PANE E ROSE

At the end of the 80s, probably seeing the sales decreasing but more likely because being considered a minstrel is no longer satisfying for him, Branduardi decides to experiment and this "Pane e Rose" (Bread and Roses) is still today his most unusual recording.

The album is opened by a classical/mexican/western guitar. It's the theme of the movie "Paris/Texas" of Wim Wenders and composed by Ry Cooder on which Angelo sings with an unusual funeral/drunk/doped voice. "L'Albero" (The Tree) is the title. "A high tree grows in me shining in the sun, tied to the black warm earth and each leaf sings"... quite psychedelic.

"Il primo della classe" (translatable as "the best of the schoolboys") is about a schoolboy emarginated buy the others because more intelligent and less "physical". It's a sort of electronic reggae/ska. If you replace Angelo's voice and make Sting sing, it's quite a Police song. Nice 80s pop, nothing more, but very unusual for this artist.

"1 Aprile 1965" (April 1st 1965) is the letter that Ernesto 'Che' Guevara sent to his family in Argentina before leaving for Bolivia. It's between tango and calypso and the only song of this album that's fitting in the usual Angelo's dreaming style even with the arrangement very 80s with electronics and fretless bass.

"Pioggia" (Rain) is even more unusual. Deeply electronic, likely played by a fairlight, sees Angelo singing a repetitive theme. Dark as a Joy Division song it could stay on ZEE:Identity.

"Frutta" (Fruits) is a sort of pregressive electronic and features a vocal duo between Angelo and the uncredited Pietra Montecorvino. It's another very unusual song for this artist.

"Miracolo a Goiania" (Miracle in Goiania) is opened by samba percussions and marimbas with Angelo(?) singing like a brasilian....By coincidence a friend of mine lives in Goiania and apart of a little nuclear incident in the 80s I have bnever heard of miracles there.

"Tango" starts with a sliding acoustic guitar very bluesy. Maybe it's a tango but sounds like "Cielito Lindo" played by Eric Clapton at guitar.

On "Scatolette" (Little Boxes) the guitar sounds like JJ.Cale/Knopfler with Branduardi singing weird lyrics with a style very far from his own. At this point I don't know what passed by his mind when he wrote this album.

"Angelina" is something that I can't describe. Mexican ? The melody is trivial but at least Angelo sings on his natural chords.

"Fame Di Sole" (Sun's Hunger) is just a pop song that reminds to Simon and Garfunkel(!). What happened to Branduardi?

"Barbablu" (Bluebeard) is another Marimba/percussion/samba song with Pietra singing in duo. If I'm not wrong it was the same year when Toquinho had a huge success with his Acquarello. This may be a reason for making an album of this kind.

"Benvenuta, Donna Mia" (Welcome My Woman). Is finally a Branduardi's song even if still more Country/western than medieval. Let coyote's sing and the ole man spit while he's drinking whiskey at the sunset...less than 2 minutes anyway.

Not really poor because the musicianship is good, but surely an album for completist only. The first three tracks are not bad but then the album takes a strange road and goes nowhere. An album that shouldn't have been released.

Two stars as a prize to the career.