analoguesound

well done, I envy you

It's true, I have a third, give or take, of the years of Fripp, and let's say I only and exclusively use analog equipment to work both in sound engineering and in the artistic field. From that LITTLE bit of music I've listened to, given my obvious ignorance, I've realized that before Frippertronics, there were thousands of sound engineers who could do much better; it’s just that they were humble and didn't put their name on the inventions of others. So, the real nonsense here is Frippertronics, which did nothing but brand things that were already done, redone, and overdone. And you guys have bananas in your ears, jerking off from morning till night to Fripp and Eno. Happy wanking.

In my opinion, this album has been talked about too negatively. I don't know how true the acid story is or if the girl on the cover is Winwood's niece or Baker's daughter (according to the author of the cover, it was a chance encounter on the London Underground where she was asked to pose nude for the cover, with her parents' consent), but we must take into account that the band faced immense pressure from the record label, performing unprepared no less than at London Hyde Park in ’69, just after the album's release. The performance was a complete disaster, especially for Winwood, who fluffed his lines like a coyote, as would be expected for a band with very little live experience. And this was the real reason for the band's breakup. It's true that Traffic is better, but if there's shit to shovel, I wouldn't do it on BF, who were just kids after all. Rather, I would do it on ultra-pretentious groups like King Crimson (and particularly on Fripp because the other members of the band, all things considered, could play and weren't as unpleasant as he was, and, most importantly, they were truly creative). King Crimson, a name the color of diarrhea pronounced with the same cadence as my balls when they hit the ground.

vote.. and let's not forget that as Battisti became richer and more famous, he produced increasingly complex, articulated, and pioneering works. this is the seriousness and coherence of a true and complete artist. not like today, where you churn out a crap song and after two weeks you either find yourself on a reality show or, if you're a woman, you're in all the auto shops with your tits out on a calendar dirty with grease for homokinetic joints.

Lucio was an anarchist, far from a fascist. It's just that the common folk of this sad country of Berlusconian followers talk and talk and talk, and it's always the same dead chatter that circulates. He never cared a bit about politics because for him, only music mattered. And for this reason, he always proved to be the best. He was much more politically (but above all humanly) engaged than people think; he simply didn’t want to advertise any party because he found them all a bit disgusting, and he wouldn’t even align himself with that thick crowd of leftist singer-songwriters (Venditti and the likes) who took advantage of their political affiliation. Back then, you were either left-wing or you went nowhere; if you were left-wing, you were guaranteed a spot, and the politicized types like Venditti made mistake after mistake in the name of the left, which Lucio rightly couldn’t stand. On the creative level, in terms of composition and production, he was THE best, also because he did everything on his own, in tandem with Mogol, who was the other half, a perfect complement. And here we can also throw the various Pink Floyd (much to my regret, as I like them a lot) in the toilet along with the whole slew of King Crimson and other trash that had behind them much bigger and better-prepared productions. In Italy, the same PFM had Yes and KC as their models to imitate (and they succeeded a bit too much), and they even had Battisti himself on production, with all his apostles around (sub-producers, arrangers, sound engineers, and other square-headed people). The same Ricottari of PFM, who were session musicians for Lucio, when they started seeing him getting popular, demanded to be paid double. Lucio told them to get lost with great fanfare and recruited the likes of Il Volo / i Ribelli / Formula Tre (with the exception of Tony Cicco, who was truly a fascist) who were a thousand times more creative. And so, the greatest genius of Italian pop created his diamond tip, his absolute masterpiece: Anima Latina. (without taking anything away from the previous albums, of course) The story of Vasco Rossi is quite unfounded; Lucio never paid him any mind while he was alive. In fact, when Rossi (in the eighties) sent word that he had a song for him to sing, Lucio replied, “Vasco who? Who is Vasco Rossi?” Believe me, Lucio Battisti was a tremendous artist. Vasco Rossi is not the new Lucio Battisti, as I've heard said. Vasco Rossi is someone who pulled faces to strike a pose and who has never managed to string together two meaningful words. He truly howls into the microphone (not like they said about Lucio in the early days), and he's someone who genuinely believes that musical notes are syringe holes above the ass of music. À bientôt.

But that expression "big" in quotes is meant to be sarcastic, right?! Tell me yes :D

I know that Sergio Caputo was a leader of the "Fronte Della Gioventù" in the seventies, but I can appreciate his music because it has nothing to do with politics. But regarding Battisti's political views, I believe everything has been made clear. Lucio was absolutely not right-wing. I'm glad you can pull something ideologically positive from the right; here in my area, Bari, Fascism, Neofascism, the New Right, or whatever the hell we want to call it still manifests itself through violence, shaved heads, clubs, barbarism, and brawls outside communist venues. By the way, we Bari people also feel particularly offended by right-wing factions for various reasons, one above all being the murder of Benedetto Croce, a paraplegic worker who was brutally killed by a squad many years ago.

Battisti, unfortunately - after Mogol sold Numero Uno to RCA for a pittance - had lost his touch with masterpieces. Oh my, surely his compositions and melodic structures are exceptional, and it's no coincidence that he was the greatest genius of Italian pop... as a holder of his entire discography, I've noticed how, starting from the cornerstone of "La Batteria Il Contrabbasso Eccetera," the compositions of the winning duo became sadly flat. It might have been the commercial interests of RCA Italiana (damned whore), it might have been the rise of disco music, or it might have been the renewal of musicians: since Battisti would turn the page, leaving behind the excellent Italian session musicians who had accompanied him until then and starting to play with Americans, who are technically skilled but, alas, absolutely sterile and entirely devoid of any musical imprint. Both "La Batteria" and "Io Tu Noi Tutti" and "Una Donna Per Amico" and "Una Giornata Uggiosa" suffer from a perpetually static and flat sound, which I attribute to the new production and Westley's presence in the arrangements. Battisti's music on these records oscillates eternally between a piano bar lounge and slightly distracted easy listening. It’s obvious that the songs are of the highest quality due to the mind that conceived them, but what compromises this entire production is the sound being a bit too Americanized. Songs like "Arrivederci A Questa Sera," "Gelosa Cara," "Una Giornata Uggiosa," and "Con Il Nastro Rosa," in ascending order of artistic quality, are pearls. I repeat, it's a real pity for the overall sound... a real mess... It's useless, Battisti has already given his best. Lucio was tired, you can feel it.

Gentlemen, it all depends on what you mean by prog... damn if for you prog is PFM, Banco, Orme, Rovescio Della Medaglia, Balletto di Bronzo it's clear, actually crystal clear that everything should be thrown in the trash... but both Iside and I can assure you that in Italy there was a progressive underground that the rest of Europe and the world can only dream of... As for Battisti, there's no discussion to be had; he was, is, and will always remain the greatest genius of Italian pop :D

Gentlemen, it all depends on what you mean by prog... damn it, if prog for you is PFM, Banco, Orme, Rovescio Della Medaglia, Balletto di Bronzo, it’s clear, indeed crystal clear, that it should all be thrown down the toilet... but both I and Iside can assure you that in Italy there was a progressive underground that the rest of Europe and the world can only dream of... As for Battisti, there’s no arguing; he has been, is, and will always remain the greatest genius of Italian pop :D