Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Rachelle Cappelli - Rachele Cappelli (1988)

And here is another lost 80s gem from the indispensable Adriana! This is one that I have in my collection, but only on cassette, and I haven't listened to it or even thought about it since I bought it back in the 1980s. Thanks Adriana for bringing back the memories! Initially I'd heard of Rachele because I blindly picked up a cheap promo copy of her single "I Feel Good", which is a remake of the James Brown classic (find it on Lost Pop Treasures HERE!). While I wasn't a huge fan of soul remakes at the time, the house mix of the track was awesome. And the girl could SING! You'd never guess that voice came from the skinny white girl on the cover of the album, and that it would have such soul. That track got minor attention on the dance charts, but her next single, the ballad "I'm Sorry", didn't get any attention at all. Her album, which is split equally between ballads and funky pop numbers, came and went with barely anyone noticing. Which is a surprise, considering that she had started as a successful backing vocalist for many disco and soul singers, which got her the full attention and support of Ahmet Ertegun, the co-founder of the hugely successful label Atlantic. He even produced most of her album, along with legendary producer Arif Mardin and his son Joe. But apparently that wasn't enough and similar artists like Taylor Dayne and Lisa Stansfield eclipsed her. She did record the duet "Always Come Back To You" with Natasha's Brother for the film The Nutcracker Prince in 1990, but it appears that she then went back behind the scenes as a background singer. She has since sung back-up for divas like Patti Austin, Dionne Warwick, Roberta Flack and Celine Dion, often on songs that the Mardins have also been involved with. There is hardly any other info on her on the internet, though she too appears to have a Facebook page for those who wish to befriend her there. ;)

Download Rachele Cappelli

1
I Feel Good
2
I'd Put Angels Around You
3
I'm Sorry
4
The Truth'll Set You Free
5
Follow Your Heart
6
Mockingbird
7
No End In Sight
8
Out Of Control
9
Emotions

7 comments:

  1. Her version of "Mockingbird" is pretty awful, but "Out Of Control" is '80s-tastic.

    Great blog - thanks!

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  2. Download doesn't work

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  3. The best songs of the album are "I'm Sorry", "Emotions", "Follow your Heart" and "No End in Sight". Her best dance song is "Out of Control" and her version of "I Feel Good" is pretty decent. However I think her voice worked best with love songs and songs with a slow tempo.

    She also did a demo version of "I've had the Time of my life" with Franke Previte of Franke and the Knockouts. Patrick Swayze went on to say that was his favorite version of the song.

    I also believe that Rachele also has a sister who also is a backing vocalist. Her name is Angela and she appeared on albums with Rachele as well as the singing voice for a character from the 80's cartoon JEM. She also released a freestyle single "All Hung Up" under the name "Angela".

    I think Rachele Cappelli is a wonderful singer and if her record label did more promoting on her behalf (music videos, TV appearences, concert tours, etc.) she could of been up their with the likes of Taylor Danye or Lisa Stantfield. She's truly is an underrated star.

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    1. I agree. WOULD YOU DIE FOR ME is a beautiful song. Great voice!!!

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  4. I found this LP at a flea market today. I knew absolutely nothing about the artist, but since the album was released on a well-known label (Atlantic) in a year from which I (born in 1970) have a lot of great memories, I decided to buy it. I've discovered a whole bunch of great artists in that way - by buying odd records for almost nothing. A quick search on the web proved that Miss Cappelli never became very famous. But I discovered your site, and I'm very thankful for that! I'll be back... Thanx & greetings fron Helsinki, Finland.

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  5. She actually sung the demo tape version of the Dirty Dancing song “time of my life” with frank previte (who wrote the original song); which later became the mega popular version sung by bill medley and Jennifer warnes the public knows. But if you listen to the demo on YouTube you’ll hear Rachele Cappellis lovely voice.

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