Ricky Gianco (born Riccardo Sanna on 18 February 1943), formerly known as Ricky Sann, is an Italian singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer, considered one of the founders of Italian

rock music Rock is a Music genre, genre of popular music that originated in the United States as "rock and roll" in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of styles from the mid-1960s, primarily in the United States and the United Kingdo ...

Career

Born in Lodi, Gianco started playing guitar as a child, and at 11 years old he won a music contest for amateur musicians, soon gaining some popularity thanks to his participation to numerous

Mike Bongiorno Michael Nicholas Salvatore Bongiorno (; May 26, 1924 – September 8, 2009) was an American Italian television presenter. After a few experiences in the U.S., he started working on RAI in the 1950s and was considered to be the most popular host ...

's shows. In 1958 he was guitarist of the band "Pepe, Pietruccio & Lallo", an early incarnation of

Dik Dik Dik Dik is an Italian beat/ pop-rock band, named after the antelope Dik-dik, formed in the 1960s and still active. They were most popular in the late 1960s, when they released a string of hit singles with the contribution of renowned lyric-write ...

. He first adopted the stage name Ricky Sann as a tribute to

Ricky Nelson Eric Hilliard "Ricky" Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician and actor. From age eight, he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he began a ...

. He made his recording debut with the single "Ciao ti dirò", which is regarded by some critics as the first Italian original rock song.Cotto, Massimo (1990). "Gianco, Ricky". Castaldo, Gino (edited by). ''Dizionario della canzone italiana''. Curcio Editore. pp.772-3. In 1960, he formed "Ricky Sanna e il suo complesso", a band with

Enzo Jannacci Vincenzo "Enzo" Jannacci (; 3 June 1935 – 29 March 2013) was an Italian singer-songwriter, pianist, actor and comedian. He is regarded as one of the most important artists in the post-war Italian music scene. Jannacci is widely considered as ...

and Luigi Tenco. His 1960 song "Dubbi" is considered an early example of

comedy rock Comedy rock is a genre of rock music that is Comedy music, comedic in nature. It is often mixed with satirical music, satire or irony.V. Bogdanov, C. Woodstra and S. T. Erlewine, ''All music guide to rock: the definitive guide to rock, pop, and ...

song. In 1961, Gianco co-founded Clan Celentano, but after some disagreements with

Adriano Celentano Adriano Celentano (; born 6 January 1938) is an Italian singer-songwriter, actor, showman, and filmmaker. He is dubbed ''Il Molleggiato'' ('the springy one') because of his energetic dancing. Celentano's many albums frequently enjoyed both com ...

one year later he left the record label and moved to England, where he knew

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

(taking part in their 1963 Christmas Show at the Astoria Cinema in

Finsbury Park Finsbury Park is a public park in Harringay, north London, England. The park lies on the southern-most edge of the London Borough of Haringey. It is in the area formerly covered by the historic parish of Hornsey, succeeded by the Municipal ...

) and collaborated with

Ivor Raymonde Ivor Raymonde (born Ivor Pomerance; 22 October 1926 – 4 June 1990) was a British musician, songwriter, arranger and actor, best known for his distinctive rock-orchestral arrangements for Dusty Springfield and others in the 1960s. Life and ca ...

. Returned to Italy, he reprised his singing career with the label Jaguar and started a fruitful collaboration as songwriter with Gian Pieretti, having his major success with "Pietre", a song launched by Gian Pieretti and

Antoine Antoine is a French language, French given name (from the Latin ''Antonius'' meaning 'highly praise-worthy') that is a variant of Danton (name), Danton, Titouan, D'Anton and Antonin. The name is most common in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada ...

at the Sanremo Music Festival 1967. In this period he also served as producer for I Ribelli and I Quelli, a rock band that was the nucleus of

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 1970, he took part in the 20th Sanremo Music Festival with his song "Accidenti" as a member of the supergroup Il Supergruppo. In 1972, he founded the label Intingo and two years later he co-founded the label L'Ultima Spiaggia. Following the semi-retirement of Gian Pieretti, in the mid-1970s Gianco started a long professional association with Gianfranco Manfredi, in music and on stage. His production of the time became more ironical and more politically and socially committed. In 1989, he recorded one of his better knew song, "Parigi con le gambe aperte", a duet with

Gino Paoli Gino Paoli (; born 23 September 1934) is an Italian singer-songwriter. He is a seminal figure who has written a number of songs widely regarded as classics in Italian popular music, including: "Il cielo in una stanza (song), Il cielo in una st ...

, with whom he toured the same year. His 1991 album ''È rock & roll'' had among its guests Paoli,

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer. He is best known for being the co-founder and drummer of the rock band Toto, but is also one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on hundr ...

