsold those of the Beatles, and his greatest hits album sold over 10 million copies. Transitioning from a pop singer to a classic rock artist, he released the acclaimed "Travelin'" album in 1970, which included the gold singles "She" and "Gotta Get Back To You," before taking a break.

Tommy returned to write and produce the hit single "Tighter, Tighter" for Alive And Kickin'. Over the next four years, he had 12 more chart singles, including "Come To Me," "Ball and Chain," "I'm Comin' Home," and "Draggin' The Line." He also produced the albums Tommy James, Christian Of The World, and My Head, My Bed And My Red Guitar, recording the latter in Nashville with top musicians like Pete Drake and Elvis Presley's Scotty Moore and DJ Fontana.

Tommy left Roulette Records in 1974, releasing two albums with Fantasy Records before moving to Millennium Records in 1980, where he achieved commercial success with the hit "Three Times In Love." In the 1990s, he founded Aura Records and saw further success. His songs became pop culture staples, covered by numerous artists including Tiffany, Billy Idol, and Bruce Springsteen. In 2006, Tommy celebrated 40 years in music with a comprehensive singles collection and released a Christmas album.