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For a whole decade, spanning between the second half of the ‘50s and the second half of the ‘60s, jazz took over the Italian screens. The Californian be-bop rhythms, filtered and reinterpreted in a typical Mediterranean key, became the perfect soundtrack to the Italy of the economic boom; the quintessential music for a country that was sailing through a moment of profound and exciting industrial, social and cultural renovation. A nation that was rapidly shedding its skin, changing its style, look and identity, but also its landscape, letting itself go to the inebriation of the economic miracle. The compilation was conceived like a sonic stream, a journey of discovery carefully sequenced from hundreds of soundtracks from the golden age of Italian jazz contained in the CAM Sugar archive.
33 tracks that go beyond music, telling the story of Italian cinema, society and of its unmistakable style and charm. A genre that even when nodding to Californian be-bop, to crime jazz or bossa nova still sounds surprisingly original and Mediterranean, elegant, and seductive, either with joyous peaks (the scat of I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni or of I 4+4 di Nora Orlandi) or with enigmatic and nearly dramatic nuances (La strega in amore by Luis Bacalov, Il batticuore by Marcello Gigante). The compilation also offers a precious insight into the Italian jazz scene of the times, with its string of formidable soloists like Gianni Basso (sax) and Oscar Valdambrini (trumpet), two Piedmontese men on duty for the RAI television orchestra conducted by Armando Trovajoli; like Nunzio Rotondo (trumpet) a legendary and elusive figure who had a special bond with Piero Piccioni; or like Enrico Rava (trumpet), Franco D'Andrea (piano) and Gegé Munari (drums) who often recorded with Piero Umiliani. Not to forget international stars like Chet Baker and Gato Barbieri, who were often fortuitously dragged into the recording sessions also thanks to Umiliani’s never-ending curiosity.
Tracklist
Piero Umiliani – Notte in Algeria – I PIACERI PROIBITI
Sax: Gianni Basso ∙ Trumpet: Oscar Valdambrini
Francesco De Masi – Oggi in Africa – ALLA SCOPERTA DELL’AFRICA
Ennio Morricone – Agosto Jazz – LA VOGLIA MATTA
Armando Trovajoli – Jumping – IL VEDOVO
Nino Oliviero, Bruno Nicolai – Ora di Punta – MONDO CANE No. 2
Riz Ortolani – Il sorpasso (Titoli – ripresa) – IL SORPASSO
Marcello Giombini – Notti d’amore a Tokyo – LE DOLCI NOTTI
Aldo Piga – Il vedovo bianco – AMORE FACILE
Piero Umiliani – Tensione – AUDACE COLPO DEI SOLITI IGNOTI
Trumpet: Chet Baker
Gianni Ferrio – Frenesia dell’estate (Titoli) – FRENESIA DELL’ESTATE
Luiz Bonfá – Coppia in crisi – LE ORE DELL’AMORE
Classical Guitar: Luiz Bonfá
Piero Piccioni – Your Smile – 3 NOTTI D’AMORE
Flute: Gino Marinacci
Giuseppe De Luca – Il treno rosa – MILLE PECCATI NESSUNA VIRTU’
Marcello Gigante – Gardenia – SEDIA ELETTRICA
Vocals: Nora Orlandi
Piero Umiliani – In fondo alla notte – UNA BELLA GRINTA
Drums: Gegé Munari ∙ Sax: Gato Barbieri ∙ Trumpet: Enrico Rava
Luis Bacalov – La strega in amore (Titoli) – LA STREGA IN AMORE
Vocals: Nora Orlandi
Piero Umiliani – 7 monaci d’oro (Titoli) – 7 MONACI D’ORO
Choir: I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
Gianni Ferrio – Il raggio infernale (Titoli) – IL RAGGIO INFERNALE
Choir: I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
Francesco De Masi – Perry Scott Blues – SINFONIA PER DUE SPIE
Caro Rustichelli – Sexy Lucy – ASSICURASI VERGINE
Carlo Rustichelli – Allegre notti – LETTI SBAGLIATI
Piero Umiliani – Il Nero – M1 – IL NERO
Sax: Gato Barbieri
Carlo Rustichelli – Night Blues – GLI IMBROGLIONI
Choir: Quartetto Caravels
Marcello Giombini – Miniswing orientale – NUDO CRUDO E…
Carlo Savina – Agente 077 – Sfida ai killers (Titoli) – AGENTE 077 SFIDA AI KILLERS
Choir: I 4+4 di Nora Orlandi
Aldo Piga – Le notti della violenza (Titoli) – LE NOTTI DELLA VIOLENZA
Ivan Vandor – Gangsters – BERSAGLIO MOBILE
Armando Trovajoli – Giallo Club – CHIAMATE 22-22 TENENTE SHERIDAN
Marcello Gigante – Il batticuore – IL MOSTRO DI VENEZIA
Aldo Piga – Concorso per giovani attrici – LETTO DI SABBIA
Piero Umiliani – Milano Blues (edit) – BIANCO, ROSSO, GIALLO, ROSA
Giorgio Zinzi – Atmosfera di Night – LA COSTANZA DELLA RAGIONE
Piero Piccioni – Dea di un sogno (versione tromba e organo) – UN TENTATIVO SENTIMENTALE
Nora Orlandi – Gardenia (vocals only) – SEDIA ELETTRICA