Riccardo Maiocchi ( 27 May 1940 - 2 February 2004), best known as Riki Maiocchi, was an Italian singer and musician, mainly successful in the second half of the 1960s.
Life and career
Born in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, Maiocchi started his career as guitarist and singer in a number of local bands.
He made his professional debut in 1964, with the single "La tua vera personalità", and in 1965 he entered the group
I Camaleonti
I Camaleonti ("The Chameleons") are an Italian pop group from Milan, mostly active between the late 1960s and the early 1970s.
Background
I Camaleonti were formed in 1963 in Milan. The original line-up included Livio Macchia (guitar), Anton ...
as lead singer.
[Nicola Sisto. "Riki Maiocchi". Gino Castaldo (edited by). ''Dizionario della canzone italiana''. Curcio Editore, 1990.] After getting two major hits, "Sha-La-La" and "Chiedi chiedi", Maiocchi left the band in order to pursue his solo career.
The same year, he got an immediate success with the song "Uno in più", written by
Mogol and
Lucio Battisti
Lucio Battisti (5 March 1943 – 9 September 1998) was an influential Italian singer-songwriter and composer. He is widely recognized for songs that defined the late 1960s and 1970s era of Italian songwriting.
Battisti released 18 studio albums ...
, which ranked second on the Italian hit parade.
In 1967 Maiocchi entered the competition at the
17th edition of the
Sanremo Music Festival
The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival () and commonly known as just (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annual ...
with a second collaboration with Mogol and Battisti, "C'è chi spera", which was also a solid hit, peaking at the eight place on the Italian hit parade.
After a third and less successful song by Mogol-Battisti, "Prendi fra le mani la testa", Maiocchi recorded a cover version of the 1940s classic "Ma l'amore no", an attempt to turn himself into a more traditional
crooner
Crooner is a term used to describe primarily male singers who performed using a smooth style made possible by better microphones which picked up quieter sounds and a wider range of frequencies, allowing the singer to access a more dynamic range ...
, but the single failed to chart.
In the later years Maiocchi changed three record companies, but his records failed to achieve remarkable results.
After basically stopping his activities in the mid-1970s, Maiocchi partially relaunched his career in the late 1980s and early 1990s thanks to his appearances on several TV programs.
Discography
;Albums
* 1988 – ''Riki Maiocchi'' – (CGD, LSM 1333)
* 1998 – ''Uno in più'' – (MR Music, MRCD 4122)
;Singles
* 1964 – La tua vera personalità/Giovedì non mancare – (Columbia, SCMQ 1784)
* 1964 – Non dite a mia madre/P.S. I Love You – (Columbia, SCMQ 1818)
* 1965 – La casa del sole/P.S. I Love You – (Columbia, SCMQ 1818)
* 1965 – Sha la la la la/Tu credi in me – (Kansas, DM 1005)
* 1965 – Quella che cerchi/Mai finirà – (Columbia, SCMQ 1843)
* 1966 – Uno in più/Non buttarmi giù – (CBS, 2388)
* 1967 – C'è chi spera/Sono il tuo poeta – (CBS, 2538)
* 1967 – Prendi fra le mani la testa/Prega – (CBS, 2726)
* 1967 – Ma l'amore no/Un'altra vita – (CBS, 3015)
* 1968 – Il re della solitudine/E volerai – (CBS, 3367)
* 1969 – Io sono qui/Tu vedi mai cerchi bianchi e neri? – (Carosello, CI 20231)
* 1972 – Aiutami/Mary Jane – (CGD, 7981)
* 1976 – Rock 'n' Roll/P.S. I Love You – (Columbia, 3c 006 18154)
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Maiocchi, Riki
1940 births
2004 deaths
Musicians from Milan
Italian pop singers
20th-century Italian male singers