BUON VECCHIO CHARLIE

Short and sweet. That is the best summary I can muster of this album. Three tracks and a mere 33 minutes in total it is the bare essentials and sports no filler, no unnecessary stuff. It is simply pure prog bliss. Keyboard heavy in nature one do think of the classic ELP, not only regarding setting but also the classical elements within the music. The opener, for example, uses "In the hall of the mountain king" to great effect and really rocks the living daylights out of it. Wonder what Grieg would have said but I don't care. I love it. The saxophone solo is great aswell.

The short track (?), "Evviva la contea di lane", starts off gently with guitar and drums before a wonderful organ hits the stage. Flute and vocals bringing early King Crimson to mind. The track is beautiful and gentle, which is welcome after the frantic opener. Then there's the majestic last track, "All'Uomo Che Raccoglie I Cartoni", a five part suite lasting 15 minutes. Now, this is brilliance. In a nutshell. It ranges from highly melodic and gentle to frantic and nigh on avant garde at times, with classical guitar, jazzy interludes and hard rocking fury. Oh, my goodness. This track is to die for.

33 minutes can be a lifetime but in the case of Buon Vecchio Charlie's sole album it is like closing your eyes for a minute and then opening them again. 33 minutes passes like a moment in time, too fast. But that is really a compliment. That means you had a really great time and I swear I had. Raw and rough but highly accomplished and deliciously executed this is classic and unmissable RPI.