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James Burton James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana, United States) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also ...

and

Giorgio Gaber Giorgio Gaberscik (25 January 1939 – 1 January 2003), known as Giorgio Gaber (), was an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, actor, playwright, and musician. He was also an accomplished guitar player and author of one of the first rock songs ...

. His 1992 and 2000 albums ''Piccolo è bello'' and ''Tandem'' also mainly consisted of duets and collaborations, notably

Fabrizio De André Fabrizio Cristiano De André (; 18 February 1940 – 11 January 1999) was an Italian singer-songwriter and the most-prominent '' cantautore'' of his time. He is also known as Faber, a nickname given by the friend Paolo Villaggio, as a referen ...

Franco Battiato Francesco "Franco" Battiato (; 23 March 1945 – 18 May 2021) was an Italian musician, singer, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs explore many themes (including, but not limited to, ph ...

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, and

Ornella Vanoni Ornella Vanoni (; born 22 September 1934) is an Italian singer. She is one of the longest-standing Italian artists, having started performing in 1956. She has released about 112 works between LP, EPs and greatest hits albums, and is considered ...

. As a songwriter, Gianco's collaborations include Mina,

Patty Pravo Nicoletta Strambelli (born 9 April 1948), known professionally as Patty Pravo, is an Italian singer. She debuted in 1966 and remained most successful commercially for the rest of the 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Having suffered a decline in p ...

, Peppino di Capri,

Equipe 84 Equipe 84 () were an Italian beat band formed in 1964 in Modena. The name was originally suggested by a friend of the band, Pier Farri. ''Equipe'' was thought to be a word that would resonate more easily outside of their home country, and thoug ...

, and

Don Backy Don Backy (born Aldo Caponi on 21 August 1939) is an Italian singer-songwriter and actor. Life and career Born in Santa Croce sull'Arno, Caponi spent his early years in Castellammare di Stabia before returning to his hometown in 1955.Bassignan ...

. In 2003, he received a for his carer.

Discography

Albums

*1963: '' Una giornata con Ricky Gianco'' (Jaguar, JGR 73000) *1965: '' Ai miei amici di "Ciao amici"'' (Jaguar, JGR 74002) *1965: '' Ricky Gianco Show'' (Jaguar, JGR 74003) *1968: '' Ricky Gianco Special'' (

Dischi Ricordi Dischi Ricordi was an Italian record company founded on by and Franco Crepax (brother of Guido Crepax), active from 1958 to 1994. History Dischi Ricordi had its seat in Milan (Via Giovanni Berchet, 2). In 1994, the company was bought by B ...

, MRP 9051) *1975: '' Braccio di Ferro'' ( Intingo, ITGL 14005) *1976: '' Quel rissoso, irascibile, carissimo Braccio di Ferro'' (Intingo, ITGL 14007) *1976: '' Alla mia mam...'' ( Ultima Spiaggia, ZLUS 55187) *1978: '' Arcimboldo'' (Ultima Spiaggia, ZPLS 34046) *1979: '' Liquirizia (soundtrack)'' (

Fontana Records Fontana Records is a record label that started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records. Fontana Distribution, an independent label distributor, takes its name from the label. History Fontana began in the 1950s as a subsidi ...

, 6323 811) *1982: ''

Non si può smettere di fumare Non, non or NON can refer to: * ''Non'', a negatory word in French, Italian and Latin People *Non (given name) *Non Boonjumnong (born 1982), Thai amateur boxer * Rena Nōnen (born 1993), Japanese actress who uses the stage name "Non" since July ...

'' ( Fonit-Cetra, LPX 100) *1989: '' Di nuca'' ( New Enigma, NEM 47714) *1991: '' È Rock'n Roll'' (Fonit-Cetra, TLPX 277) *1992: '' Piccolo è bello'' (Fonit-Cetra) *1995: ''Il meglio di Ricky Gianco'' (compilation, D.V. MORE) *1997: ''Ricky Gianco: i successi'' (compilation, D.V. MORE) *2000: ''Tandem (Ricky Gianco & ...)'' (compilation of collaborations,

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

, COL 497529 1) *2005: ''Ricky Gianco Collection'' (compilation, EDEL) *2009: '' Di santa ragione'', EDEL *2010: ''

Come un bambino Come may refer to: Places *Come, village of a Greek polis *Comè, a city and commune in Benin *Come (Tenos), an ancient town on Tenos island, Greece Music *Come (American band), an American indie rock band formed in 1990 *Come (UK band), a Britis ...

'' ( On Sale Music, 64 OSM 084)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gianco, Ricky 1943 births Living people Clan Celentano artists Italian guitarists Italian male guitarists Italian male singers Italian male songwriters Italian songwriters