Luigi Grechi
Come state?

LUIGI GRECHI - HOW ARE YOU? - 1979
 

I must admit I've never been much into singer-songwriters, especially those with a quasi-evangelical aura. I bought this 33 rpm for 200 lire, Luigi Grechi's How Are You? at a flea market, on the day I spoke with Piotta, who was there to gather some old 45s, pontificating from atop his father's Goodymusic label about the demise of rock—piece of crap!—and the apotheosis of rap, all the while sifting through a stack of spare for his loud b....t. So, almost for fun, partly for the absurd cheguevara- visitors- cover, and partly because on the back cover Grechi's kitchen looked identical to mine—HOME SWEET HOME that we had left years ago and always miss— it was a pleasant surprise, even though I'm not a fan of country-rock, a genre that pervades Grechi's musical choices, and anyway, it's worth saying that his calm, unobtrusive tones never bothered anyone, carving out his own nice ecological niche away from the larger spotlights: the spotlights at that time were all focused on his super-famous brother Francesco De Gregori at the peak of his career with Banana Republic.

The songs glide smoothly and indifferently by, with all the usual tools at hand—namely pedal steel, dobro, banjo and Lucio Fabbri of Pfm on violin. Themes range from the quasi-ecological - Polmonidipimbo and Panciacromata, to the folk of Chitarrista cieco, to the humorous Rock of the pie - and then, to exhaust Sotto una bandiera - Chitarrista cieco - Flu - Theme of polmonidipiombo and...finally, the final jab from the unkind older brother Francesco, with his hateful sneer à la Dylan de' noantri appearing here in the piece Dublino. Less politicized and hairy than usual, but certainly not receding. It’s an album that nonetheless stands there as a testament to how once recordings were approached with attention to sound, creating nuances that are hardly heard anymore.

I wanted to sell it but I saw my kitchen again, shed a tear and put it back on the shelf.