Viaggio, first solo album by Claudio Rocchi, released in 1970
Claudio Rocchi was a giant of Italian music, also and not only within Italian progressive rock. Born in 1951 and passing away in 2013, he was a singer-songwriter, musician, radio host (he even founded the first free radio station in Nepal, "The Himalayan Broadcasting Company", which he ran for three years), with a major solo career in the ’70s. Over the course of his life he embraced Eastern spirituality, becoming Hare Krishna at the end of the ’70s, something that comes through in the lyrics of his works.
He began as the bassist of the legendary Italian progressive rock band Stormy Six. Then he released his debut album, Viaggio, in 1970, followed by Volo Magico numero 1 in 1971, two masterpieces.
The sound of Claudio Rocchi’s works ranged between experimentation, folk with psychedelic influences, electronic music and, in later years, excellent pop/rock. He collaborated with giants of the Italian progressive rock scene, Mauro Pagani (PFM), Elio D'Anna (Osanna) and Paolo Tofani (Area) to name a few.
He moved away from mainstream music and returned in the ’90s, when he released his last album, "In Alto", in 2011.
He died on 18 June 2013, at the age of 62, due to an incurable degenerative illness.
This first album of his was released when he was just nineteen, the first of a career that would see him a leading figure for some forty years in the world of Italian alternative music: with this first album the “journey” begins, spanning more than twenty albums in search of the inner self.
It is a mainly acoustic, folk album with acoustic guitar, piano and light percussion, in which Rocchi plays guitar and sings and is joined by Mauro Pagani (flute, violin, bongos) and backing vocalists, with a melancholic, meditative atmosphere, far from the progressive sound of his later works, and including sound experiments and psychedelic poetry in the lyrics.
The themes addressed are linked to Eastern mysticism, religious seeking and self-understanding, which became central themes in Rocchi’s artistic path and which deal with the search for an identity and a lifestyle alternative to the dominant society, as well as generational rebellion.
A very personal and intimate album, yet one that launched a strongly felt counter-cultural message at the time, and did so in a very engaging way.
The record contains 11 tracks for a total running time of about 46 minutes
- Oeuvres is an experimental collage made of noises, sighs and sounds, experimental, unconventional, psychedelic, that goes beyond music itself and represents a kind of formal move away from the traditional song form, as a moment of counter-culture.
- La Tua Prima Luna is a very intimate track, based on acoustic guitar and voice. The lyrics are emblematic of the search for new styles and, textually, fix the precise moment in the journey toward a different autonomy: “This is your first moon you see, away from home knowing you won’t return. Today you went out and asked yourself, but where am I going and what will I do?”
- Non È Vero is a short acoustic folk piece, melancholic and centered on Rocchi’s light, touching voice.
- Ogni Uomo touches on philosophical themes about human existence, an acoustic and meditative track.
- Gesù Cristo touches (obviously) on religious themes and different belief systems with a respectful, questioning tone.
- I Cavalli is a splendid interlude.
- Acqua is a short, very poetic piece in which water is portrayed as a metaphor for spirituality and the flow of life.
- Giusto Amore is a masterpiece track, psychedelic rock and blues-rock with beautiful backing vocals, a jam with great piano work.
- 8.1.1951 is a track titled with Claudio Rochi’s own birth date, an autobiographical, very moving piece that describes the exact moment he was born and the complex relationship with his mother, giving the feeling that something is “ending” just as his life began, and the sense that she is “missing”.
- Questo Mattino, a beautiful, very intimate acoustic track that expresses disillusionment with everyday life and existence itself, a theme tied to the search for meaning and for an alternative to conventional society.
- Viaggio, the title track, is a synthesis of the record from a conceptual point of view: it speaks of a journey both physical and, above all, spiritual, with an Oriental-tinged atmosphere, a kind of “journey” to find oneself.
The album was printed with 3 different covers. The recording also features two of Rocchi’s schoolmates, Roberta Rossi and Annie Lerner, the sister of journalist Gad Lerner and later art director for the well-known photographer Oliviero Toscani.
One of the most original and interesting singer-songwriters of his generation. Without doubt a giant of Italian music.
Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists"
Tracklist
1. Oeuvres (5:43)
2. La tua prima luna (3:42)
3. Non e' vero (2:37)
4. Ogni uomo (4:54)
5. Gesu' Cristo (Tu con le mani) (5:58)
6. Ma qui (1:10)
7. I cavalli (1:58)
8. Acqua (5:26)
9. 8.1.1951 (4:55)
10. Questo mattino (2:05)
11. Viaggio (7:32)
Duration 46:00
LineUp
- Claudio Rocchi - guitar, vocals, piano, bongo
- Mauro Pagani - flute, violin, conga
- Roberta Rossi - vocals (2)
- Annie Lerner - vocals (5)
.jpeg "Maledetti (maudits) by Area")