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.
Lager
Francesco Guccini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Un lager. Cos'è un lager?
E' una cosa nata in tempi tristi,
dove dopo passano i turisti
occhi increduli agli orrori visti
(non gettar la pelle del salame!)
Cos'è un lager?
E' una cosa come un monumento,
non ce n'è mai stati, solo in quel momento,
l'uomo in fondo è buono, meno il nazi Infame!
Ma ce n'è, ma c'è chi li ha veduti,
o son balle di sopravvissuti?
illegali i testimoni muti,
non si facciano nemmen parlare!
Cos'è un lager?
Sono mille e mille occhiaie vuote,
sono mani magre
abbarbicate al fili
son baracche e uffici, orari, timbri,
ruote, son routine e risa dietro a dei fucili
sono la paura l'unica emozione,
sono angoscia d'anni dove lì niente è tutto
sono una follia ed un'allucinazione
che la nostra noia sembra quasi un rutto
sono il lato buio della nostra mente,
sono un qualche cosa da dimenticare
sono eternità di risa di demente,
sono un manifesto che si può firmare.
E un lager. Cos'è un lager?
Il fenomeno ci fu. E' finito!
Li commemoriamo, il resto è un mito!
l'hanno confermato ieri al mio partito,
chi lo afferma è un qualunquista cane.
Cos'è un lager?
E' una cosa sporca, cosa dei padroni,
cosa vergognosa di certe nazioni
noi ammazziamo solo per motivi buoni,
quando sono buoni? Sta a noi giudicare.
Cos'è un lager?
E' una fede certa e salverà la gente,
l'utopia che un giorno si farà presente
millenaria Idea, gran purga d'occidente,
chi si oppone è un giuda e lo dovrai schiacciare.
Cos'è un lager?
Son recinti e stalli di animali strani,
gambe che per anni fan gli stessi passi
esseri diversi, scarsamente umani,
cosa fra le cose, l'erba, i mitra i sassi
ironia per quella che chiamiam ragione,
sbagli ammessi solo sempre troppo dopo
prima sventolanti giustificazione,
una causa santa, un luminoso scopo
sono la consueta prassi del terrore,
sempre per qualcosa, sempre per la pace
sono un posto in cui spesso la gente muore,
sono un posto in cui,peggio, la gente nasce.
E un lager. Cos'è un lager?
E' una cosa stata, cosa che sarà,
può essere in un ghetto, fabbrica, città
contro queste cose o chi non lo vorrà,
contro chi va contro o le difenderà
prima per chi perde e poi chi vincerà,
uno ne finisce ed uno sorgerà
sempre per il bene dell'umanità,
chi di voi kapò, chi vittima sarà
in un lager.
Francesco Guccini's song Lager is a powerful and evocative critique of the horrors and atrocities committed in concentration camps during the Second World War. Through his lyrics, Guccini highlights the inhumanity of these camps, emphasizing the suffering of those confined within their walls. He questions the very existence of such camps, asking "what is a lager?" and portrays the camps as places of routine violence, where the only emotions experienced are fear and anguish.
Guccini also condemns those who deny the existence of these camps or dismiss them as myths. He suggests that the memory of the camps has been "extinguished" over time, despite their undeniable impact on human history. Through his lyrics, he encourages listeners to confront the uncomfortable truths of the past and to resist the incitement to hate and violence.
Overall, Guccini's song Lager is a poignant reflection on the senseless brutality of war and the atrocities committed in its name. It is a reminder of the need for vigilance and resistance against the racism, bigotry, and violence that fuel conflict and undermine the values of compassion, justice, and human dignity.
Line by Line Meaning
Un lager. Cos'è un lager?
Francesco Guccini ponders the question: what exactly is a lager?
E' una cosa nata in tempi tristi,
A lager is something that originated in sad times,
dove dopo passano i turisti
where tourists later pass through with disbelief at the horrors they saw (don't throw away the salami peel!)
Cos'è un lager?
Guccini repeats the question about the true nature of a lager
E' una cosa come un monumento,
It's like a monument,
e il ricordo assieme agli anni è spento
and the memory, along with the passing of time, has faded away
non ce n'è mai stati, solo in quel momento,
there have never been any lagers except at that particular moment
l'uomo in fondo è buono, meno il nazi Infame!
Man is essentially good, except for the infamous Nazis!
Ma ce n'è, ma c'è chi li ha veduti,
But there are some who have seen them,
o son balle di sopravvissuti?
or are they just lies from people who survived?
illegali i testimoni muti,
The silent witnesses are illegal,
non si facciano nemmen parlare!
they're not even allowed to speak!
