Perigeo
Abbiamo Tutti un Blues da Piangere

THE REVIEW

Jazz-Rock is a genre that took shape in the early '70s based on the artistic experience of Miles Davis, this is well known. Moreover, we also know that this genre spread rapidly, thanks to bands and musicians of absolute caliber.

In our country, when talking about Jazz-Rock, many critics and enthusiasts associate a name: Perigeo, not by chance some have nicknamed them "the Italian Soft Machine."

Led by keyboardist Franco d'Andrea and double bassist Giovanni Tommaso, Perigeo began their journey the previous year with "Azimut," a good debut work. In 1973, they took a big step forward, reaching out to Jazz-Rock with their second album: "Abbiamo Tutti un Blues da Piangere" ("We All Have a Blues to Cry") is a pivotal moment for the group, for jazz-rock, and for Italian music as a whole. The foundations of an extraordinary career and a musical path are laid, developed over the years not only by them (an interesting example is the Marche-based group Agorà).

In this album, one can hear all those patterns that would later be refined and adapted in subsequent works, first with "Genealogia" and then with "La Valle dei Templi." Nevertheless, the stylistic and technical peak reached will never be repeated: "Abbiamo Tutti un Blues da Piangere" is surrounded by an incredible magical aura that slowly envelops the listener. The first listens may surprise, seem challenging, and even forbidding. The effect on the listener is that of a slow erosion of the previous musical patterns ingrained in the mind to create something different, seemingly strange and disjointed, but essentially extremely organic and rich. The sound elevates the mind and the ears, the synergy between the instruments is perfect, the result of the work of five great artists.

Tony Sidney's guitar is fluid, Fasoli's sax is light, Tommaso imparts a superb tone with the double bass, D'Andrea provides a decisive but not dominant sound on the keyboards, Biriaco does his duty on the drums. The highlights of the album are the title track, "Non c'è Tempo da Perdere" which is the opening track, and "Nadir," a piece I personally often recommend listening to.

"Abbiamo Tutti un Blues da Piangere" is usually recommended to Jazz and Progressive enthusiasts to hear what emerges from a fusion of styles, and to those new to Jazz-Rock, to introduce them to the genre in an elegant way. In general, it suits all those who appreciate Music and at certain moments feel the need to rediscover this ancient pleasure.