Antonello Venditti
Encyclopedia
Antonello Venditti is an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 who became famous in the 1970s for the social themes of his songs.

Biography

Antonello Venditti was born in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, the son of a police commissioner from Molise
Molise
Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise and now a separate entity...

, who would later become deputy-chief of police in Rome.

He studied piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 in his youth and made his debut in the music world in the early 1970s at the Folkstudio of Rome, together with singers like Francesco De Gregori
Francesco De Gregori
Francesco De Gregori is an Italian singer-songwriter. He is popularly known as "Il Principe Poeta" , a nickname referring to the elegance of his lyrics.-1970s:...

 and Giorgio Lo Cascio. In duo with the former he released in 1972 his first LP, Theorius Campus
Theorius Campus
Theorius Campus is a music album by Italian singer-songwriters Antonello Venditti and Francesco De Gregori, released by It in 1972. It was the debut work for both artists, who sing together in "Dolce signora che bruci" and "In mezzo alla città", while the others are solo efforts.De Gregori and...

. The LP scored little success, but Venditti at least made himself noted for the strength of his vocal qualities and for his attention to social issues, evidenced by pieces like Sora Rosa which is sung in Roman dialect
Romanesco
Romanesco or Romanesque is a regional language or sociolect subsumed within the Italian language spoken in Rome. It is part of the Central Italian dialects and is thus genetically closer to the Tuscan dialect and Standard Italian....

. Also in dialect was Roma Capoccia, a declaration of love for his city, which later became one of his most famous songs. Curiously, Venditti refused to sing it for several years, as he considered it not politically or socially "engaged" enough.

Venditti subsequently moved to Milan and released L'orso bruno
L'orso bruno
L'orso bruno is a music album by the Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released by It in 1973. It was his first solo album, after Theorius Campus in collaboration with Francesco De Gregori...

 (1973), made in collaboration with musician Vince Tempera; this album included another song in dialect, E li ponti so' soli, but otherwise was marked by an even stronger attention to social themes. His next work, Le cose della vita
Le cose della vita
Le cose della vita is a music album by Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released by Rca Italian in late 1973.All the songs are written, played and produced entirely by Venditti alone.-Track listing:#"Mio padre ha un buco in gola"#"Mariù"...

 ("Things of Our Life"), released the same year for the colossus RCA Music
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...

, confirmed this tendency. The following LP Quando verrà Natale
Quando verrà Natale
Quando verrà Natale is a music album by Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti. It was released by RCA Italia in 1974.The most famous song in the album is "A Cristo" , an ironical depiction of a modern Jesus straggling amongst the 1970s society: after performing this song in a show with...

 ("When Christmas Comes") was similar; its even more naked arrangements emphasize the strength of Venditti's denunciation. After a live performance of the song "A Cristo" ("To Christ"), he was denounced by an Italian police officer for blasphemy. Venditti, however, was later totally acquitted.

Although Venditti's use of religious language was not typical of the culture of the left, his manner of life in the late '60s and the '70s was, as he later told the journalist Giampaolo Mattei, a "secular" one: "They were years in which the influence of the left was really strong and the life of us young people then was somewhat orphaned of God. I think it was the everyday life of the time that led me to participate in and embrace certain things. I emerged from that when I realised it was a dead end because it took away people's happiness. Maybe it did give them social growth, but about happiness it had nothing to say. Too much materialism and too little spirituality. A whole generation grew up with that materialism, with certain slogans."

Venditti's fortunes grew and peaked in 1975, with the LP Lilly. The yearning title-track was another strong accusation, this time against drugs, but it achieved an outstanding success anyway. Other famous pieces in the album were "Compagno di scuola" ("Schoolmate") and the long ballad "Lo stambecco ferito" ("The Wounded Ibex"), the story of a corrupt Northern Italian tycoon. Venditti continued to deal with front-page matters in his next LP, Ullalà
Ullalà
Ullallà is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Maria Maddalena - 4:54#Nostra Signora di Lourdes - 2:45#Canzone per Seveso - 5:23#Una stupida e lurida storia d'amore - 3:42...

