Piero Umiliani - To-day's sound 1972 English version

From September 2013 you will find this post and other new posts on my new blog, I'll be posting on this new blog only in english language, its name is "MUSIC POSTCARDS FROM ROME".

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I would like to start by proposing a double LP by Piero Umiliani, a great italian musician and absolute geniuos composer, author of a great number of  osts and jazz lps. Born in Florence, he lived and worked in Rome for many years till his early departure. Arrived in Rome in 1954, at the age of 28,  he was immediately captured by the music scene of the Capital.

After many years at the RCA in Via Tiburtina, he opened his own recording studio, The Workshop Studio, in Via Tommaso D’Aquino  in the Trionfale  central suburb of  Rome. At the disposal of other musicians  were  instruments and best recording facilities available on the world scene.  Amongst others, you could have found an Hammond C-3 Organ, with its own speed variation and separated PR  40 Tone Cabinet and Leslie, the Fender Rhodes piano, a Petrof tail-piano, a tack-piano, a Harpsichord, the EMS Synthi A, a vibraphone, Ludwig’s drums, Marshall amplifiers and Fender Twin for guitar and bass.    
              

The double LP of which I want to talk to you about  is To-day’s Sound,  which was firstly conceived  as a library-ost for tv programmes and movies of various genres. However it would be reductive to define this record only under this viewpoint.  As a matter of fact, the album discloses, in all its tracks, an intense energy which gives a direct blow to the listener. The feeling one gets is that this LP does not want to be heard in a distracted manner, nor as background music, but thanks to the wholesome conception of the album, its intention is to fully immerse whomever is listening to it.  In order to better understand how  Piero Umiliani managed to succeed in his enterprise,  we should consider that in those times the music scene was characterized by a feverish research and by a continous will-power of experimenting, but for jazz composers it was almost impossible to find their own discography space, thus libraries became a fertile field where to propose their own music with only few  requirements: low cost, rapidity and versatility of tracks.   
                          

According to my point of view, To-day’s Sound is one of the best works by the Maestro and one of the libraries produced in Italy. If we want to make a daring comparison we could compare To-day’s Sound to Beatles’ White Album, i.e. a wide and enthusiastic panorama on the different music genres of the time (from here the title of the recording) performed with the aid of wholesome technical creativity  in cooperation with highly skilled musicians.

Recorded and released as far back as 1972 on Liuto records, the album is composed by two 33 r.p.m. vinyls with 11 and 10 instrumental tracks, respectively. The cover’s design is an absolute marvel featuring on front side which featuring the graphic reproduction of the recording studio itself with a stylish touch of 70s’ cartoons.   
                                     

Tracks space from psych funk, such is “Open Space” used nonetheless for Baba Yaga’s movie opening soundtrack (you can see the video below) , samba march  to progressive rock of To-day’s sound, from funky fusion with Lady Magnolia over all, to jazz blues and bossa nova The whole lot seasoned with electronics, jazz fusion and “south of the border” sound.

Performers:

Bass:  Maurizio Majorana

Double bass:  Giovanni Tommaso

Drums and percussions: Gegé Munari and Enzo Restuccia

Percussions: Ciro Cicco

Fender Rhodes, Hammond e Moog:  Piero Umiliani

Hammond:  Antonello Vannucchi

Lowrey Organ: Sergio Carnini

Piano and  Clavichord:  Franco D'Andrea

Flute: Marcello Boschi

Guitar:  Sergio Cappotelli

Marimba and Vibraphone: Carlo Zoffoli

Trombone: Biagio Marullo, Dino Piana e Mario Midana

Trumpet: Al Corvin, Marino Di Fulvio e Oscar Valdambrini

Recorded on 8-track Ampex

A1  Open Space  4:19

A2  Green Valley  3:06

A3 Caretera Panamericana  3:01

A4  Goodmorning Sun  4:44

A5 To-Day's Sound   2:29

A6  Free Dimension  2:22

B1  Truck Driver  4:38

B2  Blue Lagoon  3:42

B3  Wanderer    3:56

B4   Lady Magnolia   3:26

B5  Pretty  3:12

C1   Railroad  4:17

C2   Country Town  3:33

C3    Bus Stop   2:49

C4    Cotton Road   3:46

C5    Nocturne   3:29

D1 Exploration    2:10

D2  Tropical River  4:24

D3  Coast To Coast  3:27

D4   Safari Club   5:11

D5  Music On The Road   4:26