Dik Dik

[Geno]

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Before Dreamers, then Sharks, after an audition procured the group thanks to a report of the then Archbishop of Milan, Giovanni Battista Montini obtained a recording contract with Discs Remember, changing its name to Dik Dik (the name of the African antelope , found by Pietruccio Montalbetti by chance, looking at an English - Italian) . Debuted in 1965 with the single 1-2-3 / If you stay with me.

1-2-3 is the reinterpretation of the homonymous song by Len Barry; the B-side, entitled If you stay with me, it was written by an unknown Lucio Battisti, before the meeting with the lyricist Mogol. At the beginning of the following year, Mogul makes listening to Pietruccio Montalbetti a song, just out of the United States of America, is proving a resounding success: California Dreamin 'by The Mamas & the Papas; the mix of voices, compelling melody and musical solutions (with the flute solo at the end of the second verse) affect Montalbetti, who convinces Mogol to write a text in Italian. Mogol is fairly faithful to the original text maintains, changing only small things but leaving intact the desire of the heat of Los Angeles that is born from a cold reality highlighted by the gray sky and the yellow leaves.

Even in Italy, with the title of the song California Dreaming enormous success (in the hit parade of Lelio belongs to you the song remains stable for weeks in second place, only surpassed by Strangers in the Night by Frank Sinatra), allowing members of the group to abandon their previous work and devote himself full time to music. On the back there is Sweet 45s during the day, written by Mogol and Lucio Battisti, who started working. Day cake is also engraved by the Baptists, which uses the same basic music made by Dik Dik and the public as a B-side of his first 45 laps of the day Sweet / For a penny .

In the same year the complex collaborates with Ornella Vanoni, playing in the 45s I'll give you more / Splendor in the Grass .

Since then successive 45s success: in 1967, the world is with us (even a reinterpretation of The Mamas & the Papas, with the back If I were a carpenter, Italian version of If I were a carpenter Tim Hardin) ; in 1967 Hymn (cover, again by Mogol, Let's go to S.Francisco of The Flower Pot Men), No Light (cover, again by Mogol, A Whiter Shade of Pale Procol Harum, with the famous Hammond organ intro), with which reached the top spot in the Hit Parade; in 1968, the wind (even Mogol and Battisti, with the back Eskimo, an Italian version of The Mighty Quinn Bob Dylan still work Mogol) the following year, the first day of spring, with Lucio Battisti on guitar acoustic and electric bass Pino Presti, who arrives first on the charts for two weeks.

Also in 1969, they have in the Sanremo Festival Sugar, paired with Rita Pavone. At the festival they return a year later with I stop here; Another success of the same year is The Isle of Wight (now cover the Spanish band Los Catinos with the title of Isla de Wight); Then I sell the house (1971, even Mogol and Battisti, who participates in the recording), a poet Journey (1972), again before a Hit Parade, suburban History (1973), Help Me (1974).

Not so lucky are their career to 33 laps after three collections assembled with individual plus some unusual success (published respectively in 1967, 1969 and 1970) in 1972 Dik Dik give published the first original album, titled Suite for an absolutely relative woman. The work, composed by Mario Totaro with lyrics by Herbert Pagani, is an experiment in progressive rock, but the audience, which was expected to melodic pop songs, does not like the change of course and the album will be the group's largest sales failure.

In 1974, Panno and Totaro leave the band and are replaced by Roberto "Hunka Munka" (but also uses the nickname "Charlott") Carlotto (keyboards) and Nunzio "Cucciolo" Favia (drums). After publishing Support me and, in 1975, Flying (a beautiful rendition of "Sailing" by Rod Stewart), the group is going through a period of fogging and decline - at least on the music side - due in part to the changing tastes of the public, in part to record choices a bit 'risky and inconsistent with the rest of Dik Dik production: think of I'te vurria vasà (Eduardo Di Capua), 1976.

In 1978 he leaves the group, the historical voice Giancarlo "Lallo" Sbriziolo and is detected by guitarist Roberto "Roby" Facini. The following year also enters another guitarist, Brancati Rosario. In 1980 he comes out Roberto Carlotto and enters permanent keyboardist Joe Vescovi, who collaborated since 1974 with the group. After a hit single as a living Laser (1980) and Logbook (1982) in 1982, the group became a trio, with three of the original elements (Pietruccio-Pepe-Lallo). In 1983 the new single "My beloved / Company"; a year later it was the turn of a reggae remake of Without Light published in single "Without Light ... reggae / Raise the sail (the wind)".

In 1985 will participate in the "Musicaitalia project for Ethiopia" recorded with other artists In the blue painted blue (Flying). From the second half of the eighties, the original trio is joined by various shoulder musicians will vary over the years. From 1988 on keyboards he returned historian Joe bishops until the end of the nineties; after a break of a few years Joe bishops returned in early 2007. In 1986 the group returned to the fore Nunzio Favia and Roberto Carlotto Carlotto forming the group and puppy already Dik Dik, as decided in court, where, after a litigation lasted for years the use of Dik Dik brand, the case was closed in 2006 with original logo assigned to Pietruccio, Pepe, and Lallo and logo "Yeah Dik Dik" assigned to two former members of the original group Carlotto and puppy.

