Banco del Mutuo Soccorso (English: ''Bank of Mutual Relief'') is an Italian rock band. A popular
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s. Recently, they were still active, playing live in 2001 and 2008 at
NEARfest
The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, was a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event was held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsy ...
. Their charismatic frontman,
Francesco Di Giacomo
Francesco Di Giacomo ( 22 August 194721 February 2014) was an Italian singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the progressive rock band Banco del Mutuo Soccorso from 1971 to 2013.
Life and career
Born in La Caletta, a frazione of Sinis ...
, died in 2014.
History
Inspired by
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
acts from
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, in particular
Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant were a British progressive rock band active between 1970 and 1980. The band were known for the complexity and sophistication of their music and for the varied musical skills of their members. All of the band members were multi-inst ...
,
Jethro Tull and
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer (informally known as ELP) were an English progressive rock supergroup formed in London in 1970. The band consisted of Keith Emerson (keyboards), Greg Lake (vocals, bass, guitar, producer) and Carl Palmer (drums, percus ...
, keyboardists
Vittorio Nocenzi and his brother
Gianni
Gianni is an Italian name (occasionally a surname), a short form of the Italian Giovanni and a cognate of John meaning God is gracious. Gianni is the most common diminutive of Giovanni in Italian.
People with this given name
* Gianni Agnelli (i ...
founded Banco del Mutuo Soccorso in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. In 1972, together with other musicians from
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
progressive scene, they recorded their
eponymous debut album which, with songs such as R.I.P. (Requiescant in pace), Il giardino del mago and Metamorfosi, immediately attracted the attention of the public of the nascent
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
scene in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. The graphic design of the cover is also very particular: shaped as a
terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, a ...
piggy bank. In the same year, the second album was released, ''
Darwin!
''Darwin!'' is the second studio album by Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, released in 1972 on the Ricordi label. It is a concept album about the birth and the evolution of life on Earth.
The album is highly rated by progressive rock fans as one of the ...
'', the first concept album made by the group: the songs are all linked to the central theme of
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...
's theory on the
evolution of species.
In 1973 ''
Io sono nato libero'' increased their notoriety thanks to the single "Non mi rompete", an acoustic ballad with poetic dreamy lyrics.
The most prominent features of their sound are the complex textures provided by the piano,
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...
and synthesizers played by the Nocenzi brothers, along with the vocals of former frontman
Francesco Di Giacomo
Francesco Di Giacomo ( 22 August 194721 February 2014) was an Italian singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the progressive rock band Banco del Mutuo Soccorso from 1971 to 2013.
Life and career
Born in La Caletta, a frazione of Sinis ...
. A careful balance of electronic and acoustic instruments, with the use of
reed
Reed or Reeds may refer to:
Science, technology, biology, and medicine
* Reed bird (disambiguation)
* Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times
* Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales
* ...
s (played by some of the members of the band, in addition to their usual instrument), made Banco's sound increasingly original and innovative, with a blend of rock, jazz and classical music which did not, however, forsake the Italian melodic tradition.
Proving popular in Italy and becoming known abroad, the band signed with
Manticore Records
Manticore Records is a record label launched by the Manticore production company in 1973. These companies were owned by the members of the progressive rock group Emerson, Lake & Palmer (commonly known as ELP.) and their manager, Stewart Young. ...
together with the
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM) (translation: ''Award-winning Marconi Bakery'') is an Italian progressive rock band founded in 1970 which continues to the present day. They were the first Italian group to have success internationally. The group ...
. In 1975 ''
Banco'' was released, a collection of translated songs together with new material, targeting the international market. ''
Come in un'ultima cena'' was also translated as ''
As in a Last Supper''. The late 1970s saw Banco del Mutuo Soccorso going in new directions, with a
film soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
in 1976's ''
Garofano rosso'' and recordings with an orchestra in 1978's ''
...di terra''. They changed their name to the simplified Banco.
The 1980s saw Banco's musical direction change towards lighter
pop and shorter songs, producing some
hits. This is due to the limited success they had abroad with their albums with English lyrics (also due to the shutdown of Manticore in 1977), which led to the decision to exploit Di Giacomo's remarkable vocal gifts with more marketable songs. Gianni Nocenzi left the band for a solo career. Other members came and went.