 (1976), whose "Canzone per Seveso
Seveso
Seveso is a town and comune in the Province of Monza and Brianza, in the Region of Lombardy. The economy of the town has traditionally been based around the furniture industry....

" was about the industrial accident
Seveso disaster
The Seveso disaster was an industrial accident that occurred around 12:37 pm July 10, 1976, in a small chemical manufacturing plant approximately north of Milan in the Lombardy region in Italy...

 in July that year.

Political involvement, however, had side-effects on Venditti's inspiration in the late 1970s, marked in Italy by the growing menace of terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...

 and by the strategia della tensione: some events (like the public booing of his friend De Gregori by politicized fans during a show) forced him to rethink his way of being a public personality. Sotto il segno dei pesci
Sotto il segno dei pesci
Sotto il segno dei pesci is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Sotto il segno dei pesci - 6:03#Francesco - 4:26#Bomba o non bomba - 5:08#Chen il cinese - 4:09#Sara - 4:30#Il telegiornale - 5:15...

 ("(Born) Under Pisces", 1978) contained more personal and intimate themes. The eponymous track scored a great success, but was largely misinterpreted as a song about a woman: it actually referred to Venditti's career, as he was in fact born "under the Pisces sign".

Success was, however, marred by his divorce from his wife Simona Izzo. She won custody of Venditti's son, Francesco Saverio. The following LP, Buona domenica
Buona domenica
Buona domenica is a music album by the Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released in 1979.-Track list:#"Buona domenica" #"Stai con me" #"Robin" #"Scusa, devo andare via " #"Modena"...

 (1979
1979 in music
See also:Record labels established in 1979* 1979 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1979.-January–February:*January 1...

), was strongly marked by this difficult period. It contained, however, several classics, like the title-track and the ballad Modena, which featured Gato Barbieri
Gato Barbieri
Leandro Barbieri , better known as Gato Barbieri , is an Argentinean jazz tenor saxophonist and composer who rose to fame during the free jazz movement in the 1960s and from his latin jazz recordings in the 1970s.-Biography:Born to a family of musicians, Barbieri began playing music...

  on saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...

 and is considered one of Venditt's finest works.

In 1982 the bitter Sotto la pioggia marked Venditti's passage to his own label, Heinz Music, and the beginning of the long-lasting collaboration with producer Alessandro Colombini. The following year A.S. Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

, his city's football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 team, won its long-awaited second scudetto: Venditti was therefore called upon to take part in the official celebration show, and the song that he composed for the occasion, "Grazie Roma" ("Thank You Roma"), turned into a great success, surprisingly not just in Rome. Venditti had already composed several songs about his favourite football team; some people criticized them harshly, mostly because of the strong contrast with the political-social themes of his other songs.

In the following years, and notably in the 1990s, Venditti's inspiration seemed to become more mainstream and commercial. His LPs (Cuore
Cuore (album)
Cuore is the twelfth studio album, and sixteenth album overall, by Gianna Nannini. It was released in 1998 on Polydor Records.-Track listing:#"Un Giorno Disumano"#"Bacio Fondente"#"Centomila"#"Notti Senza Cuore"#"Come Sei"#"Peccato Originale"...

, In questo mondo di ladri
In questo mondo di ladri
In questo mondo di ladri is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Ricordati di me - 5.19 #Miraggi - 5.26 #Correndo correndo - 4.10...

, Benvenuti in Paradiso, Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro
Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro
Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Ogni volta - 4.59 #Tutti all’inferno - 5.08 #Vento selvaggio - 5.04 #Eroi minori - 4.51...

