Zucchero
Chocabeck

On November 3, 2010, Chocabeck, the eleventh album of unreleased tracks by the now older Zucchero, was released.

As far as I remember, I believe this is the most intimate album from the good old Sugar, now calm and more reflective than ever, light-years away from the young, lively, and somewhat lost mountaineer who sang "Con le mani sbucci le cipolle". Here, the rustic aspect is essentially in the title: Chocabeck, a Reggian dialect expression that recalls the sound of a goose's beak and metaphorically takes Adelmo back to his youth when he would see his empty plate on the table. Indeed, because the entire record revolves around childhood memories and the small town where the future Bluesman played as a boy. Naturally, there are also excellent international and local collaborations. Specifically: Francesco Guccini, Bono Vox, Pasquale Panella, and Mimmo Cavallo.

But let's focus on the songs: the album contains 11 tracks that may initially seem to mean absolutely nothing. As previously mentioned, the work is very calm and intimate, but particularly the music and lyrics are very homogeneous. Therefore, it's clear that to fully appreciate "Chocabeck," the listener needs time. "Un soffio caldo" with lyrics by Guccini and "Il Suono della Domenica" written by Bono Vox of U2 and later translated into Italian, are the tracks that open the album. Both are based on slow rhythms that strongly evoke youth and the flavors you feel when you are a child not living in a metropolis.

Right from the first tracks, including "Soldati nella mia città", it's clear that this cd was not designed to spawn hits topping the charts for a few weeks (like the old "Baila Morena" or "Il grande Baboomba") and make even the most introverted dance on beaches across Italy, or hits to dance in clubs or to play in cars to pick up girls to the rhythm of Dance mixed with gritty Blues. Let's say that after various listens, you understand how genuine the work is, whether you appreciate it or not.

Perhaps among the more hit or anyway among the songs that get stuck in your head first, there are: the subsequent "E' un peccato morir", an anthem to joy, with fairly catchy music and maybe not even a very successful text. And especially "Vedo nero", this time the only playful and to use a neologism "double-entendre" song by Zucchero, with lyrics written together with Mimmo Cavallo. Finally, there is the funny and desperate "Un uovo sodo", in my opinion, the most successful of the entire album, perhaps because it reminds me of the good old days of "Miserere" or "Spirito DiVino". Worth noting is "Oltre le rive", an old-style ballad with a final change of rhythm that, lo and behold, under an intense arpeggio, there is a clear call to childhood, which I quote:

"Ho vagato senza scopo e destino fino alla fine dell'arcobaleno, nelle notti bagnate dal vino.. finchè ho sentito la mia voce da bambino".

The same call, of course, also appears in the song that gives its name to the work, where it says:

"L'amore che non so chi 6...che 7,8,9 e 10 sarai. Mi manca sai il Chocabeck!".

For the last two tracks ("Spicinfrin boy" and "God bless the child") I would not spend many words, while among the most beautiful lyrics we have "Alla fine", dedicated to a recently deceased fan friend of his.

Summarizing, I'd say that "Chocabeck" is certainly not something to discard, indeed, maybe for those who love soft and more reflective music, this is exactly the album for them. After all, many Sugar fans were waiting for something like this. Personally, I feel it lacks the standout and edgy flags, songs like "Con le mani", "Diavolo in Me", "Per colpa di chi" and many others are the gaps most felt. I don't believe that this "Chocabeck" can be placed in the annals of Italian music, a bit like the previous "Fly"... don't you agree?