Hal

Look, Anselmo's "quotations" are not really that presumed. There are many examples of "quotations". I gave an example regarding the texts, not the notes (which was truly rather ungracious towards Piero Ciampi in that case), but when it comes to the music, one could write an encyclopedia. I remember a guitar solo in one of his songs (don’t ask me the title, that would be asking too much) taken from Calling Elvis by Dire Straits (by the way, not exactly an excellent source). Just the solo, but it’s spit out, identical. So it's not plagiarism, but rather a cut in a different context. However, pillaging has basically been customary for him for a long time. He has taken a little from everyone, from Joe Cocker, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding to Springsteen. I'm not saying that it's necessarily wrong. I understand that being inspired, taking and transforming, appropriating and regenerating what others have already done is not easy at all, and sometimes creation can follow these steps. But in some cases, his works seem more like a collage than a true reworking. A collage that can be pleasing to many, that can be appreciated and loved even abroad, that can see hundreds of thousands of records sold, but still a collage. It has its dignity and identity in the mainstream, but still a collage. As for the image of Italy abroad, it’s so tarnished that to improve it, it takes much more than a little... sweetness or a ramazzotti. Goodbye.

In an episode of The Simpsons, U2 was lightly mocked by Matt Groening (it was about environmentalism). It was 1997...

I only caught a glimpse of this album, but for now I've decided not to get it. I thought I read somewhere that it was partly conceived and created almost simultaneously with "the soul sessions." Probably the arrangements were the final "touch." Joss Stone's launch was carefully planned, then. And there is continuity between the two works at least in this respect. I think that's normal. I don't know what paths she will take moving forward, but maybe it's too early to say. We'll see. I just hope she doesn't become one of those who lose their edge ;)

Of course I read it, what's strange about that? But don't worry, this reading hasn't taken up too much time from the things I'm doing. Hi :)

I don't understand why I should rephrase what I've written into dry questions and bullet points. Should I draft a structured questionnaire? Open-ended responses? Closed ones? Or both? Oh well... I thought I had been fairly organized in dividing the topics into general themes. But never mind. I’ll leave you with two questions, just two to avoid being accused of causing a stir... (but why??). Since everything started by talking about Bush: "preventive war": Has it served to curb terrorism? You can interpret the question more broadly if you wish, in the sense: Did the foreign policy of the Bush administration help to mitigate international terrorism? Question number 2: Is it desirable to continue the foreign policy undertaken with particular attention to the concept of "preventive war"? It is evident that the two questions are logically connected. On the other hand, it's not easy to simplify or minimize issues of such complexity.

I have already replied, or rather clarified; if he wants to express his opinion on the matter, he is free to do so; if he doesn't want to (or can't), that's fine.

youth mistakes, rating 2 for excess ... of the records I’ve heard by Alan Parsons, I only save "Tales of Mystery and..." which I believe was dedicated to Edgar Allan Poe, a not-bad little disc, but not splendid either. However, if I remember correctly, there was an interesting track introduced by a reading of Poe by Orson Welles... I wonder where I put that record. Well.

hans from casteddu alè :) there was also mauro pagani in nuoro it seems... too bad I missed him. Hi

I don't love his music; in fact, it often irritated me because I sensed in his songs cuts and snippets from other authors, guitars, choruses, and voices I'd already heard. I really liked a line from one of his songs: "E il mare impetuoso al tramonto salì sulla luna e dietro una tendina di stelle se la chiavò." It’s a pity that it belonged to Piero Ciampi, "cited" without permission ("Il mare al tramonto salì sulla luna e senza appuntamento dopo uno sguardo dietro tendine di stelle se la chiavò"). Then, if I remember correctly, in the reprints of the album, the liner notes were updated to include the citation from the great Livornese singer-songwriter, at the request of the Ciampi family. This made him a bit unlikable, to be honest. However, I liked your review: precise, thorough, nice, and communicative. A great debut, all in all. Bye.

autumn spleen :)