Doo Wop: The Impalas & The Capris

Welcome to Rock and Roll Flashback and the Doo Wop Series!  I'm Bill Price, and in this episode we will flash back to the 1950's and look at two Doo Wop vocal groups from that era: The Impalas and The Capris.

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Transcript

Welcome to Rock and Roll Flashback and the Doo Wop Series. In this episode we will flash back to the 1950's and look at two Doo Wop vocal groups from that era: The Impalas and The Capris.

The Impalas were a Doo Wop vocal group that was formed in Brooklyn, New York in 1958. The group initially consisted of Lenny Renda, Tony Carlucci and Richard Wagner who often practiced on street corners, hoping some one would notice them. On one occasion while practicing they heard Joe Frazier singing and soon Joe became a member of the group as the lead vocalist. Eventually two songwriters Artie Zwirn and Aristides Giosasi did notice them and offered The Impalas one of their compositions titled “ I Ran All the Way Home”. The group was then signed to Cub, which was MGM Records’ subsidiary label. Frazer’s “Oh-oh” ten seconds into the song was the result of missing a cue. However, it was left on the recording.

The initial records that were released had the original title “ I Ran All the Way Home”. “Sorry” was then added to the title, since it was repeated three times at the beginning of the song. In May 1959, the single reached the number two position on US Pop chart, number fourteen on the R&B chart and number twenty-eight on the UK Singles Chart. The record went on to sell over one million copies, earning a gold disc.

In the spring and summer, the group performed on Alan Feed’s concerts, American Bandstand and The Ed Sullivan Show. A follow up release titled “Oh, What A fool” only managed to stay on the charts for just a few weeks. The next single “Bye Everybody” did not even manage to enter the charts at all. The last release was a song titled “When My Heart Does All the Talking”, also failed to generate any success. As result, MGM Records lost interest in the group and with their popularity declining, The Impalas disbanded in 1961.

After the group’s split, Frazier continued performing and in 1980, revived The Impalas and performed as a touring act. In April 1st, 2014 Joe Frazier passed away at the age of 70. Here is The Impalas’ number two hit, “Sorry, I Ran All the Way Home”.

The Capris, another New York Doo Wop vocal group was formed in 1957. Mike Mincieli initially recruited members for the group and included Nick Santamaris, Frank Reina, Vinnie Naccarato and John Cassese. The original name of the group was The Supremes, however it was soon changed to The Capris. There are two accounts of how the new name was derived. One version claimed that since all of the members were Italian, the name came from the island of Capris. However, Nick stated that the group was named after the 1957 Lincoln Capris automobile.

In 1958 the group’s experience and recognition increased as result of performing in school dances, churches and local venues. Eventually they got the attention of record producers, and were able to record their first single. They recorded two songs released on Planet Records,” Indian Girl” and “There’s a Moon Out Tonight”. Unfortunately the single sold poorly. However late night disc jockey Alan Fredricks kept playing the record, prompting Jerry Green who worked at the Times Square Record Store, to acquire the master recording and release the single on Lost Nite Records. After the record was played several times by radio station WINS disc jockey Murray the K in 1960, there was renewed interest in the record. The single was released on the Lost Nite label where it began to sell eventually making it on to the national record charts.

In early 1961 the single remained on the US Billboard Hot 100 for 14 weeks, eventually reaching the number three position. It also peaked at number 11 on the R&B and fourteen in Canada’s Hit Parade. In 1961 Billboard’s Hot 100 ranked the song at number fifty and at number fifty-one on the Cash Box Top 100 Chart Hits. As a result, The Capris toured through out the US performing in major venues. Their subsequent releases however, failed to duplicate the success of “There’s a Moon Out Tonight” and by 1963 original members left the group.

Eventually new members joined the group and continued to perform as The Capris. Over the next three decades there were several l changes in the group’s lineup. In 1982 Nick Santo who was a member from the early 60s, rejoined the group and recorded a new album titled “There’s a Moon Out Tonight Again” for Ambient Sound Records. The Capris continued to perform with Santo, Mike Mincieli, Frank Reina and other vocalists up until 2002. As of 2015, The Capris with original member Frank Reina were still performing. Here is the Capris’ number three hit:“There’s a Moon Out Tonight”.

This has been another episode on the Doo Wop series, featuring two vocal groups from the 50's and 60's, The Impalas and The Capris on Rock and Roll Flashback. Until next, I’m your host Bill Price.