CLAUDIO FUCCI

A singer/songwriter from Carosino in South Italy,Claudio Fucci was born in 1951 and started his career in 60's playing mostly songs in Folk and Beat style.He collaborated with the acoustic trio Come le Foglie and supported Banco del Mutuo Soccorso in 1972 in Milan.He later signed with the Trident label and there he produced his first work in 1974.In ''Claudio Fucci'' we find the musician helped by Come le Foglie members Attilio Zanchi and Claudio Lugli,later co- musician on Le Mani Dario Piana,Jumbo drummer Tullio Granatello as well as famous Italian songwriter Eugenio Finardi.

''Claudio Fucci'' is a calm and relaxed journey through acoustic soundscapes,led by Fucci's voice and acoustic guitar,definitely falling into Folk/Folk Rock category.Simple melodies,mellow playing,light choirs and supporting instrumentation mostly by harmonica,moog synths and piano makes the album close to the style of ANGELO BRANDUARDI,though of lower quality.Far from anything really challenging,the album flaws in a hypnotic vein,good for having a nice glass of wine in hand,but not for a major listening.A couple of tracks though contain hints of some rock attitude,like ''Viaggia la speranza'' with the good spacey interplay between electric and acoustic guitars plus the synths on the background and the short ''Tutto cio che hai'',featuring a nice bluesy electric solo and strong piano parts.The rest of the tracks are far from memorable,being quite similar in nature with no particular differences.

Later in the year Fucci would tour with Franco Battiato and I Pooh.By mid-70's he was a member of the overlooked Italian prog band Le Mani,whose small sample of recordings would see the light in the new millenium.His self-titled album has nothing to do with the Classic Italian Prog sound and might be of some interest for Folk/Folk Rock collectors or anyone wanting to know what Fucci was experiencing before forming Le Mani.