VINICIO CAPOSSELA
Vinicio Capossela-piano, voice, guitar, Eusebio Martinelli-trumpet, Alessandro Stefana-guitar, Glauco Zuppiroli-double bass, Massimiliano Sorrentini-drums, Vincenzo Vasi-percussion
The theatrical, eccentric singer-songwriter Vinicio Capossela, a superstar in Italy, is often compared to Tom Waits, owing to his raspy voice and love of ‘various forms of oompah’ -waltzes, blues stomps, Kurt Weill cabaret, boleros and klezmer. His latest CD Ovunque Proteggi (May You Protect Me Everywhere), on which Wait’s regular guitarist Marc Ribot can be heard, was at the top of the Italian hit parade for weeks on end. ‘There was desolation in many of the songs, but also a wink, a sense of delight and a broad streak of romance. Behind all the transformations was a visionary songwriter whose music stays wonderfully down to earth.’ (The New York Times). ‘Imagine an Etruscan Tom Waits, a jazz-age bum on the Palatine hill 22 centuries ago, jamming with Marc Ribot on tales of wolves, whores, warriors and the correct colour of rose with which to woo women.’ (MOJO).