His work has touched on many styles, including no wave, free jazz, rock and Cuban music.
Ribot is also known for collaborating with other musicians, most notably Tom Waits, Keith Richards, Lou Reed, Elvis Costello, John Zorn, Electric Masada, The Lounge Lizards, Arto Lindsay and Medeski, Martin and Wood, as well as leading a number of his own bands such as Shrek, Los Cubanos Postizos and, currently, Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog and the Marc Ribot Trio featuring Henry Grimes and Chad Taylor.
Ribot's earliest session work was featured on Tom Waits' Rain Dogs (1985) and helped define Waits' new musical direction. Ribot worked with Waits on many of his following albums including Franks Wild Years (1987), Big Time (1988), Mule Variations (1999), Real Gone (2004), Orphans (2006) and Bad as Me (2011). He has appeared on Elvis Costello's Spike, Mighty Like a Rose (1991), and Kojak Variety (1995). Ribot has appeared on numerous recordings by John Zorn, including many of Zorn's Filmworks recordings, solo performances on Zorn's Masada Guitars (also featuring Bill Frisell and Tim Sparks), and is a member of Zorn's Bar Kokhba Sextet and Electric Masada. Ribot's first two albums featured The Rootless Cosmopolitans, followed by an album of works by Frantz Casseus for solo guitar. Further releases found him working in a variety of band and solo contexts including two albums with his self-described "dance band", Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos (The Prosthetic Cubans), featuring compositions by Arsenio Rodríguez.
Ribot admitted to Guitar Player a relatively limited technical facility due to learning to play right-handed despite being left-handed: "That's a real limit, one that caused me a lot of grief when I was working with Jack McDuff and realizing I wasn't following in George Benson's footsteps. I couldn't be a straight-ahead jazz contender if you held a gun to my head, but that begs the question of whether I would want to be one."
He currently performs and records with his group Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog with bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Ches Smith of the avant-garde band Secret Chiefs 3. Ribot's most current studio work involves several tracks accompanying the legendary pianist from John Coltrane's group, McCoy Tyner on his late 2008 album and DVD Guitars; which also features work with John Scofield, Bill Frisell, Béla Fleck, and Derek Trucks.
In late 2010, he toured Europe with his band SunShip (Mary Halvorson, Chad Taylor, Jason Ajemian).
A biographical documentary film about Marc Ribot was made, called The Lost String.
Ribot was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.
Bella Ciao
Marc Ribot Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao
One fine morning I woke up early
Find the fascist at my door
Oh, partigiano, please take me with you
Bella ciao, bella ciao, goodbye beautiful
Oh, partigiano, please take me with you
I'm not afraid anymore
And if I die, oh, partigiano
Bella ciao, bella ciao, goodbye beautiful
Bury me upon that mountain
Beneath the shadow of the flower
Show all the people, the people passing
Bella ciao, bella ciao, goodbye beautiful
Show all the people, the people passing
And say, "oh, what a beautiful flower"
This is the flower of the partisan
Bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao
This is the flower of the partisan
Who died for freedom
This is the flower of the partisan
Who died for freedom
The lyrics of Marc Ribot's Bella Ciao depict a protagonist who wakes up to find the fascist regime at their doorstep. In their quest for freedom from oppression, they plead with the "partigiano" to take them with them, not fearing death if it comes to that. The singer wants to be buried on a mountain, under the shadow of a flower, so that "all the people passing" can see it and acknowledge the sacrifice they made for the cause of freedom. The flower is described as that of the partisan who died for freedom.
These lyrics are a testament to the human spirit of resistance and a longing for freedom. The song is believed to be a traditional Italian folk song that originated in the late 19th century or early 20th century. Over the years, it has been used as a rallying cry for various political and social causes. The lyrics have been adapted to suit the cause of the moment, be it resistance against fascism during the Second World War, protest against social injustice or worker exploitation.
Bella Ciao is known to be a symbol of rebellion against oppression and a thanksgiving song for hard work. Its universal appeal lies in its themes of struggle, sacrifice and resilience in the face of oppression. Its popularity has endured over the years, with various artists and musicians recording their own versions of the song. Marc Ribot's hauntingly beautiful version speaks to the contemporary audience of the human struggle against tyranny and the quest for freedom.
Line by Line Meaning
One fine morning I woke up early
I woke up early one beautiful morning.
Bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao
Goodbye beautiful.
Find the fascist at my door
I found a fascist at my doorstep.
Oh, partigiano, please take me with you
Please take me with you, freedom fighter.
I'm not afraid anymore
I am not scared anymore.
Bury me upon that mountain
When I die, bury me on the mountain.
Beneath the shadow of the flower
Underneath the shade of a flower.
Show all the people, the people passing
Show everyone who passes by.
And say, "oh, what a beautiful flower"
And tell them, "oh, what a lovely flower".
This is the flower of the partisan
This is the flower of the freedom fighter.
Who died for freedom
Who died fighting for freedom.
Lyrics © Public Domain
Written by: Traditional
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind