Special: Biba Band Live!

You can buy the CD: Biba Band Live on the online store: elioelestorietese.it:

Presentation of the Biba Band

Biba Band was born a bit as a joke but also a bit because of these musicians' common love for the songs of Weather Report, the band who throughout the seventies experimented a contamination of jazz with ethno-black influences by incorporating a mix of sounds that today we would probably call World Music, or Acid Jazz, or perhaps even Electronic Music. It was the summer of 1992 when Picosta, Faso, Maxx Furian and Alex Baroni emerged from Elba Island's sea like modern-day mermaids but male and with extremely refined musical tastes, and proceeded to sing and play (beating their hands on the water) some of Weather Report's songs which they had previously memorized just out of listening to them so, so much. That was when the idea of Biba Band was born: To get some other musicians, choose their favourite songs, and play a couple of nights at the Tangram, a classic Milan music-club, possibly with non-liquid instruments. And with their clothes on. That last idea didn't convince them much at first, but eventually caught on. They quickly contacted some friends, just for the fun of playing some of "Uéder"'s songs, but the enthusiasm from colleagues was so great that it was eventually over 20 musicians who played on stage those nights, and the fun they had was so great that they kept on playing together as the Biba Band, when and where possible, for over a decade.
As time went by, the Biba Band became more of a "musical laboratory": new arrangements were attempted, new and original musical parts were included and the repertoire was extended although always keeping within the "Weather" soul of things: Melody, Groove, Interplay.
Then one day Foffo Bianchi, their sound engineer, told them: "If Biba Band Doesn't publish an album we are all tuning pegs of stringed musical instruments, which in the tuscan vernacular indicates persons of little or no intellect". And truer words could not have been spoken.
This is why they recorded two concerts at "LaDopa" in Cassano D'Adda on 18 and 19 february 2001, then Foffo mixed the best tunes...and at last the long-awaited long-playing sound-reproducing circular object was born.
The "Biba's Album" is dedicated to three of our dearest friends who were with us at heart during all stages of production, but aren't with us now that it is finally published.
To Feiez, Naco and Alex.

The Biba Band.

Musicians who have performed in Biba Band's concerts from 1992 to now:

Antonello Aguzzi, Alex Baroni, Amedeo Bianchi, Barbara Boffelli, Stefano Bollani, Alberto Borsari, Fernando Brusco, Roberto Cecchetto, Giorgio Cocilovo, Daniele Comoglio, Roby "big" Conti, Vittorio Cosma, Enrico Cremonesi, Sandro DeBellis, Massimo Dedò, Stefano De Maco, "Elio", Marco Fadda, Faso, Feiez, Bebo Ferra, Paola Folli, Ambrogio Frigerio, Maxx Furian, Beppe Gemelli, Massimo Greco, Luca Jurman, Alessio Menconi, Christian Meyer, Demo Morselli, Naco, Mauro Negri, Pacho, Alberto Parodi, Claudio Pascoli, PiCosta, Michael Rosen, Alberto Tafuri, Andrea Tofanelli, Francesca Touré.

...and all our "special guests":

Ellade Bandini, Riccardo Bianchetti, Carlo Borsari, Cesareo, Franz Di Cioccio, EmmeCi, Peter Erskine, Lucio Fabbri, Dario Faiella, Lola Feghaly, Irene Grandi, Dado Moroni, Rossana Nicolosi, Mauro Pagani, Silvio Pozzoli, Sergio "Tablas", Rocco Tanica, Ike Willis.

Tracklist:

1. Victims of the Groove (Joe Zawinul)
2. Rockin' in Rhythm (Ellington-Mills-Carney)
3. Afro Part (Biba jam)
4. Jungle Part (Biba jam)
5. Confians (Mino Cinelu)
6. Three Views Of A Secret (Jaco Pastorius)
7. No Mercy for Me (Mercy, Mercy, Mercy) (Oliver/Zawinul)
8. Guitar Intro (R. Cecchetto)
9. Black Water (Veasley/Zawinul)
10. Volcano for Hire (Joe Zawinul)
11. Can it be Done (W. Tee)
12. Man in A Green Shirt (Joe Zawinul)
13. Saduva (Miriam Makeba)
14. Fanny Mae (Brown/Lewis/Robinson)

Band:

Antonello Aguzzi (keyboards), Barbara Boffelli (vocals), Stefano Bollani (piano), Alberto Borsari (c.harmonica), Roberto Cecchetto (guitar), Daniele Comoglio (a.sax), Massimo Dedo (trombone), Stefano De Maco (vocals), Elio (vocals, flute), Marco Fadda (percussion), Faso (bass), Paola Folli (vocals), Maxx Furian (drums), Massimo Greco (trumpet), Christian Meyer (drums), Pacho (percussion), PiCosta (bass, up/bass, gtr), Francesca Touré (vocals), Bebo Ferra (guitar).

Technical data:

Artistic Producers: Biba Band & Foffo Bianchi
Executive Producers: Biba Band & Hukapan
Arrangements: Biba Band
Logistic coordination and "mucha paciencia": Silvia Bolbo
Recorded on 18 and 19 February, 2001 at "La Dopa", Cassano D'Adda (MI)
by Foffo Bianchi, with excellent assistance from Alex Trecarichi.
Mixed at Studio Amadeus (Prato) by Foffo Bianchi with Antonello Aguzzi and Andrea Benassai.
Mix Assistance: Christian Meyer, Faso and PiCosta
Editing and Audio Optimization: Antonello Aguzzi, Foffo Bianchi, PiCosta, Max Costa

Audio Service: Mezzanotte Srl
staff: Valeria Barbini, Gipy Villa, Francesco Raimondi, Paolo Demasi, Vincenzo Rucci, Andrea Vergani.

Art Direction: Francesca Ortolani
Texts and Cover Illustration Supervision: Picosta, C. Meyer, Cristina Cereghetti and Faso.
Photo: Luca Bianchi and M. Grazia Billi
Photo of vinyl on cd: Luca Bianchi
Biba Band Logo: Piero Costa
Proofreading: Veronica Leati
Booking & Management: Federico Gasperi
c/o Nadir Music- www.nadirmusic.net
Official Website: www.bibaband.com

Thanks to:

Very special thanks to everyone who generously gave their time, their efforts and their enthusiasm to BibaBand:
Silvia Bolbo, Foffo Bianchi, Gianni Cocco (Gi del Ti), Roberto Mattavelli (del "Dopo"), Alex Trecarichi, Andrea Benassai, Anna Doria, Federico Gasperi, Cristina Cereghetti, Heineken Italia, Mario Menicagli, Laetitia Helin, Claudio Grillo (Grillos), Giulio Zenoni, Giacomo Plotegher (113), Antonio Santini, Antonio Patané (Turi), Paolo Brugna, Federico Servadei (Deddi), Dario Devido (il Negro), Gianluca Patrito (Gambino), Carlo Terenzio (Terence), Luigi Zeni (Super G), Oliver, Valeria Barbini, Gipy Villa, Francesco Raimondi, Paolo Demasi, Vincenzo Rucci, Andrea Vergani.
...more thanks to:
Giancarlo Pierozzi, Paolo Germani, Fabrizio Rioda, Matteo Rovatti, Max Costa, Piero Costa, Luca Bianchi, M.Grazia Billi, Francesca Ortolani e Veronica Leati, Raffaella Riva, our audience and the "Fave" who have always followed us (grazie Cicalona!).


English translation: Robin Luis Fernandez (Evaristo)

Italian presentation and CD booklet notes