Donatella Rettore
Incantesimi Notturni

Here I am with my first review on this legend of Italian female music...

Alright, probably some people might sigh reading her name, but honestly, I have to say there was worse stuff at the time... Anyway... Many think that Donatella Rettore, after "Kamikaze Rock'N'Roll Suicide" (an album I adore just like the other three released earlier), no longer had the ideas or the creativity to release other albums with musical quality equal to (or even superior to) the previous ones, even with the help of her creator and companion Claudio Rego...

But personally, as a great admirer that I am, I believe she, at the time, still had the capacity to make great albums, even though they were, according to some, concept-albums (see "Far West" or "Danceteria", her masterpiece in my opinion). And this "Incantesimi Notturni" is proof of that. And that's why I decided to review it. Probably many know it only for the wonderful "Di Notte Specialmente", brought to Sanremo right in 1994, the year the CD was released... but the entire work in question contains some absolutely quality gems.

The duo "Bianco" and "Locura", the latter with Spanish influences, is not to be missed for its emotional impact. Just like "Quello Che Non Sai", written with a certain Cheope, with a base somewhat in the style of "Seven Seconds" of Neneh Cherry fame (though not remotely comparable), the autobiographical "E Non Cambierò", the romantic "Legami", and the modern reinterpretation of "Nel Viale Della Scuola È Sempre Autunno", one of the first songs made when Rettore hadn't yet exploded with "Splendido Splendente", other gems present in this CD.

But... like many things for the rest... "Incantesimi Notturni" is not perfect. The only songs not up to the mentioned ones in my opinion are "Sudo", with a refrain that still doesn't fully convince me, and "Voglio La Mamma", a little song that seems like an imitation of "Penso Positivo" by Jovanotti (far superior in my opinion), although I admit not knowing if the latter came before or after... if you know what I mean. The album closes with the very brief "L'Uomo Vero" (almost a minute in length!), which immediately strikes with the sound of keyboards accompanying Donatella's voice...

Finished the CD, overall I say it is a very good work, perhaps the last truly valid by Miss Rettore, one that represents "the other side" of the queen of the early '80s, but certainly it is not at the levels of "Danceteria", an album I will probably review later...