) were very successful, but his former themes were absent, or generally less stressed. Pieces like "Notte prima degli esami" or "Ma che bella giornata di sole" (about the Italian Liberation Day of September 1943) were anyway praised by critics. Among the songs of this period, "Dolce Enrico", from the LP Benvenuti in Paradiso (1991), was dedicated to the former leader of the Partito Comunista Italiano, Enrico Berlinguer
Enrico Berlinguer
Enrico Berlinguer was an Italian politician; he was national secretary of the Italian Communist Party from 1972 until his death.-Early career:...

, who died in 1984.

Antonello nel Paese delle Meraviglie
Antonello nel Paese delle Meraviglie
- Track list :#Buona Domenica#Campo De' Fiori#In Questo Mondo Di Ladri#L'amore Insegna Agli Uomini#Le Cose Della Vita#Ho Fatto Un Sogno#Benvenuti In Paradiso#Settembre#Sara#Amici Mai#Ci Vorrebbe Un Amico...

  ("Antonello in Wonderland") of 1997 featured his greatest hits accompanied by the Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra of Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...

, directed by Renato Serio. Goodbye Novecento (1999) gave increasing attention to social and historical themes, but had a sub-par success by Venditti's standards. In 2001 A.S. Roma again won a scudetto, and Venditti played again in a free concert in the Circo Massimo for an immense audience of tifosi
Tifosi
Tifosi is an Italian word to describe a group of supporters or fans, especially in sports. Tifosi is used for a mixed gender or an all-male group; masculine singular tifoso, feminine singular tifosa, feminine plural tifose.-Football:...

 and lovers of his songs. His latest studio release is Che fantastica storia è la vita ("What a Fantastic Story Life Is", October 2003). Gato Barbieri played with Venditti in this release. After resolving the difficulties in his friendship with Venditti, told in the latter's 1979 song "Scusa Francesco" ("Sorry Francesco"), De Gregori is also present as singer in "Io e mio fratello" ("Me and My Brother"). The album also contains a satire of Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...

 ("Il Sosia").

In April 2008, in an interview with a Catholic website, Venditti spoke of his faith in Christ, his devotion to Padre Pio and his respect for Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...

, and also mentioned having been assaulted when he was sixteen by a malevolent entity which he identified with Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...

. This led the media to class Venditti with other high-profile show-business converts like Claudia Koll
Claudia Koll
Claudia Koll is an Italian actress and missionary.-Biography:Claudia Koll was born in Rome of Italian and Romanian parentage....

 (who was also attacked by a malevolent entity) and Giovanni Lindo Ferretti
Giovanni Lindo Ferretti
Giovanni Lindo Ferretti is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer and author.- Biography:Giovanni Lindo Ferretti was born in Cerreto Alpi , in the province of Reggio Emilia, in the western part of the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna...

, although actually his conversion long predates theirs.

In October 2009 Venditti was criticized for asking, during a concert in Sicily, "Why did God create Calabria?" and declaring that "there is really nothing" in Calabria. Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....

 is a region in South Italy. In the past it was colonized by the ancient Greeks and became the cradle of Magna Graecia
Magna Graecia
Magna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that were extensively colonized by Greek settlers; particularly the Achaean colonies of Tarentum, Crotone, and Sybaris, but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neapolis to the north...

, but now it is also the base of the modern crime organization 'ndrangheta. Venditti later made peace with Calabria over a cup of good coffee at his house in Rome with the mayor of Reggio Calabria
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria , commonly known as Reggio Calabria or Reggio, is the biggest city and the most populated comune of Calabria, southern Italy, and is the capital of the Province of Reggio Calabria and seat of the Council of Calabrian government.Reggio is located on the "toe" of the Italian...

, Giuseppe Scopelliti.

Soundtracks

Venditti released the soundtrack for the 1985 movie Troppo forte by his friend, the Roman director Carlo Verdone
Carlo Verdone
Carlo Verdone is an Italian actor, screenwriter and film director.-Early life:Carlo Verdone was born in Rome to Mario Verdone, an important Italian film critic, and during his youth he earned a degree in Modern Literature at Sapienza University of Rome and a degree in Film Direction at the Centro...

. Verdone also occasionally played drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

 in Venditti's concerts.

