Angelo Branduardi
Cercando l'oro

Present and past, genius and craft, enthusiasm and maturity, wisdom and balance, ability to amaze and evoke emotion. A unique style, at least in the Italian scene, a great album. Angelo Branduardi in 1983, was no longer a novice, in fact, the best years of his career had already passed, ideally ending in 1980 with "Gulliver, la Luna ed Altri Disegni". For the artist from Cuggiono, the 1980s were a decade in a minor key compared to the previous one; a few happy intuitions, only four albums published, among which "Cercando l'Oro" stands out, a kind of watershed between the immense Branduardi that was and the good, eclectic and unpredictable but not always impeccable artist to come.

"Cercando l'Oro" follows "Branduardi ‘81", an album in its own way courageous but quite evanescent and forgettable overall, and marks a partial return to the past: this album has a less charming, more modern sound compared to "La Pulce d'Acqua" or "Cogli la Prima Mela" but much richer and more varied than its predecessor. In summary, it can be defined as an album of folk-pop with classical nuances, very well crafted and inspired, fresh and attractive. Each song on "Cercando l'Oro" is a little painting in its own right, there is no logical connection or precise stylistic common denominator between the various episodes of the album, but this is not a flaw, on the contrary, it further characterizes it. It moves from the martial and looming solemnity of the opening "Il Libro" to the subtle and playful irony of the title track, a song that highlights a new pop feeling, also noticeable in a little masterpiece like "L'Acrobata", where the almost psychedelic style of "Branduardi ‘81" is presented again in a more convinced and lively manner, with the addition of orchestrations that explode in the chorus, punctuated by the crashing of cymbals, thus creating an urgent and evocative song, with great charm and melodic impact.

"Cercando l'Oro" features the famous Celtic harpist Alan Stivell, appearing in two tracks: he is found playing bagpipes in "La Giostra", a dreamy and delicate ballad, in a waltz rhythm closed by an intense finale with Stivell as the absolute protagonist and as harpist in "Piano Piano", which is nothing but the Italian adaptation of the famous Scottish Child Ballad "Barbara Allen", also performed by Joan Baez and more recently by Blackmore's Night. The text is basically faithful to the original, the interpretation as fascinating as usual, although perhaps a bit manneristic compared to other reinterpretations like "Il Ciliegio" or "Ninna-Nanna".

"Natale" is perhaps the best ballad of the album, steeped in an ancient atmosphere, but not perfectly defined; soft, meditative, and almost shadowy, interpreted by Branduardi with an almost whispered tone, it denotes a meticulous care in the arrangements, another salient feature of "Cercando l'Oro", found also in a piece like "La Volpe", a suggestive fresco of a winter forest, outlined with psychedelic sounds, which transmit slight uneasiness and a clarinet solo at the end, and also in "Profumo d'Arancio", a Lied with a classical flavor, filled with sweet and springy grace. "Ora che il Giorno è Finito", the last song, finally offers a surprise: electronics take over for the first time in the career of the Lombard artist, further placing "Cercando l'Oro" in the position of a transitional and balanced album.

Songs like "Profumo d'Arancio", "Piano Piano" and "La Giostra" still echo the glorious past, others like "L'Acrobata", "Il Libro" and "Cercando l'Oro" explore new territories, "La Volpe", "Natale", and "Ora che il Giorno è Finito" even constitute with their shadows a kind of first step on a path that will be completed seven years later with "Il Ladro". Endowed with a much greater personality than "Branduardi ‘81", less poetic and refined but much more accessible and immediate than "Branduardi Canta Yeats", "Cercando l'Oro" is also far superior and decidedly better aged compared to an album apparently more innovative and experimental like "Pane e Rose". Not exactly a masterpiece, but nevertheless an almost flawless album.