Le Orme
Collage

Le Orme should be considered as one of the greatest Italian rock bands of all time.

In the early '70s, new progressive rock bands began to spring up like mushrooms all over Europe, a genre that was in vogue at the time; the homeland of prog was undeniably England, and our Italian musicians could not help but look to the English bands (Yes, Genesis, ELP, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, and Jethro Tull among others) to steer their musical style in a precise direction; however, remembering that prog is innovation above all, further credit must be given to Italian artists who were only minimally or not at all influenced by Anglo-Saxon models and indeed made originality their launch pad.

Le Orme's line-up was the classic trio, modeled after the Nice; until then, they had authored one of the most beautiful Italian beat moments, “Ad Gloriam,” with vaguely psychedelic flavors. With Aldo Tagliapietre on vocals, bass, and electric and acoustic guitars, Miki Dei Rossi on drums, and Tony Pagliuca on keyboards, organ, and moog, they arrived in 1971 at the creation of "Collage," one of the greatest Italian rock albums and if you like, a manifesto of spaghetti-prog. What to say about this album? Terribly fascinating...

The songs flow smoothly, the changes in tempo are perfect, and dreaminess reigns supreme. From the superb “Cemento armato,” which some have shamelessly dared to criticize for its instrumental interlude, to “Sguardo verso il cielo,” perhaps the model Italian song for the progressive rock to come, passing through the sweet and enchanting “Era inverno,” it truly seems that these Venetian flower children can make us relive, at least in thought, those fantastic 70s that I never lived through, but will someday if they ever invent a time machine (maybe). The track that gives the album its name is also the introductory one: “Collage,” the instrumental that swings open the doors to the planet Orme, more of an “intro” than a real song. “Evasione totale” will be the result of who knows what magical journey, nevertheless, it’s more than successful experimentation, where the solid union of the three totally escapes. “Immagini” is what they see, that is, a thousand beautiful things, but she is not there and sadness permeates everything. In “Morte di un fiore” it's the brief concluding instrumental part that shines, and tells of the tragic death of a young hippie.

The cover represents them as three pure white souls in front of a cemetery, and it is among the most beautiful not only in the prog environment. Overall, the album far exceeded the expectations for any Italian band in '71, and I would unhesitatingly give it the title of the “In the Court of the Crimson King” of Italy. More specifically, here we find not only the baroque and symphonic rock of Quatermass, Nice, and ELP but interesting backgrounds with tastes, why not, Mediterranean and... well-seasoned!

"Collage" and the two subsequent albums will remain long in history, we will not; and so, why not follow them, these Orme of a bygone era, these ideals so pure that today are taken as madness, these life stories, this dream of freedom...