Nomadi
Encyclopedia
Nomadi is an Italian band formed in 1963 and still present on the music scene.
In 1962 Carletti met Franco Midilli, guitarist of the group Novellara
, who joined them in Monelli. In 1963 Franco Midilli introduced Augusto Daolio to Beppe Carletti and he too joined the group. In that year the band’s name was changed to Nomadi.
. In those years an economic boom revealed an Italy economically enriched but already socially impoverished. Tens, if not hundreds, of groups appeared and disappeared attempting to express the voice of a youth who felt repressed by a society still permeated with antiquated conventions.
The original 1963 formation of six was founded in Reggio Emilia
: Augusto Daolio
(vocals
), Beppe Carletti
(keyboards
), Franco Midili (guitar
), Leonardo Manfredini (drum
s), Gualtiero Gelmini (sax
), Antonio Campari (bass
).
In the same year Nomadi were signed by Frankfurt Bar in Riccione
.
Franco Midilli had to leave the group that summer for compulsory military service. As often happens, the lineup changed frequently: in 1964 Madfredini left after the death of his parents; so did Campari and Gelmini, who were replaced by Gabriele ‘Bila’ Copellini on drums and Gianni Coron on bass.
In 1965 they released their first 45", featuring the song "Donna, la Prima Donna" ("Woman, the First Woman") and "Giorni Tristi" ("Sad Days") with the collaboration of De Ponti and of Odoardo Veroli (known as Dodo) as writer and composer.
Their first hit was 1966's "Come potete giudicar" (How Can You Judge, which was actually the cover of Sonny Bono
's "The Revolution Kind"), anthem of the Italian beat generation
, which exemplifies the clash between hippies and conservatives. In the wake of this success i Nomadi came into contact with a young and then unknown writer, Francesco Guccini
, who would go on to give them other successes: "Noi non ci saremo" ("We Won't Be There"), "Dio è morto" ("God is Dead"), "Canzone per un'amica" ("Song for a Friend").
Their great success continued in the following years. Hits included "Io Vagabondo
" ("I, Vagabond"), "Un pugno di sabbia" ("A Fistful of Sand"), "Un giorno insieme" ("One Day Together"), "Tutto a posto" ("Everything Settled"), "Voglio ridere" ("I Want to Laugh").
I Nomadi's political commitment is particularly evident in some songs such as "Primavera di Praga" ("Prague Spring
"), written by Guccini and dedicated to Czech student Jan Palach
.
, the band's frontman and icon, died of an aggressive form of lung cancer. Despite the shock and despair of their many fans, the group decided to continue with Danilo Sacco doing vocals, Francesco Gualerzi on wind and vocals and Elisa Minari on bass. Gualerzi and Minari left the group at the end of 1997 and were replaced by Massimo Vecchi and Andrea Pozzoli, who took part in the summer tour of that year and was then replaced by Sergio Reggioli, enchanting on violin. The new lineup convinced the fans and Nomadi continue even now to release new albums.
followed by three more concerts and other events related to the past and the future of the group.
Their sound is instantly recognisable for its cleaness and simpleness, even if some arrangements on the old albums tended to be a bit overblown as was typical of the 1960s in general.
In 2003 they released Quaranta (Forty), a double CD with 34 tracks. In 2004 the new album Corpo Estraneo (Foreign Body) came out and went platinum just on advance sales. The single Oriente (East) was successful on many radio stations and the tour sold out every show.
They came first in the Groups category of the 2006 Sanremo Music Festival with the track Dove si Va (Where Does One Go).
The new album Con Me o Contro di Me (With Me or Against Me) came out at the beginning of March 2006 and sold 90,000 copies in the first four days, going platinum, and in 2007 they released Orchestra, an album-live.
Origins
In 1961 Beppe Carletti and Leonardo Manfredini formed the group I Monelli (‘Urchins’).In 1962 Carletti met Franco Midilli, guitarist of the group Novellara
Novellara
Novellara is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna, Italy, with some 13,500 inhabitants. It is 19 km north of Reggio Emilia and has a railway station for the local train going from Reggio to Guastalla.-History:...
, who joined them in Monelli. In 1963 Franco Midilli introduced Augusto Daolio to Beppe Carletti and he too joined the group. In that year the band’s name was changed to Nomadi.
I Nomadi of Augusto Daolio
I Nomadi sprung from one of the most fervent periods of the Italian music scene: the sixties1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
. In those years an economic boom revealed an Italy economically enriched but already socially impoverished. Tens, if not hundreds, of groups appeared and disappeared attempting to express the voice of a youth who felt repressed by a society still permeated with antiquated conventions.
The original 1963 formation of six was founded in Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
: Augusto Daolio
Augusto Daolio
Augusto Daolio was an Italian singer, poet and painter, founding member and frontman of I Nomadi band.-Biography:Daolio was born in Novellara, Emilia-Romagna....
(vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
), Beppe Carletti
Beppe Carletti
Giuseppe "Beppe" Carletti is an Italian musician, founder and keyboardist of the band I Nomadi.- Career :Carletti was born in Novi di Modena, Emilia-Romagna....
(keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
), Franco Midili (guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), Leonardo Manfredini (drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s), Gualtiero Gelmini (sax
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
), Antonio Campari (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
).
In the same year Nomadi were signed by Frankfurt Bar in Riccione
Riccione
Riccione is a comune in the Province of Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. As of 2007 Riccione had an estimated population of 34,868.-History:...
.
Franco Midilli had to leave the group that summer for compulsory military service. As often happens, the lineup changed frequently: in 1964 Madfredini left after the death of his parents; so did Campari and Gelmini, who were replaced by Gabriele ‘Bila’ Copellini on drums and Gianni Coron on bass.
In 1965 they released their first 45", featuring the song "Donna, la Prima Donna" ("Woman, the First Woman") and "Giorni Tristi" ("Sad Days") with the collaboration of De Ponti and of Odoardo Veroli (known as Dodo) as writer and composer.
Their first hit was 1966's "Come potete giudicar" (How Can You Judge, which was actually the cover of Sonny Bono
Sonny Bono
Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono was an American recording artist, record producer, actor, and politician whose career spanned over three decades.-Early life:...
's "The Revolution Kind"), anthem of the Italian beat generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
, which exemplifies the clash between hippies and conservatives. In the wake of this success i Nomadi came into contact with a young and then unknown writer, Francesco Guccini
Francesco Guccini
Francesco Guccini is an Italian singer-songwriter, considered one of the most important Cantautori. During the five decades of his music career he has recorded 16 studio albums and collections, and 6 live albums. He is also a writer, having published autobiographic and noir novels, and a comics...
, who would go on to give them other successes: "Noi non ci saremo" ("We Won't Be There"), "Dio è morto" ("God is Dead"), "Canzone per un'amica" ("Song for a Friend").
Their great success continued in the following years. Hits included "Io Vagabondo
Io Vagabondo
Io vagabondo is an Italian song by the Italian band I Nomadi, written in 1972.It sold millions of copies and is still performed after all these years by I Nomadi at their concerts.,...
" ("I, Vagabond"), "Un pugno di sabbia" ("A Fistful of Sand"), "Un giorno insieme" ("One Day Together"), "Tutto a posto" ("Everything Settled"), "Voglio ridere" ("I Want to Laugh").
I Nomadi's political commitment is particularly evident in some songs such as "Primavera di Praga" ("Prague Spring
Prague Spring
The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II...
"), written by Guccini and dedicated to Czech student Jan Palach
Jan Palach
Jan Palach was a Czech student who committed suicide by self-immolation as a political protest.- Death :...
.
The "new" Nomadi
In 1990 Cico Falzone and Daniele Campani joined the group, on guitar and drums respectively. In 1992 bass player Dante Pergreffi was killed in a car crash on May 14 and then, on October 7, Augusto DaolioAugusto Daolio
Augusto Daolio was an Italian singer, poet and painter, founding member and frontman of I Nomadi band.-Biography:Daolio was born in Novellara, Emilia-Romagna....
, the band's frontman and icon, died of an aggressive form of lung cancer. Despite the shock and despair of their many fans, the group decided to continue with Danilo Sacco doing vocals, Francesco Gualerzi on wind and vocals and Elisa Minari on bass. Gualerzi and Minari left the group at the end of 1997 and were replaced by Massimo Vecchi and Andrea Pozzoli, who took part in the summer tour of that year and was then replaced by Sergio Reggioli, enchanting on violin. The new lineup convinced the fans and Nomadi continue even now to release new albums.
40th anniversary
In 2003 Nomadi celebrated their 40th year as a band with a three-day show at RiccioneRiccione
Riccione is a comune in the Province of Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. As of 2007 Riccione had an estimated population of 34,868.-History:...
followed by three more concerts and other events related to the past and the future of the group.
The music and the message
The message that Nomadi has promoted from its beginning is of denunciation and social commitment, clean and never too political. They carry it throughout Italy, even in the smallest towns.Their sound is instantly recognisable for its cleaness and simpleness, even if some arrangements on the old albums tended to be a bit overblown as was typical of the 1960s in general.
In 2003 they released Quaranta (Forty), a double CD with 34 tracks. In 2004 the new album Corpo Estraneo (Foreign Body) came out and went platinum just on advance sales. The single Oriente (East) was successful on many radio stations and the tour sold out every show.
They came first in the Groups category of the 2006 Sanremo Music Festival with the track Dove si Va (Where Does One Go).
The new album Con Me o Contro di Me (With Me or Against Me) came out at the beginning of March 2006 and sold 90,000 copies in the first four days, going platinum, and in 2007 they released Orchestra, an album-live.
