Ricky's Filj: Another RPI/ ISP way from 1973

My new discovery in the world of Italian Prog (and extremely recomended):

From www.italianprog.it or www.italianprog.com:

Artist

ROCKY'S FILJ

Roberto "Rocky" Rossi (vocals, sax, clarinet)
Roby Grablovitz (guitar, flute)
Luigi Ventura (bass, trombone)
Rubino Colasante (drums, upright bass)

A band of very good musicians from Parma, Rocky's Filj (from their leader Rocky Rossi's name) gained a contract with Ricordi after a positive tour with Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, and the album was produced by Sandro Colombini, who had worked with Banco in their first albums.

The album is jazz-rock oriented, but all the tracks have vocals, and Rocky's voice is very original even if not great. 
Instrumental parts are very well made, all the band members could professionally play various instruments and the album is always very enjoyable. The long opening track, L'ultima spiaggia, with dramatic vocals and long guitar and sax solo parts is a fine example of their music. 

A band that deserved more consideration, Rocky's Filj broke up soon after the album was recorded, as one of them was jailed, reappearing in 1979 with a commercial single recorded with help from former Acqua Fragile Pier Emilio Canavera and (probably) Franz Dondi.
Rocky Rossi sadly died in 1985 in a car accident.
Drummer Colasante is probably the same which appears (with the name Roby) in the records by Delta Blues Band, in 1979, and the funky-disco Midnight Band in 1980.
Guitarist Roby Grablovitz has kept playing in Northern Italy with a 70's cover band, and has released a solo CD in 2005, entitled Speranze d'artista (Acid Studio RG001).

 

 

 

Original album on Ricordi label has recently gained a high value, being one of the few prog era albums that have never had an official CD reissue until 2003. 
It was only been reissued before on the Neverland (japanese? authorized?) label with a mini-gatefold cover.
The nice gatefold cover contains a lyric inner and was designed by Caesar Monti. A picture from the same photo session was later used in Angelo Branduardi's Alla fiera dell'est booklet.

No counterfeit exists, nor foreign reissues.

 

 

Thanks to Milan Vyskocil for some information on the group

 

 

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P.s.: Rocky's Filj changed the keyboards with the sax, trombone and clarinet and for this situation Rocky's Filj is a very good band for aficionados of ISP/ RPI and these instruments!!!