Between the late eighties and early nineties with the appreciation of the public found in "broadcasting-amarcord" as a round sea, the Dik Dik return to the success that brings them in 1993 to tread again the stage of the Festival Sanremo with the Chameleons, another historic group of the sixties and seventies, and Maurizio Vandelli, former voice of team 84, with the song As time passes, that despite being excluded from the final will have a good commercial outcome. Since then, the Dik Dik has continued to appear on television shows, do concerts around Italy and publish new works by great success. Since 1997, they have an official Internet site that constantly updates fans on their musical projects. In the same year they released a very modern and refined solo album, titled traveling Islands.

[Geno]

Senza Luce - I Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKMg1f2MGXg

The piece was a fortuitous result of the then record company U.K. Decca Records, with the experiment to fuse classical music and soft rock. The intro riff-in fact, composed of pianists and organists Brooker-Reid Hammond organ, is nothing more than the free variation of the classic song Air on the G string with some components of the cantata BWV 140 Wachet auf, both works by Johann Sebastian Bach. The chorus groove instead, inspired by When a Man Loves a Woman, Percy Sledge, a song came out the year before.

In the UK, the song was only released as a single, and was not inserted in the first album of Procol Harum group. There is however in the US edition of the album. In 1997, it was re-published a new edition of the first album A Whiter Shade of Pale, where in addition to the famous single tracks were also included some not present in the original album.

In 1998 he was awarded the Grammy Hall of Fame Award.

The song, a remarkable success since 1967 had numerous reinterpretations. In Italy, a text by Mogol, was engraved by Dik Dik, entitled Without light, keeping the musical part, it differs from the original text from the hermetic meaning. In 2000, it was used by Marco Tullio Giordana as the soundtrack for the film The Hundred Steps.

Were also recorded versions in French (Le Jour du Dernier Jour), German (Tränen im Gesicht), Swedish (Då Hon Är Åter Lika Blek), Portuguese (Ao Meu Lado Outra Vez), Spanish (Con Su Blanca palidez) and Finnish ( Merisairaat KASVO) .

Originally, the song was only awarded to Gary Brooker and Keith Reid. In 2005, Matthew Fisher sued victorious against Gary Brooker, asking to be recognized as co-author of the song you have added to the organ parts to the original music. The judges gave reason to Fisher unanimously.

[Geno]

L'isola di Wight - I Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJZWGnqSRQ0

The Isle of Wight is a cover song of Wight Is Wight French singer Michel Delpech. [1] Peter Montalbetti, guitarist of the group, had to be a bit 'of time the idea to record a song dedicated to the great rock gatherings such as the Woodstock Festival and the Isle of Wight Festival; listening to the song of Delpech, so he decided to have it translated for the group. [1]

The Dik Dik also initiated following a restaurant named in honor of the song, The Isle of Wight, where in addition to cooking perform

[Geno]

Il primo giorno di primavera - I Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heQI9KA35qA

One of the first Italian writers to perceive the turning symphony that, since the Beatles "Revolver" and passing by Procol Harum, had involved almost all the music scene across the Channel, was Mario Lavezzi. Released by Chameleons to fulfill lever, Lavezzi obligations continued to write songs, and in this "The first day of spring" has used a musical structure that closely resembles "A Whiter Shade Of Pale."
The piece is cut from a young Turin alas without depth and without personality. His name, Vanna Brosio, remains perhaps in someone's memory because, after leaving the singing career, makes his way on TV as a presenter, although the malicious say that she had been helped in RAI from some of his influential relatives. Virtually ignored by the public, the song nevertheless enjoys some radio play in the program "For You Young" conducted by Renzo Arbore, who surely had understood the potential.

Meanwhile, the Dik Dik, relying on their huge success with the cover "Without Light", were looking for a song that could repeat the commercial result, but they had left blowing from the Italian version of Chameleons "Homburg" ( "The times of 'love "), second 45 Procol Harum. Listening to the song of Lavezzi, decide to record it and slowly the song comes in the rankings, many months after the publication of the first version.

The text reflects much of what Mogol is writing in those years with Lucio Battisti: an everyday story of a man abandoned by his wife who is lost in a metropolitan landscape of buses, traffic and anonymous people, told in a new and effective language without falling into the rhetoric or platitudes.

[Geno]

Sognando la California - I Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1O9Ut8Uy9o

The Mamas The Papas California Dream

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WszrXNyhFk0

California Dreaming is the cover of California Dreamin 'by The Mamas & the Papas. Mogol did listen to the original Peter Montalbetti, who was excited by the voice solutions the US quartet and its arrangement, and asked to prepare a Mogol Italian adaptation of the text to be able to affect. Even today Dreaming California is one of the iconic songs of the group and one of the most representative songs of the period.

[Geno]

Io mi fermo qui - I Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKUEEPxwWNs

I'll stop here great success at the Sanremo Festival 1970

[Geno]

Viaggio di un poeta - Dik Dik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUqo9ImF9FQ

Journey of a poet, is launched from the Dik Dik group to a disc for the summer 1972 and at the Festivalbar 1972.