American lyricist George David Weiss was asked to arrange the song for doo-wop band The Tokens - and he added the English lyrics: "In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight." ...

He was 25. His song “Pledging My Love” became a hit the next year. In 1961, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” by The Tokens became the first African song to reach number one on the American pop ...