Fito Páez

Rodolfo Páez, popularly known as Fito Páez (; born 13 March 1963), is an Argentine rock and roll musician and filmmaker. He was member of the "Trova Rosarina" and is known as "The Troubadour of Argentine Rock", and is considered an important figure in Argentinian rock music.

Biography

Early career

Paez was born in Rosario, Santa Fe; his real name is Rodolfo Paez, like his father. When he was a child, people called him "Rodolfito" (in Spanish, the diminutive of masculine names is formed by adding "ito") to distinguish him from Rodolfo, his father. With time, Rodolfito became just "Fito," and that is where his stage name came from.

He formed Staff, his first band, when he was 13. In 1977, he played in El Banquete with Rubén Goldín and Jorge Llonch. He began to perform solo in pubs the following year.

Straight out of high school, he began touring with several bands and, soon after that, produced his first solo album, ''Del '63'', which was released in 1984. It was promoted first in his hometown but later earned attention in Buenos Aires. The recording was put together with the help of some of Argentina's most prominent musicians, including Daniel Wirtz, Fabián Gallardo, Tweety González and Paul Dourge.
The record won him critical acclaim as a songwriter and helped lead to future projects, including a 1985 album, ''Giros''. The demo of that album earned him the praise of Luis Alberto Spinetta, as well as a partnership – Paez's next album, 1986's ''La La La'' was a duet with Spinetta. The duo supported that album with a tour that reached all the way to Santiago, Chile. The same year, he participated in the Thousand Days of Democracy festival.

His 1987 recording, ''Ciudad de Pobres Corazones,'' marked a dark, political turn for his work. It was dedicated to the memory of his aunt and grandmother, who were murdered in Rosario. Páez got his first taste of production work with ''Ey!'', which was released in 1988. Recorded in New York City and Havana, which raised more than $420,000.

In 1990, Páez worked as a producer in Sandra Mihanovich and Celeste Carballo's album '' Mujer contra mujer''.

The follow-up, ''Circo Beat,'' had impossibly high expectations. Though it had several hit songs, including "Mariposa Technicolor" and "Tema de Piluso," as well as a companion album, ''Circo Beat Brazil'', which featured Brazilian remixes of its hits, it only sold around 350,000 copies. Several other projects were completed in the late '90s, including a live album, ''Euforia'' and 1998's ''Sabina & Páez: Enemigos Intimos'', with Joaquín Sabina. The year 1999 brought another balanced, superbly produced album, '' Abre''. He also took home two Grammys at the first annual Latin Grammy Awards in fall 2000. He lived with Argentine actress Cecilia Roth for some years; the couple adopted a child in 1999.

Páez's 2003 album ''Naturaleza sangre'' marked a return to his musical past, featuring appearances from Charly García, Luis Alberto Spinetta and Brazilian artist Rita Lee on the previously unreleased version of "Ojos Rojos." In 2006, Páez was given an '' escopetarra'' (a decommissioned AK-47 converted into a guitar) by Colombian musician and peace activist César López in honor of his music.

The album ''El mundo cabe en una canción'' won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Rock Solo Vocal Album at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2007. In 2008 Páez recorded, ''No se si es Baires o Madrid'', in Madrid, Spain. He invited several important musicians such as Pablo Milanés, Joaquín Sabina, and Ariel Rot to participate. In 2010, he released the album ''Confiá..'' In December 2011; he recorded a new album with songs by other artists performed by Páez himself in a release called ''Canciones para áliens.'' This album was presented at la Sala Nezahualcoyolt de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. In January 2012, these "songs for the aliens" were transmitted to space via electromagnetic waves through the Music to Space project. :es:Canciones para aliens In 2021, Páez was presented with the Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Discography

Studio albums

*''Del 63'' (1984)
*''Giros'' (1985)
*''La la la'' (1986) (with Luis Alberto Spinetta)
*''Ciudad de pobres corazones'' (1987)
*''Ey!'' (1988)
*'' Tercer mundo'' (1990)
*'' El Amor Después del Amor'' (1992)
*'' Circo Beat'' (1994)
*''Enemigos íntimos'' (1998) (with Joaquín Sabina)
*'' Abre'' (1999)
*''Rey Sol'' (2000)
*''Naturaleza sangre'' (2003)
*''Moda y pueblo'' (2005)
*'' El Mundo Cabe en Una Canción'' (2006)
*'' Rodolfo'' (2007)
*''Confiá'' (2010)
*''Canciones para Aliens'' (2011)
*''El Sacrificio'' (2013)
*''Dreaming Rosario'' (2013)
*''Yo Te Amo'' (2013)
*''Rock and Roll Revolution – RRR'' (2014)
*''Locura total'' (2015) (with Paulinho Moska)
*''La ciudad liberada'' (2017)
*'' La Conquista del Espacio'' (2020)
*'' Los Años Salvajes'' (2021)
*''Futurología Arlt'' (2022)
*''The Golden Light'' (2022)
*''EADDA9223'' (2023)
*''Novela'' (2025)

Live albums

*''Euforia'' (1996)
*''Mi vida con ellas'' (2004)
*'' No sé si es Baires o Madrid'' (2008)
*''El amor después del amor 20 años'' (2012)

Compilation albums

* ''Grandes éxitos'' (1990)
* ''Crónica'' (1991)
* ''Lo mejor de Fito Páez'' (1993)
* ''Lo mejor de los mejores – Volume 1 and 2'' (1995/1996)
* ''Lo duro/Lo suave de Fito Páez'' (1996)
* ''Colección aniversario'' (1999)
* ''Fue amor'' (2000)
* '' Antología'' (2002)
* ''Serie de oro: grandes éxitos'' (2002)
* ''Músicos, poetas y locos'' (2003)
* ''Super 6'' (2003)
* ''Gran reserva'' (2005)
* ''Grandes canciones'' (2008)

Tributes

* ''Homenaje a Fito Páez'' (2006)

Filmography

*'' Vidas privadas'' ("Private Lives") (2001)
*''¿De quién es el portaligas?'' (2007) ("Whose is the garter belt?")
*'' Women on the Edge'' (2023) as Director

In fiction

* Páez is portrayed by several actors in the TV series '' El amor después del amor''.

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

Further reading

*Horacio Vargas: Fito Páez – La biografía – La vida después de la vida. Homosapiens, Buenos Aires 1994; .

External links

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Fito Páez Biography (1/5) YouTube.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paez, Fito
1963 births
Musicians from Rosario, Santa Fe
Living people
20th-century Argentine male singers
Argentine people of Spanish descent
Latin Grammy Award winners
Singers from Rosario, Santa Fe
Rock en español musicians
Sony Music Latin artists
Latin music songwriters
Rock songwriters
Argentine male pianists
21st-century Argentine pianists
21st-century Argentine male singers
Argentine male singer-songwriters
Argentine singer-songwriters
Grammy Award winners
Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners