Paolo Conte
Un Gelato al Limon

THE REVIEW

I write in the hope of making amends a few years after the release of my first review of Conte at the ear-whistling that man must have endured following my disastrous-telegram-style review (alas, people, it was my first review! I was trying to be super concise) that every time I read it brings a bitter smile, recalling the comment from dying_sun (the funniest I've ever received) and a bit of nostalgia thinking about how Debaser was two years ago. Well, what's done is done, let's move on to the album.

Although it came out a few years ago, this CD was given to me this Christmas by a special person (I'm saying this to greet him and tell him I love him a lot) and its provincial taste evokes a slight melancholy for memories that, even if they don't belong to me, make me think. The singer's tone lowers and begins to stabilize, increasingly adapting to the arrangements, which are less simple and more varied and intriguing. This album, in my view, marks a move towards the completeness of Conte's musical style.
Many masterpieces are present in this work of art, "La Donna d'Inverno", a tribute to femininity during the winter period (but nooooo really?) in which it describes its charm and narrates in a few verses its ambiguity and the contradictions imposed by medieval society on women. In short, a countercurrent image of female allure because it was in those years that the true beginning of mass disinhibition thanks to the media and their advertising occurred. Another song that I consider a masterpiece is "Arte", almost whispered, which doesn't narrate art in its simplest sense, but everything that can be associated with it, especially "the art of loving" as the author quotes in the song multiple times. Many others, such as "Blue Tangos," "Sud America," and "L'uomo Camion" are true gems of his songwriting.
Contrary to what has always been stated about this album, I do not believe that songs like "Bartali" and "Un Gelato al Limon" are on par with the previously mentioned tracks.
Conte, with these songs, manages to express his character and his charm as an "Avvocato di Asti" (and what charm should a lawyer born in Asti have? Boh!). An almost wonderful CD, to be listened to without skipping tracks.
Thank you for giving it to me.