Members
- VocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
:- Augusto DaolioAugusto DaolioAugusto Daolio was an Italian singer, poet and painter, founding member and frontman of I Nomadi band.-Biography:Daolio was born in Novellara, Emilia-Romagna....
(1963-1992) - Francesco Gualerzi (1993-1998)
- Danilo Sacco (1993-)
- Massimo Vecchi (1998-)
- Augusto Daolio
- KeyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
:- Beppe CarlettiBeppe CarlettiGiuseppe "Beppe" Carletti is an Italian musician, founder and keyboardist of the band I Nomadi.- Career :Carletti was born in Novi di Modena, Emilia-Romagna....
(1963-)
- Beppe Carletti
- GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
:- Franco Midili (1963-1972 and 1973-1974)
- Amos Amaranti (1972-1973)
- Chris Dennis (1974-1990)
- Cico Falzone (1990-)
- BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
:- Gianni Coron (1963-1970)
- Umberto Maggi (1970-1984)
- Dante Pergreffi (1984-1992)
- Elisa Minari (1992-1998)
- Massimo Vecchi (1998-)
- DrumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s:- Bila Copellini (1963-1969)
- Paolo Lancelotti (1969-1990)
- Daniele Campani (1990-)
- Percussion and ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
:- Sergio Reggioli (1998-)
- Percussion and HarpHarpThe harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
:- Andrea Pozzoli (1998)
Discography
- Per quando noi non ci saremo (1967, official album)
- I Nomadi (1968, official album)
- Mille e una sera (1971, collection)
- So che mi perdonerai (1971, collection)
- Io vagabondo (1972, collection)
- Un giorno insieme (1973, official album)
- I Nomadi cantano Guccini (1973, collection)
- I Nomadi interpretano Guccini (1974, official album)
- Canzoni d'oltremanica e d'oltreoceano (1974, collection)
- Tutto a posto (1974, collection)
- Gordon (1975, official album)
- Collezione (1976, collection)
- Noi ci saremo (1977, official album)
- Naracauli e altre storie (1978, official album)
- Album concerto (1979, official album)
- I Nomadi (1980, collection)
- I Nomadi 1 (1981, collection)
- Sempre Nomadi (1981, official album)
- Ancora una volta con sentimento (1982, official album)
- I Nomadi 2 (1983, collection)
- Ci penserà poi il computer (1985, official album)
- Quando viene sera (1986, official album)
- Nomadi in concerto (1987, double live, official album)
- I Nomadi 3 (1987, collection)
- Ancora Nomadi (1988, official album)
- Solo Nomadi (1990, official album)
- Gente come noi (1991, official album)
- Ma noi no! (1992, official album)
- Ma che film la vita (1992, official album)
- Contro (1993, official album)
- EMI Music Collection - I Nomadi (1993, collection)
- Chiedi chi erano i Nomadi (1994, collection)
- La settima onda (1994, official album)
- Tributo ad Augusto (1995, tribute)
- La musica dei '70 - La rabbia, l'amore, la poesia (1995, collection)
- Lungo le vie del vento (1995, official album)
- Quando ci sarai (1996, official album)
- D'amore e altre storie (1997, collection)
- Le strade, gli amici, il concerto (1997, double live, official album)
- Una storia da raccontare (1998, official album)
- In Italia erano i Nomadi (1998, collection)
- SOS con rabbia e con amore (1999, official album)
- Liberi di volare (2000, official album)
- Amore che prendi amore che dai (2002, official album)
- Nomadi 40Nomadi 40Nomadi 40 is a double album by Nomadi. Their twenty-eighth album, it celebrates the fortieth year of their musical career.Nomadi 40 contains a mix of old and new songs...
(2003, official album) - The platinum collectionThe Platinum Collection (Nomadi album)The Platinum Collection is a 2003 album by Nomadi. The songs, recorded between 1965 - 1976, are collected in strict chronological order. The album includes a few hard to find tracks...
(2003, collection) - Corpo EstraneoCorpo EstraneoCorpo Estraneo is the twenty-ninth album by the band Nomadi. There were three singles released from the album: Oriente, which a video was filmed for, Corpo Estraneo, and In Piedi...
(2004, official album) - Con Me o Contro di Me (2006, official album)
- The platinum collection 2 (2006, collection)
- Nomadi & Omnia Symphony Orchestra live 2007 (2007, double live, official album)
- Allo specchio (2009, official album)
- Raccontiraccolti (2010, official album)
- I Nomadi ed altre storie - Best & Rarities (2010, collection)
- In Viaggio (2010, 8 CD+2 DVD, collection)
- Canzoni nel vento (live 1987 - 1989) (2011, official album)
- Cuore vivo (2011, official album)
External links
- In Italian
- Official Site
- semprenomadi.org
- Solo Nomadi
- Liberi di volare - Swiss fan club
- http://www.otticavision.altervista.org/-Controsensolive cover Nomadi
- Popolonomade.org - Nomadi's fans community