After "La Città che Io Vorrei" by the good Ivan Graziani, reviewed a few weeks ago, I return to talk about debut albums that have been somewhat neglected and snubbed. This time it's the turn of the national Vasco, and the album I am referring to is the first work of the rocker from Zocca "...ma cosa vuoi che sia una canzone..." (1978). When talking about Vasco, you don't deal with artists like De André, De Gregori, Battiato, Guccini, Gaber etc., whose poetic approach is rich with historical, cultural, and philosophical references, extremely fascinating on one hand but, on the other, not particularly immediate and complex to decipher and absorb, at least for some. When talking about Vasco, instead, you deal with a totally different language, devoid of any superstructure; a language sometimes perhaps too essential but, without a doubt, extremely direct, easy to understand, and to internalize. Vasco eliminates the overabundance of material and goes straight to the essence, freeing himself from pleonastic circumlocution. And then, in his writing, emerges a strong empathetic component that makes him accessible and appreciated by a large number of listeners.
The album in question is quite different from those that will come, especially from the mid-80s onwards. Already here, however, the first characteristic traits of the writing of what will objectively become the biggest icon of national pop/rock music of the last 35 years are emerging. There's the classic theatricality of Vasco, that "sung not sung" roughness, rich in emphasis, there's the cinematic gaze, there's the use of a simple but extremely direct and comprehensible language, there's the relational conflict between man and woman (a true trademark), there are the first, splendid, female sketches (sensitivity honed by a youth surrounded by women), poised between poetry and transgression. Let's say that the Vasco present in this album is born from a sort of heterogeneous mix composed mainly of songwriting elements, here still quite strong (I find characteristics of Gaetano, especially for his irony and his histrionic flair, and something of Graziani, for the wonderful female and everyday life sketches), and rock and progressive elements (small musical references to the Anglo-Saxon prog tradition betray a passion, later confirmed by both Vasco and Curreri, for Genesis, Gentle Giant, and Robert Fripp).
This "...ma cosa vuoi che sia una canzone..." might seem like a raw work, at times perhaps a bit rhetorical and disillusioned, but at the same time wrapped in a genuineness, in a fascinating naivety. Here probably hides the real Vasco, the Vasco grown up in a small mountain village, the Vasco who had no expectations to maintain, while, in the works that will come, the more spontaneous Vasco will be gradually but inexorably replaced by the Übermensch, the icon Vasco Rossi, with results not always pleasant.
In conclusion, returning to the beginning of the text: many debut albums, in my opinion, deserve to be listened to again with more attention. The origin of the myth - whether you like it or not, Vasco is one - always has something attractive. In the early works, you can glimpse the becoming and discover hidden treasures.
In my opinion, "...ma cosa vuoi che sia una canzone..." rightfully ranks among the top 5 best albums of the rocker from Zocca.
For the rest, it's up to you...
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