He then moved back to his family in Modena and attended the local "istituto magistrale". He worked for a couple otf years as a reporter for a local newspaper Gazzetta di Modena. In 1960 the Guccinis moved to Bologna where Francesco studied at the local university. From 1965 to 1985 he held italian courses at the Dickinson College (an American school) in Bologna.
He played in local bands such as The Hurricanes and Gatti and achieved success in the 1960s writing songs for a legendary Italian band, Nomadi, also from Modena. Some of these successes include "Noi non ci saremo" and "Dio è morto". In the 1970s, Nomadi recorded two albums of Guccini's songs as well as a live album, Album Concerto, featuring him. Guccini's debut album was Folkbeat, No. 1 (1967).
Guccini always declared his first two works, Folk Beat n.1 and Due anni dopo, being merely tentatives, a nature probably noticeable in the quite essential musical arrangements. The latter, however, contained classics like the title-track and "La primavera di Praga" ("Prague Spring"). His first mature album is therefore L'Isola Non Trovata ("The Not Found Island") of 1970, which shows many the themes which were to be present in the future releases: a certain melancholy for a perceived nearness of death, as well as the portrait of outcasts figures like "Il frate" ("The Friar").
Radici ("Roots", 1972), is one of Guccini's finest works, and contains some of his most famous songs. These include: the title-track, a nostalgic declaration of love for Guccini's youth spent in the Appennine mountains; "La locomotiva", a long ballad about the solitary, unlucky revolt of a Bolognese railwayman during the 19th century; "Il vecchio e il bambino", a melancholic story about the dreams of an old man, and the different way in which they are perceived by the boy accompanying him; "Piccola città" ("Small City"), about Guccini's early years in the Emilia-Romagna provincial world.
Stanze di vita quotidiana ("Stanzas of Everyday Life") of 1974 deals with more private themes, sometimes with nearly desperate accents. The album contains at least one masterwork, the yearning "Canzone delle osterie di fuori porta".
In 1976 Guccini scored his greatest commercial success with the album Via Paolo Fabbri 43. The title is his residence street in Bologna. He declared this choice was an error, because many of his fans made true pilgrimages there to meet and talk with him. The album features the famous "L'avvelenata", a catchy ballad in which Guccini unleashes his rage against musics critics and people perceiving in a distorted way his career ans popularity as singer-songwriter.
Amerigo (1978), whose title-track is about the story of the emigration of Guccini's Pavanese uncle to the United States, Metropolis (1981), and Guccini (1983), showed that the Bolognese singer's inspiration was left untouched by the general switch to the more commercial themes that characterized the Italian musical world starting from the end of 1970s.
The 1984 live tournée was highly successful, and was soon collected in a double live LP, Fra la Via Emilia e il West ("Between the Via Aemilia and the West"). Emilia Romagna and the Old West symbolize well the double ties of Guccini to his native land and to America. Guccini declared to have knwown the latter soon in his life, through the comics and magazines imported by US soldiers during World War 2, but also through his uncle's tales. After the war, like many Italians of the period, he was of course influenced by American songs and Hollywood movies, and finally managed to touch with hand this kind of myth during his personal voyages to US (including a love story with an American girl).
Last album of 1980s was Signora Bovary (1987), containing notable pieces like "Scirocco". After several interlocutory albums in the 1990s, Guccini returned at his best with Stagioni ("Seasons") of 2000: the title-track is an effective, merciless accusation against media invadence and moral corruption of Italy.
Guccini's last studio release is Ritratti of 2004.
