IL GRANDE GIOCO

This is one of so many Italian bands that came to scene, released one album and then disbanded. That is a pity because it would have been nice to see how they managed to improve and create a second record, a third or a fourth one; now we'll never know. Albero Motore released "Il Grande Gioco" in 1974, an album whose music is not that traditional RPI sound, though it does have some traditional Italian folk rock moments. The album features seven songs and a total time of 35 minutes.

The first song is entitled "Cristoforo Colombo", which is a very nice melody. Acoustic guitar with soft piano and nice raw vocals. Later a wind instrument, backing vocals and a pretty good guitar solo. The mood is enjoyable, like a nice rock and roll song with good piano moments, but nothing more. "La Esperienze Passate" is like the second part of the opener song, because it stars practically with the same music the first song ended. A minute later it stops, there is a violin for some seconds and later vocals, bass and drums appear. There are also some guitar sounds here and there. The rhythm is pretty simple, but anyway, enjoyable, catchy.

"Una Vitta di Notte" starts with piano and vocals, seconds later it turns faster when drums appear. The music again is not bad, but it sounds like a conventional 60s rock band. It has some slices of bluesy moments, but the progressive element does not really exist. At half the song, there is a nice moment where piano takes the leadership. And the last part is very cool, in moments reminding me of The Rolling Stones.

"Landru" has nice bass notes and a predominant piano sound, a very rockish piece of music with some funny vocals. Nice guitar riffs and good instrumentation. Their sound is pretty 60s, though it was released at mid-70s. "Israele" is a softer piece with nice chorus vocals that do remind me to some of the RPI bands, such as New Trolls in moments. But later the song changes and a voice (not the raw one) appear with a more delicate sound. The music seems to be simple, nothing difficult to play I mean, but sounds nice. This is actually one of the best, if not the best song here.

"Nel Giardino dei Lillá" has acoustic guitars and harmonica accompanied by vocals. Seconds later drums and I believe it is a soft keyboard sound appears. This is a very catchy song, which can be both, listened or skipped. I mean it is not really transcendent. And the last song is "Capodanno 73'" which is a pretty nice track actually, a short but rich one. The music is quite enjoyable and here I would say the prog element does exist. The piano, drums, guitar and bass sound all together produce an excellent moment. There is also an acoustic guitar that reminds me to some of Cocciante's or Battisti's works. A nice song to end the album.

Despite the end was pretty good, I am not really fond on this album, everytime I listen to it my feelings do not change, my ears receive this music as just one more band, nothing enthusiastic. However, I do not consider a bad album or so, it is nice ofor its genre, and barely recommendable for the progressive rock realm. If you are a lover of RPI you may try it. My final grade will be two stars.

Anyway, enjoy it!

Albero Motore was an Italian rock band from the mid 1970s who were influenced by the vibrant RPI scene all around, but never truly a prog band. The band from Rome had a short burst of success in 1974 after a great reception at festivals (the Festival of Avant-Garde in Naples in 1973, in Villa Borghese and Villa Pamphili in 1974) and went on to release their only album, aided by the musical everyman Ricky Gianco. Gianco's socially conscious lyrics were said to be quite good, covering everything from the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, the counterculture, imperialist domination of cultures, and globalism. A single would follow in 1975 after which the band split.

Not a particularly original project, the album sounds very much like a mixture of 60s and early 70s rock influences. You can hear some American rock and bluesy-classic rock intention, the Italian pop sound, and there are moments that sound like English rockers Badfinger, the Stones, Joe Cocker, and Traffic. Similar Italian groups would be Libra or Raminghi. Gruffy, unshaven vocals over electric and acoustic guitars, some honky-tonk piano, and bluesy rhythms. The guitar solo on "Christofo Colombo" is pure Joey Molland. "Le esperienze passate" has a cool piano introduction and some brief strings. Closer "Capodanno '73" is an instrumental which heads in a fusion direction with spirited acoustic as well as electric guitar. Here the pace really kicks up a notch and it's a shame they waited this long to catch the wave.

Here and there you will find somewhat more elaborate flavorings or arrangements but for the most part there is little RPI excitement to be found. The album is not unpleasant but surely would be limited in appeal to fans of Italian rock. Somewhere between 2 and 3 stars, it should please fans of good rock and roll but may leave RPI fans underwhelmed. Worth looking for if you have a deep RPI collection.