Pooh
Per Quelli Come Noi

These are not the Pooh.

Forget songs like "Tanta Voglia Di Lei" and "Chi Fermerà La Musica", because in this review we will deal with a completely different group (or almost completely...) from the Pooh we all know. The very first formation, dated 1966, consists of: Valerio Negrini (drums), Mauro Bertoli (guitar), Gilberto Faggioli (bass), Mario Goretti (guitar), and the Englishman Bob Gillot (keyboard). After a few months, Gillot and Faggioli leave (apparently they were kicked out...), then replaced by none other than Roby Facchinetti and Riccardo Fogli. With this lineup, the Pooh release their first album: "Per Quelli Come Noi."

The title may lead us to expect a usual little song in the group's typical style. But no. As already mentioned, the Pooh of this record have nothing to do with those of subsequent years; here we find them in the guise of protesters. Yes, you read that correctly, protesters. We are in 1966, and like the rest of the world, something is happening in Italy, something that will change our society. It's true, there are still two years (the famous '68) left before this becomes visibly apparent, but already from afar, you can feel that air of revolution.
Young people are no longer what they used to be, and frustrated by the old morals of their fathers, they start growing their hair and using any means to make their voices heard if something doesn't sit well with them. One of these means is music. The so-called moralists are convinced that the path a good young person should take is to study, find a good job, start a family, and die like any other person. At the time, who did not follow this "social scheme" was considered a delinquent, but since these young people had an alternative to the life imposed by the elders, and above all saw nothing wrong with what they said and did, they began to protest through music.

Bands like Bit-Nik (who doesn't know the anthem "Manifesto Beat"?!) and Nomadi, in songs lasting no more than three minutes, started talking to these gentlemen about how they felt. An example of this is "Come Potete Giudicar" by Nomadi, in which Augusto says not to judge solely by appearances, that having long hair doesn't mean being immoral, and that if they (the moralists) tried to talk to these long-haired people, they would discover not the immorality as they believe, but just a desire for change. The air of revolution ended up passing even by Facchinetti & Co., who in the title-track attack with more ferocity than Nomadi against the well-meaning:
"You who do not see, do not hear but talk, judge only, that we are not as serious as you..."
It's hard to imagine the Pooh singing in this way, isn’t it?! Facchinetti, the lead vocalist, continues shouting at the top of his lungs in the verse "but those like us, don't know how to hate, let us keep the strength to sing. We ask you for nothing in the end, just let us have our world..."
The arrangement, given the times, is Beat, with psychedelic nuances and a strong recall to Western atmospheres, especially for the harmonica solo in the middle of the track. Truly an unprecedented performance by the Pooh!

Other high points of the album are: "Nel Buio", with its stunning introductory bass phrasing recurrent throughout the song. A track with strong gloomy atmospheres, in which the lyrics show a departure from the "protest" and a move towards the theme of love, but not with a banal text. The final choruses are chilling! - "Brennero '66" dedicated to the victims of terrorism in Alto Adige that year.
Song heavily censored, deemed by RAI "politically inconvenient" and at the third Festival delle Rose the Pooh were forced to change its title to "Le Campane Del Silenzio" and consequently soften the lyrics. And finally, there are the acid guitars of "Nessuno Potrà Ridere Di Lei", a very engaging piece.

An album to rediscover and evaluate, because the Pooh as they are in these tracks will never be heard again in the future. Incredibly unrecognizable!