Canzone per Anna
Francesco Guccini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Non pensi o non vorresti più pensare
Bambine in fiore con sorrisi ambigui che lungo i colli si faranno cupi
Rincasano veloci per mangiare
E tu, che hai già conosciuto questo gioco
Non sai più com'era in quel passato
Non sai se sorridere od urlare
Non sei più bella come un tempo quando cercò il tuo corpo quello di un compagno
Dimmi se fu paura o fu piacere
Ma adesso senti il tempo che ti abbraccia come qualcosa che ti segna in faccia
Che non si vede ma che sai d'avere
È come quel male a cui non si dà il nome
Un'ossessione circolare
Fra la volontà ed il non potere
Brandelli di canzoni, frasi e televisioni parlano dalle finestre aperte
In un telegiornale qualcuno il bene o il male denuncia, auspica, avverte
Frasi del quotidiano ti sfiorano pian piano ed entrano senza toccarti
S'infilano negli angoli della tua casa suoni che tu non sai
Un uomo in canottiera, dietro ad una ringhiera, innaffia dei fiori cittadini
Un grido e un pianto acuto già spenti in un minuto segnalano tragedie di bambini
Odori di frittate e minestre riscaldate combattono lo smog di un diesel
Un fuoristrada assurdo che romba per partire e non va mai
E tu sei sola sola sola sola
Ti senti sola sola sola sola e pensi a un figlio temuto che ora non hai
Ma dura un attimo quel tuo pensiero
Atomo incerto in mezzo al falso e al vero
Per lasciar posto ai giorni che vivrai
Niente se e forse, fra le occasioni avute e perse
Restano solo ore scomparse
Di certo hai solo quello che farai
La luce incerta della sera fonde col buio che entra, e presto si confonde tutto
Come a chi guarda senza un fuoco
La luce accendi e in viso si disegna forse un sorriso che le labbra spiega
Come se fosse stato tutto un gioco
Fa niente, danno in TV un programma intelligente
Ci vuole un tè aromatico e bollente
E poi che il sonno arrivi a poco a poco
The song "Canzone per Anna" by Francesco Guccini is a poignant and introspective ballad that explores the existential theme of loneliness and the passing of time. The lyrics describe a woman who is alone in her apartment at dusk, surrounded by the ephemeral ghosts and shadows of memories and events that elude her grasp. She listens to the sounds and voices of the outside world, the snippets of songs, phrases, and news that reach her from the open windows, and she feels disconnected and estranged from the world.
The woman is a mature and experienced person who has gone through love affairs, sexual encounters, and life-changing moments, but she now feels detached and disillusioned. She wonders if the pleasure and the pain she has felt were worth it, and she cherishes the fleeting thought of having a child, even if it is just a momentary fantasy. She knows that the past is gone and the future is uncertain, and she accepts that she can only live in the present and embrace the new experiences that may come.
The song is characterized by Guccini's poetic and evocative language, which blends the imagery of the natural world and the urban landscape with the subjective feelings and moods of the singer. The lyrics are accompanied by a gentle and melancholic melody, with acoustic guitar, violin, and piano creating a nostalgic and intimate atmosphere.