In the 1990s and now back to using the longer name, they started playing their 1970s material again. They performed
unplugged
Unplugged may refer to:
*Acoustic music, music not produced through electronic means
* "Unplugged" (B.A.P song), 2014
* "Unplugged" (''Modern Family''), a 2010 episode of ''Modern Family''
Albums and EPs
* ''Unplugged'' (5'nizza album), 2002
* '' ...
versions of their songs
live
Live may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film
* ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film
*'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD)
Music
*Live (band), American alternative rock band
* List of albums ...
and re-recorded their first albums. New material was also produced.
Today, the band continues to play live.
On 21 February 2014, Francesco di Giacomo died in a car accident, in
Zagarolo
Zagarolo is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, in the region of Lazio of central Italy. It lies southeast of Rome, and it borders the municipalities of Colonna, Gallicano nel Lazio, Monte Compatri, Palestrina, Rome, San Cesar ...
, at the age of 67.
On 3 October 2015, the band guitarist Rodolfo Maltese died too after a long battle with cancer.
In September 2016 some Italian newspapers claimed that the band has taken on Tony D'Alessio, best known from the Italian edition of ''
X-Factor
''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'', as the new lead singer.
On 13 January 2019, a press release announced that a new album called "Transiberiana" will be released in April.
It will be their first new release after "Nudo", which was published on 1997.
On July 20, 2022 the band's official Facebook page announces the release of the single "Cadere o Volare" for July 22, which anticipates the release of the album Orlando: Le Forme dell'Amore, Concept album on the chivalrous poem Orlando furioso by Ludovico Ariosto, for 23 September. On September 6 "La Pianura Rossa" is released, the second single that anticipates the release of the album.
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Other releases
Singles
*1973 - Non mi rompete/La città sottile (Dischi Ricordi, SRL 10713)
*1979 - Canto di primavera/Circobanda (Dischi Ricordi, SRL 10896)
*1979 - Niente/Sono la bestia (Dischi Ricordi, SRL 10908)
*1980 - Il ragno/Capolinea (Dischi Ricordi, SRL 10915)
*1980 - Paolo Pà / Ma che idea
*1980 - Dove sarà / Ma che idea
*1980 - Il ragno / Rip
*1981 - Baciami Alfredo / Buone notizie
*1981 - Tommy/Mississippi (pubblicato come La banda di Tom)
*1983 - Moby Dick / Velocità
*1983 - Lontano da
*1985 - Grande Joe / Allons enfant
*1989 - Padre Francesco/Vedo il telefono/La mia libertà (Contempo, PT 42926 EP)
*1994 - Brivido
*1997 - Nudo
*1997 - Ragno
*2019 - I ruderi del gulag
*2022 - Cadere o volare
*2022 - La pinura rossa
Videos
* ''Ciò che si vede è'' (1992,
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
release in 2004)
* ''Live 1980'' (2007)
See also
*
Balletto di Bronzo
*
I Cervello
*
La Locanda delle Fate
Locanda delle Fate (The Fairy Inn) is an Italian progressive rock band from the end of the Italian progressive rock movement.
The band formed in 1974 and in 1975 the vocalist Leonardo Sasso entered the group.Enzo Giannelli. "Locanda delle Fate". G ...
*
Le Orme
Le Orme (Italian: "The Footprints") is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a ''frazione'' of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s. They are one of few Italian r ...
*
Osanna
Osanna are an Italian progressive rock band.
Origin
The group originated in the Vomero neighborhood of Naples with the union of Lino Vairetti (voice), Danilo Rustici (guitar), Massimo Guarino (drums), Lello Brandi (bass), from the first line ...
*
Nova
A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramati ...
*
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM) (translation: ''Award-winning Marconi Bakery'') is an Italian progressive rock band founded in 1970 which continues to the present day. They were the first Italian group to have success internationally. The group ...
*
Il Rovescio della Medaglia Il Rovescio della Medaglia, or RDM, were an Italian hard rock and symphonic rock band. They are most famous for their symphonic rock piece '' Contaminazione'', released in 1973. It contained four pieces from Bach's '' Well-tempered Clavier'' seamles ...
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso
Italian progressive rock groups
Italian rock music groups
Musical groups established in 1969
Symphonic rock groups
Musical groups from Rome