Cos'è un lager?
The question is repeated once again, what is a lager?
Sono mille e mille occhiaie vuote,
They are thousands and thousands of hollow eyes,
sono mani magre abbarbicate al fili
They are thin hands clinging to wire fences,
son baracche e uffici, orari, timbri,
They are shacks and offices, schedules, timecards,
ruote, son routine e risa dietro a dei fucili
wheels, routines, and laughter behind guns
sono la paura l'unica emozione,
They are fear as the only emotion,
sono angoscia d'anni dove lì niente è tutto
They are the anguish of years when nothing there means everything,
sono una follia ed un'allucinazione
They are madness and hallucination,
che la nostra noia sembra quasi un rutto
which makes our boredom seem like belching
sono il lato buio della nostra mente,
They are the dark side of our mind,
sono un qualche cosa da dimenticare
They are something to forget
sono eternità di risa di demente,
They are the eternity of insane laughter,
sono un manifesto che si può firmare.
They are a manifesto that can be signed.
E un lager. Cos'è un lager?
Guccini repeats again, what exactly is a lager?
Il fenomeno ci fu. E' finito!
Such a phenomenon existed, but it's over!
Li commemoriamo, il resto è un mito!
We commemorate them, everything else is a myth!
l'hanno confermato ieri al mio partito,
My party confirmed it yesterday,
chi lo afferma è un qualunquista cane.
Anyone who asserts it is a stupid dog.
Cos'è un lager?
Again, Guccini asks, what is a lager?
E' una cosa sporca, cosa dei padroni,
It's a dirty thing, something done by those in power,
cosa vergognosa di certe nazioni
a shameful act for some nations
noi ammazziamo solo per motivi buoni,
We only kill for good reasons,
quando sono buoni? Sta a noi giudicare.
But when are they good? It's up to us to decide.
Cos'è un lager?
Again, Guccini posits the same question: What is a lager?
E' una fede certa e salverà la gente,
It's a certain faith that will save people,
l'utopia che un giorno si farà presente
the utopia that will someday come to pass.
millenaria Idea, gran purga d'occidente,
millennium-long idea, a great purge in the west
chi si oppone è un giuda e lo dovrai schiacciare.
Those who oppose are Judas and must be crushed.
Cos'è un lager?
Again, Guccini inquires, what is a lager?
Son recinti e stalli di animali strani,
They are enclosures and stalls of strange animals,
gambe che per anni fan gli stessi passi
Legs that take the same steps for years,
esseri diversi, scarsamente umani,
Diverse beings, scarcely human,
cosa fra le cose, l'erba, i mitra i sassi
Just a thing among things, like grass, machine guns, and rocks
ironia per quella che chiamiam ragione,
Irony for what we call reason,
sbagli ammessi solo sempre troppo dopo
Mistakes only admitted when it's too late,
prima sventolanti giustificazione,
Before waving justifications,
una causa santa, un luminoso scopo
a holy cause, a brighter purpose
sono la consueta prassi del terrore,
They are the usual practice of terror,
sempre per qualcosa, sempre per la pace
always for something, always for the sake of peace
sono un posto in cui spesso la gente muore,
They are a place where people often die,
sono un posto in cui,peggio, la gente nasce.
They are a place where, worse, people are born.
E un lager. Cos'è un lager?
Again, Guccini repeats: what exactly is a lager?
E' una cosa stata, cosa che sarà,
It's something that was, that will be,
può essere in un ghetto, fabbrica, città
It can be in a ghetto, a factory, a city
contro queste cose o chi non lo vorrà,
against these things or those who do not want it,
contro chi va contro o le difenderà
against those who oppose or defend them
prima per chi perde e poi chi vincerà,
first for those who lose and then for those who win,
uno ne finisce ed uno sorgerà
one ends, and another will arise
sempre per il bene dell'umanità,
always for the good of humanity,
chi di voi kapò, chi vittima sarà
who among you will be the kapò, who will be the victim
in un lager.
in a lager.
Contributed by Amelia W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Giulia Vichi
Attuale in maniera spaventosa
davide cappelli
insieme a bisanzio le mie preferite
ulisse quagliotti
non la sentivo da un bel po di tempo
Riccardo Puccianti
ho pianto
Sofia Serio
bella
Antonio Gambardella
un lager sono la paura ........
Edoardo Schiavetta
cos'è un lagev?
Simone Radici
😁😁