Pittsburgh's Jimmy Sapienza, front-man of Five Guys Named Moe, dies at 71

Pittsburgh singer Jimmy Sapienza – front-man of Jimmy Sapienza and Five Guys Named Moe – died Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. He was 71.

“It is with the deepest regret to share with all of you that my husband Jimmy Sapienza unexpectedly passed away this afternoon with immediate family,” his wife, Paula Sapienza, wrote in a Facebook post.

Sapienza, founded his band in the late 1980s, and they performed at weddings, theme parks, clubs and a slew of Pittsburgh events over the decades, according to Sapienza’s obituary.

The band’s website notes the group was heavily influenced by Frank Sinatra, Louis Jordan, Louie Prima and Louis Armstrong.

“Add in a pinch of Dean Martin and a dash of Tony Bennett because this genuine Italian saloon singer does it all,” according to the website.

A Forest Hills native, he wrote “I Love Pittsburgh” for the city’s bicentennial in 2006.

“He was most proud of that song which he wrote and performed at every show,” his family wrote in his obituary, and he won a Mid-Atlantic Emmy in 2007 for his performance of “Just a Gigolo” on Live With Studio A at WQED.

His family noted he was a “man of many talents” – anything from writing music and singing to designing T-shirts. He served as an Air Force medic during the Vietnam War.

Visitation will be held from 2 to 8 p.m. on Feb. 14 at the Lanigan Funeral Home in Turtle Creek with a memorial open mic session at 6 p.m.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11 a.m. St. Maurice Church of St. Joseph the Worker in Forest Hills on Feb. 15. A presentation of military honors will follow.

Sapienza’s family asked that memorial donations be made to the Little Sisters of the Poor on Pittsburgh’s North Side.