Nuvole barocche - Single

The second compilation of the early Fabrizio de André's singles for the Karim label, Nuvole Barocche offers at the same time less and more than the first collection, Tutto Fabrizio De André. Clearly, all of the best songs were included in the first release. This second compilation was Karim's last attempt to cash in on the singer's newfound popularity, as it features everything left in the vaults, including a repeated track from the first collection (albeit in a slightly different version). Paradoxically, while only "Carlo Martello Ritorna Dalla Battaglia di Poitiers" is a classic on par with the songs included in Tutto Fabrizio De André, Nuvole Barocche is arguably the more important compilation (particularly for collectors), since five of its nine tracks were never released on LP. Of course, the reason De André did not re-record these songs, as he did with all of the others from the Karim period, is probably because he deemed them not good enough. Still, and the often-made comparison with Dylan is again relevant here, De André leftovers are usually better than everybody else's keepers. The five rarities present in this collection include the ill-conceived first single "Nuvole Barocche"/ "E Fu la Notte," probably the least interesting songs he ever recorded, with De André sounding closer to Domenico Modugno than to himself. In addition, there is the mournful ballad "Per i Tuoi Larghi Occhi," and the humorous song "Il Fannullone," the lesser of the three De André would co-write with comedian Paolo Villagio, vaguely inspired in the protagonist of Goncharov's famous novel Oblomov. The star of the rarities is an Italian version of Joan Baez' classic "Geordie," sung with Maureen Rix, that easily rivals, if not tops, the English version. It also provides early evidence of De André's brilliant translation skills, as he would later demonstrate adapting into Italian songs by Georges Brassens, Bob Dylan, and Leonard Cohen. Long one of the best-kept secrets of De André's canon, "Geordie" resurfaced in the last album De André released before his death, 1999's Concerti, as a beautiful live duet with his daughter Luvi. These rare tracks, as well as the other Karim singles, can be found on CD on several compilations such as Philips' Il Viaggio(1991), or RMCD's budget-price La Canzone di Marinella(1995). They are not, however, included in the two Ricordi boxed sets that claim to feature De André's complete output, Opere Complete and In Direzione Ostinata e Contraria.