Eugenio Finardi

by Aurelio PasiniThe son of an Italian sound engineer and an American singer, Eugenio Finardi was born in Milan on the 16th of July, 1952. His first official release was the 1961 single "Palloncino Rosso Rosso," a song for children followed one year later by the contributions to a couple of similar compilations. In 1965, while on holiday in the U.K., he first listened to the Rolling Stones, and as soon as he returned home he asked his parents to buy him an electric guitar. Some years later he would join with guitarist Alberto Camerini to form the Dreaming Bus Blues Band, who would later change their name to Il Pacco, under whose moniker they would take part in the 1973 Re Nudo Festival in Zerbo. In the same year Finardi also released the single "Hard Rock Honey." Following the suggestion of Area's singer, Demetrio Stratos, he signed with Cramps, and in 1975 released Non Gettate Alcun Oggetto dal Finestrino, an interesting blend of rock and political awareness. Released in 1976, Sugo revealed considerable artistic growth, especially in the lyrics of songs such as "Musica Ribelle," one of the record's leading tracks, along with "La Radio." Albums such as 1977's Diesel and 1978's Blitz confirmed his status as one of the most incisive voices expressing the social frictions of those years. The latter included "Extraterrestre," one of his most successful tracks.
Released in 1979, Roccando Rollando closed the political chapter of Finardi's career. Its follow-up, Finardi, was a more personal affair (its English version, Secret Streets, was released one year later), while 1983's Dal Blu was a collection of lush electronic ballads, such as "Amore Diverso" and "Le Ragazze di Osaka." The live album Strade followed in 1984. In 1985 Finardi took part in the Sanremo Music Festival with "Vorrei Svegliarti," included in Colpi di Fulmine. A period of time spent in the States inspired 1987's Dolce Italia, followed two years later by the interesting Il Vento di Elora. Released in 1990, La Forza dell'Amore collected new recordings of old hits (the only new song, its title track, became a big success), while 1991's Millennio saw Finardi once again interested in sociopolitical themes and 1993's Acustica was an unplugged live album. Occhi, issued in 1996, included an Italian cover version of Joan Osborne's "One of Us," while 1998's Accadueo (recorded with Vinnie Colaiuta on drums) included the single "Amami Lara," dedicated to the main character of the video game Tomb Raider. A collection of rare and unreleased tracks, La Forza dell'Amore, Vol. 2, was released in 2000, and the following year's O Fado, recorded and released with Francesco DiGiacomo and Marco Poeta, found Finardi plunging into the Portuguese music tradition. The anthology Cinquantanni (2002, including new versions of old classics) was followed by 2003's Il Silenzio e lo Spirito and 2005's Anima Blues, the latter completely in English. Un Uomo, a four-CD set including both previously released and unreleased songs, was released in 2007.