Discography

  • Theorius Campus
    Theorius Campus
    Theorius Campus is a music album by Italian singer-songwriters Antonello Venditti and Francesco De Gregori, released by It in 1972. It was the debut work for both artists, who sing together in "Dolce signora che bruci" and "In mezzo alla città", while the others are solo efforts.De Gregori and...

     (1972) (With Francesco De Gregori under the collective byname of Theorius Campus)
  • L'orso bruno
    L'orso bruno
    L'orso bruno is a music album by the Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released by It in 1973. It was his first solo album, after Theorius Campus in collaboration with Francesco De Gregori...

     (1973)
  • Le cose della vita
    Le cose della vita
    Le cose della vita is a music album by Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released by Rca Italian in late 1973.All the songs are written, played and produced entirely by Venditti alone.-Track listing:#"Mio padre ha un buco in gola"#"Mariù"...

     (1973)
  • Quando verrà Natale
    Quando verrà Natale
    Quando verrà Natale is a music album by Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti. It was released by RCA Italia in 1974.The most famous song in the album is "A Cristo" , an ironical depiction of a modern Jesus straggling amongst the 1970s society: after performing this song in a show with...

     (1974)
  • Lilly
    Lilly (album)
    Lilly is a music album by Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released by Rca Italian in late 1975.All the songs are written by Antonello Venditti. It was the first album by Venditti to peak the Italian charts...

     (1975)
  • Ullalà
    Ullalà
    Ullallà is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Maria Maddalena - 4:54#Nostra Signora di Lourdes - 2:45#Canzone per Seveso - 5:23#Una stupida e lurida storia d'amore - 3:42...

     (1976)
  • Cronach (1977)
  • Buona domenica
    Buona domenica
    Buona domenica is a music album by the Italian singer-songwriter Antonello Venditti, released in 1979.-Track list:#"Buona domenica" #"Stai con me" #"Robin" #"Scusa, devo andare via " #"Modena"...

     (1979)
  • Sotto la pioggia (1982)
  • Circo Massimo (1983, live)
  • Cuore (1984)
  • Centocittà (1985, live)
  • Venditti e Segreti (1986)
  • In questo mondo di ladri
    In questo mondo di ladri
    In questo mondo di ladri is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Ricordati di me - 5.19 #Miraggi - 5.26 #Correndo correndo - 4.10...

     (1988)
  • Gli anni ’80 (1990, collection)
  • Diario
    Diario
    Diario is a daily, family-owned newspaper written in the Papiamento language and published in Aruba. The managing editor is Jossy Mansur.- External links :**http://www.diarioaruba.com/diahuebs/noticia/index.html...

     (1991)
  • Benvenuti in Paradiso (1991)
  • Gli anni '70 (1992)
  • Da San Siro a Samarcanda – L’amore insegna agli uomini (1992, live)
  • Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro
    Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro
    Prendilo tu questo frutto amaro is a music album by Antonello Venditti. It contains these songs:#Ogni volta - 4.59 #Tutti all’inferno - 5.08 #Vento selvaggio - 5.04 #Eroi minori - 4.51...

     (1995)
  • Antonello nel Paese delle Meraviglie
    Antonello nel Paese delle Meraviglie
    - Track list :#Buona Domenica#Campo De' Fiori#In Questo Mondo Di Ladri#L'amore Insegna Agli Uomini#Le Cose Della Vita#Ho Fatto Un Sogno#Benvenuti In Paradiso#Settembre#Sara#Amici Mai#Ci Vorrebbe Un Amico...

    (1997, live)
  • Goodbye Novecento (1999)
  • Se l'amore è amore... (2000, collection)
  • Circo Massimo 2001 (2001, live)
  • Il coraggio e l’amore (2002, collection)
  • Che fantastica storia è la vita (2003)
  • Campus Live (2005, live)
  • Diamanti (2006, collection)
  • Dalla pelle al cuore (2007)
  • Le donne (2009)

External links

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