Line by Line Meaning
La luce incerta della sera getta fantasmi ed ombre sulla tua finestra
The uncertain light of the evening casts ghosts and shadows on your window
Non pensi o non vorresti più pensare
You don't think or you don't want to think anymore
Bambine in fiore con sorrisi ambigui che lungo i colli si faranno cupi
Girls in bloom with ambiguous smiles that will become gloomy along the hills
Rincasano veloci per mangiare
They come home quickly to eat
E tu, che hai già conosciuto questo gioco
And you, who have already known this game
Non sai più com'era in quel passato
You don't know anymore how it was in that past
Non sai se sorridere od urlare
You don't know whether to smile or scream
Non sei più bella come un tempo quando cercò il tuo corpo quello di un compagno
You are no longer as beautiful as a time when a companion sought your body
Dimmi se fu paura o fu piacere
Tell me if it was fear or pleasure
Ma adesso senti il tempo che ti abbraccia come qualcosa che ti segna in faccia
But now you feel time embracing you like something that marks you on your face
Che non si vede ma che sai d'avere
That you can't see but you know you have
È come quel male a cui non si dà il nome
It's like that pain that has no name
Un'ossessione circolare
A circular obsession
Fra la volontà ed il non potere
Between will and impotence
Brandelli di canzoni, frasi e televisioni parlano dalle finestre aperte
Tattered songs, phrases, and televisions speak from open windows
In un telegiornale qualcuno il bene o il male denuncia, auspica, avverte
In a news broadcast, someone reports, hopes for, warns about good or evil
Frasi del quotidiano ti sfiorano pian piano ed entrano senza toccarti
Phrases from daily life touch you slightly and enter without touching you
S'infilano negli angoli della tua casa suoni che tu non sai
Sounds that you don't know slip into the corners of your house
Un uomo in canottiera, dietro ad una ringhiera, innaffia dei fiori cittadini
A man in a tank top, behind a railing, waters city flowers
Un grido e un pianto acuto già spenti in un minuto segnalano tragedie di bambini
A cry and a sharp cry already extinguished in a minute signal tragedies of children
Odori di frittate e minestre riscaldate combattono lo smog di un diesel
Odors of omelets and reheated soups fight against diesel smog
Un fuoristrada assurdo che romba per partire e non va mai
An absurd off-road vehicle that roars to start but never goes
E tu sei sola sola sola sola
And you are alone alone alone alone
Ti senti sola sola sola sola e pensi a un figlio temuto che ora non hai
You feel alone alone alone alone and think of a feared child that you do not have now
Ma dura un attimo quel tuo pensiero
But your thought lasts a moment
Atomo incerto in mezzo al falso e al vero
Uncertain atom in between false and true
Per lasciar posto ai giorni che vivrai
To make way for the days you will live
Niente se e forse, fra le occasioni avute e perse
Nothing if and maybe, between opportunities gained and lost
Restano solo ore scomparse
Only disappeared hours remain
Di certo hai solo quello che farai
For sure you only have what you will do
La luce incerta della sera fonde col buio che entra, e presto si confonde tutto
The uncertain light of the evening merges with the darkness that enters, and everything soon becomes confusing
Come a chi guarda senza un fuoco
As for those who watch without a fire
La luce accendi e in viso si disegna forse un sorriso che le labbra spiega
Turn on the light and perhaps a smile that explains the lips is drawn on the face
Come se fosse stato tutto un gioco
As if it had all been a game
Fa niente, danno in TV un programma intelligente
Never mind, there's an intelligent program on TV
Ci vuole un tè aromatico e bollente
We need a hot and aromatic tea
E poi che il sonno arrivi a poco a poco
And then the sleep comes little by little
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Francesco Guccini
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Gianluca MrKaos
Canzone sottovalutata dall'opinione pubblica ma che secondo me incarna l'essenza di Guccini. Una delle mie preferite di sempre!
Brysen Elliott
@Keegan Moshe Glad I could help =)
Keegan Moshe
@Brysen Elliott Thanks, signed up and it seems like they got a lot of movies there :) Appreciate it!!
Brysen Elliott
@Keegan Moshe flixportal :D
Keegan Moshe
i guess Im pretty randomly asking but does anyone know a good site to watch new tv shows online?
Romano Verderio
Un blues da entrare nell' anima e scavare senza paura
Alberto Rossi
"...ma dura un attimo quel tuo pensiero, atomo incerto in mezzo al falso e al vero,
per lasciar posto ai giorni che vivrai..."
Immensa!
deeppurple77able
capolavoro assoluto ascoltandola penso all' autunno alla vita che scorre inesorabile tra le nostre frenesie ......non sono in grado di esprimere quanto sia bella questa canzone .....
Giampiero ASSANDRI
In un'intervista Guccini ha detto di aver impiegato 10 anni per scrivere questa canzone: ne è valsa la pena.
fox trot
è come un ossessione circolare,fra la volontà e il non potere..signore e signori:francesco guccini