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.
L'ubriaco
Francesco Guccini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
alza appena un po' la faccia e domanda ancora da bere.
I rumori della strada filtran piano alle pareti,
dorme il gatto sulla panca e lo sporco appanna i vetri.
Cade il vino nel bicchiere poi nessuno più si muove
e non sai se fuori all'aria ci sia il sole oppur se piove.
E quell'uomo si ricorda e, per uno scherzo atroce,
E si alza sulle gambe, sbarra gli occhi e poi traballa,
come con i riflettori sopra il gesto delle braccia..
La la la la la la ..
Ma si ferma all'improvviso e ricade giù a sedere,
torna l'ombra sul suo viso, torna il vino nel bicchiere.
E lontano, oltre, nel tempo, una folla misteriosa
è scattata tutta in piedi, grida: "Bravo, bene, ancora!"
Son tornati i riflettori sul suo viso e sulle mani,
si alza e accenna ad un inchino per quei pubblici lontani.
E più forte tra quei muri quella voce ora si è alzata
e fa tintinnare i vetri e rimbalza sulla strada...
La la la la la la...
La la la la la la...
The song talks about a man sitting at a bar, holding a glass of wine and asking for another one. As he leans on his arms and lifts his face, the noises from the street quietly filter into the room. A cat sleeps on the bench, and the dirt clouds the windowpanes. When the wine is poured again, people stop moving and nobody knows if there is sunshine or rain outside. The man remembers something and the wine gives him the illusion of strength and voice.
Suddenly, he stands up and staggers, like he's in the spotlight of a great performance. But then, he stops abruptly and falls back on his seat, returning to his shadowy state with wine in his glass again. In the distance, through time, there's a mysterious crowd that jumps to its feet and shouts praise. The spotlight returns to his face and hands, he stands up and bows to the distant audience. His voice becomes stronger, and it echoes through the windows and into the street.
The lyrics depict a poignant situation where a man is lost, drinking away his loneliness or pain at a bar, trying to recapture his former glory with the help of alcohol. The cat on the bench, the dirt on the windowpanes, the shadow on his face, and the echo of his voice create a gloomy atmosphere. The singer's voice matches the melancholy tone of the lyrics, expressing the man's despair and yearning for the past.
Line by Line Meaning
Appoggiato sulle braccia, dietro al vetro d' un bicchiere,
Leaning on his arms, behind the glass of a glass,
alza appena un po' la faccia e domanda ancora da bere.
he raises his face just a little and asks for another drink.
I rumori della strada filtran piano alle pareti,
The noises from the street seep softly through the walls,
dorme il gatto sulla panca e lo sporco appanna i vetri.
the cat is sleeping on the bench and the dirt clouds the glass.
Cade il vino nel bicchiere poi nessuno più si muove
The wine falls into the glass and then no one moves,
e non sai se fuori all'aria ci sia il sole oppur se piove.
and you don't know if there's sun outside or if it's raining.
E quell'uomo si ricorda e, per uno scherzo atroce,
And that man remembers, and for a cruel joke,
quasi il vino gli dà forza, l'illusione gli dà voce.
the wine almost gives him strength, and the illusion gives him voice.
E si alza sulle gambe, sbarra gli occhi e poi traballa,
And he stands up, opens his eyes wide, and then staggers,
come con i riflettori sopra il gesto delle braccia..
like with spotlights on the gesture of his arms..
Ma si ferma all'improvviso e ricade giù a sedere,
But suddenly he stops and falls back down to sit,
torna l'ombra sul suo viso, torna il vino nel bicchiere.
the shadow returns to his face, the wine returns to the glass.
E lontano, oltre, nel tempo, una folla misteriosa
And far away, beyond, in time, a mysterious crowd
è scattata tutta in piedi, grida: "Bravo, bene, ancora!"
has all jumped to their feet, shouting 'Bravo, good, more!'
Son tornati i riflettori sul suo viso e sulle mani,
The spotlights have returned to his face and hands,
si alza e accenna ad un inchino per quei pubblici lontani.
he stands up and makes a bow for those distant crowds.
E più forte tra quei muri quella voce ora si è alzata
And that voice is now louder among those walls
e fa tintinnare i vetri e rimbalza sulla strada...
and it makes the glasses clink and echoes through the street...
La la la la la la...
La la la la la la...
La la la la la la...
La la la la la la...
Contributed by Riley W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Fabio Da Forno
Nessuno che denota la profondità poetica di questo pezzo! Nessuno che si è ubriacato davvero!
ori ruggiero
E' incredibile come le canzoni di Guccini possano far lavorare la tua immaginazione, quasi come se il video si facesse nella tua testa... Sublime.
Olivier Losa
Un poeta
fra fri
rivedo il mio amico Marchino quando era un ubriaco...Mi manchi Marco...
carloscontreras54
La più reale, completa, e romantica descrizione di una "ciucca"............salute
Franco Meleddu
QUANTO TEMPO HE PASSATO LO CONOSCIUTO DI PERSONA GRAZIE FRA X CIO FAI.
Roberto Campedel
purtoppo e la verita dell italia meglio ubriachi che italiani vai francesco
Jade Bird Italia
Da quale album viene questa versione?
corsaro.nero.
Due anni dopo.
tito marquez
"Due anni dopo"