Dodi Battaglia
D'assolo

"Dodi Battaglia. But what do you expect from someone who displays ten Stratocasters, as many Les Pauls, and top-notch pedals and amplifiers to sing stuff like 'L'altra donna'..."

(Cited. A Common Place)

Well, dear Common Place, since 2003 you have been, not in my opinion (I barely strum the guitar) but in that of many other acoustic geniuses, wrong. To tell the truth, since the late '80s, you expressed yourself even knowingly, since certainly "Amici per sempre," "Dimmi di sì," and "Donne Italiane" are anything but listenable songs, and then capable of enhancing a guitarist's technical level and originality. But let's go back to 2003.

"D'Assolo" is an album primarily aimed at those who pay a minimum amount of attention. Recorded entirely and exclusively with a "Maton Dodi Battaglia Signature" acoustic guitar made specifically for the famous Bolognese guitarist, it is an entirely instrumental work. The percussive effects of some tracks do not come from any drum, electronic or acoustic, but from Dodi's handbeats on the body of this prestigious instrument: something that, if we want, very much recalls Tommy Emmanuel's style, although it is by no means the only feature of the work openly inspired by the Australian guitarist. Other instruments come into play only in "Nordinfesta" and "Primavera a New York," where Maurizio Solieri (ex-guitarist of Vasco) and the genius of PFM, Franco Mussida, come to entertain a guitar dialogue, always and only acoustic, with Dodi. The collaboration with Mussida and Solieri will later lead to the formation of the "Le chitarre d'Italia" ensemble.

I would like to start with "Nordinfesta" to describe this album: it is, although not the only one on this album with these features, a very languid, Mediterranean, elegant piece. The strings "dialogue" and intertwine with absolute perfection, without the need for too many unnecessary virtuosity. For me, the best piece of the album.

To tell the truth, the melodies are almost all very original, clean in composition, and their simplicity of execution (in terms of the number of instruments, certainly not in the level of difficulty) enhances their value. Very introspective tracks with a warm voice like "Romantica" and "Corazon" would not even possess a shred of their sober and classy result if performed by any orchestra or ensemble. Moreover, the melodies recall several of Dodi's "inspirers," at times Al Di Meola (easily recognizable, for example, the fusion and ethnic influences of "Corazon"), at times the aforementioned Emmanuel (although here the pick is often used, the traits of Australian bluegrass music are noticeable for example in "La Neve ad Aprile" or "Treno per il Mare"). To fit into that great world that is world music, "Annalisa" cannot be missing, an elegant suite with a superb Latin imprint (note, not Latin American).

Then there are some tracks that instead tease for their Mediterranean and discreet characteristics, including the beautiful "1st June" and "Per Tre." The guitar always sounds clean, free, and spontaneous: I would go so far as to say that one could almost speak of improvisation (in the positive sense of the term, eh), at least as far as tracks like "D'Assolo" and "Primavera a New York" are concerned, both with some markedly blues scales. Only the second is sometimes inlaid with some virtuosic and high-speed execution passages, but this does not absolutely compromise the elegance and style of the track.

In short, I liked this album. I don't have the authority of such a good acoustic guitarist to be able to judge it from a strictly technical point of view, but I believe you may not be very interested in big words. No piano, no drums, no bass or double bass: the guitar plays alone, and for the style of the album, it plays better than an entire orchestra. Five stars. How come? You don't give it to "Love Over Gold" and you give it to this one? I won't go into explaining the reason, but I hope no one makes such an observation.

When you have time, if it attracts you, listen to it. An elegant work, of fine realization, sober but with great compositional and executive class.

P.S. In 2012, the work was reissued, with the addition of a track by Dodi dedicated to Lucio Dalla, too bad the reissue is not available commercially. One last thing: as you may read, I never mentioned the word "Pooh" in the review, if you can, avoid doing so in the comments, at least to disdain this album regardless.