Skippy & the Pistons’ Golden Jubilee

Written By Megin Potter | Photos provided

[From the 2025 Summer Magazine]

We’re Not Going to Stop

After five decades, Skippy & the Pistons have defied the odds, weathered the storms, survived changing trends, and proven they have what it takes to keep listeners coming back for more.

To celebrate, one of Saratoga’s longest-playing cover bands is debuting their first original pop single, “We’re Not Going to Stop,” with a score written by drummer and founding member Frank Scirocco, lyrics by Frank Pallor, and with the musical direction of John Halverson.

Inspired by hits of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, Skippy & the Pistons play the music people want to hear. “People want to hear the songs they know and remember. That’s why I’m here. To play the songs people love,” said Frank.

Last summer, from his seat at the back of the stage, he caught sight of a couple smiling and singing along as they played Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight.”

“That’s when I know we’re doing our job,” said Frank. “Our job is to make people happy. When I see the reaction on people’s faces, that’s when I know we’ve reached them.”

Entering the Golden Age of Music

Frank remembers, at the age of 8, tapping out a beat with spoons on a magazine cover while his older brother, Anthony ‘Skip’ Scirocco, 12, played the accordion in the house they grew up in on Beekman Street in Saratoga Springs. Four years later, Frank got his first drum set, and by the age of 16, he and his brother were performing as The Back Pages.

One New Year’s Eve, they were scheduled to play a gig that fell through at the last minute. That’s when Frank decided to start handling logistics for the group, he said.

In 1975, Skip’s wife, Corrine, asked them to play a benefit concert at St. Clements School. Their cousin, Jimmy Adinolfi, and friend, Brad Babcock, joined the band, which they called Frank the Crank & the Pistons. Just weeks before the show, however, creative differences caused Frank to split. The band was renamed Skippy & the Pistons, and while Frank rejoined in time to play the show, the name stuck. “It sounded a lot better, and Skip was the band’s true leader. He was a really good singer, my older brother, and great to work with,” said Frank.

“Plus, playing that first time was amazing! It was a great time then, and it still is now. That’s why I’ve been doing it for 50 years.”

Handsout

Outdoors

The Legends Live On

Inspired by 50s doo-wop and the music of legends like Louis Armstrong, Leon Redbone, and drum master Ginger Baker, the sounds of Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, and Dion Dimucci, Frank appreciates feel-good songs you can sing and dance to. He loves the challenge of playing Chicago’s “Beginnings,” Little Feat’s “Let It Roll,” and Cadillac Moon’s “Show Me Your Tattoo,” but he’ll also put Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” and disco melodies on the playlist to please the crowd.

Although their favorite show of the season is held in Congress Park, through the years, Skippy & the Pistons has traveled through the region. They’ve also had several

falling outs. In 1978, Frank left for more than a year. Along with Frank, founding member Jimmy Adinolfi is still with the Pistons today. “It feels like we’ve had more people going in and out than any band in history,” said Frank. “We’ve had 40 members who have come and gone.”

Skip stayed on for 22 years, but when he was elected Saratoga County Supervisor, his duties created time constraints, and he was only able to appear at occasional performances. “I didn’t like it, but we made it work,” recalls Frank. After Skip’s passing in 2022, Skippy & the Pistons held a tribute concert for him in Congress Park.

“Age is catching up with us,” said Frank. “We have to live every day as if it’s our last, because one day, it might be.”

Getting to Know You

Facing each challenge as it comes, Frank balances band life with his 22-year career at Winsupply of Saratoga Springs, a plumbing, heating, and cooling supply company, and his 20-year commitment as Planning and Zoning Chairman for the City of Mechanicville.

Keeping him focused is Frank’s wife of 43 years, Kimberley. The two met 48 years ago, when she came to a show. Now, when she says the music sounds good, he knows it’s good, said Frank, who added that even after 50 years, Skippy & the Pistons has only one choice – to keep making the music that makes people happy.

“We have never quit and never will. We’ll play until we can’t. I’m 73, and still feel like I’m 21, especially when I’m on stage. I enjoy playing now more than I ever did.”