I Camaleonti
| I Camaleonti | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| origin | Milan |
| Genre (s) | Beat , pop rock |
| founding | 1963 |
| Website | www.camaleonti.it |
| Founding members | |
| Riki Maiocchi (until 1966) | |
Vocals, guitar, bass
|
Livio Macchia |
| Antonio "Tonino" Cripezzi | |
guitar |
Gerardo "Gerry" Manzoli (until 1982) |
| Paolo De Ceglie († 2004) | |
| Current occupation | |
Vocals, guitar, bass |
Livio Macchia |
Singing, piano, violin |
Antonio "Tonino" Cripezzi |
Vocals, guitar |
Valerio Veronese (since 1985) |
Singing, piano, keyboard
|
Massimo Brunetti (since 1990) |
Drums |
Massimo Di Rocco (since 2004) |
I Camaleonti (Italian for "The Chameleons ") is an Italian beat band that was founded in 1963. In Italy she achieved several chart successes in the 1960s and 1970s.
Band history
The band formed as part of the Beatwelle in Milan in the early 1960s. After several name and line-up changes, Antonio "Tonino" Cripezzi, Livio Macchia, Riki Maiocchi, Gerardo "Gerry" Manzoli and Paolo De Ceglie appeared from 1965 under the name I Camaleonti . During one gig they were discovered by Miki Del Prete , who helped them to a record deal with the Kansas label ; there they released two albums and several singles until 1967. One focus of their repertoire was cover versions of international hits of the time, but they also recorded new songs, such as Chiedi chiedi , with which they took part in the Cantagiro competition in 1966 . The first chart success was achieved with the song Portami tante rose . Riki Maiocchi left the group in 1966, and was replaced by Mario Lavezzi. Eventually the band switched to the bigger label CBS .
The band released Non c'è niente di nuovo as their first single on CBS in 1967 . With the song she also successfully took part in Cantagiro 1967. In the same year, L'ora dell'amore, a cover of the song Homburg by Procol Harum , appeared; thus the Camaleonti reached the top of the Italian single charts for the first time. In 1968 they got two more hits, one with Io per lei (cover of Frankie Vallis To Give (The Reason I Live) ), then with Applausi . Her debut album on CBS, Io per lei , was also successful. However, Lavezzi had already left the band and was briefly replaced by Gabriele Lorenzi, who also left the band quickly. Only four of them released the two singles Viso d'angelo and Mamma mia (written by Lucio Battisti and Mogol ) in 1969, as well as the mini album Vita d'uomo .
At the Sanremo Festival in 1970 the Camaleonti, together with Ornella Vanoni , entered the race with the song Eternità and achieved fourth place. The song was another great chart success. In the same year the group also took part in Festivalbar and Cantagiro with Ti amo da un'ora . With I Camaleonti presentano il vero underground they put a scrapbook of international Underground -Hits before that time, they covered themselves in 1970 with Lei mi darà un bambino yet the song She's Gonna Give Me a baby by Mort Shuman . After an artistic break and the addition of Dave Sumner, the band returned in 1973.
With Come sei bella , the Camaleonti achieved eleventh place at the 1973 Sanremo Festival , with Perché ti amo they won the summer hit competition Un disco per l'estate and once again reached the top of the chart. In 1973 the album I magnifici Camaleonti was released . At Canzonissima they presented Amicizia e amore , followed in 1974 by the album of the same name. In 1975 the group achieved a smaller chart success with Piccola Venere , at the Sanremo Festival in 1976 they achieved a tenth place with Cuore di vetro , after which it became quieter for them. After the record deal with CBS expired, the band released an album on their own label Camaleo in 1977 and switched to Durium in 1978 . Despite a third place at the Sanremo Festival in 1979 with Quell'attimo in più , the other publications of the Camaleonti were relatively unsuccessful.
From 1981 Vincenzo Mancuso replaced Dave Sumner. In that year the band was involved in the soundtrack of the film Il tango della gelosia by Stefano Vanzina . In 1982 the Camaleonti took part in Un disco per l'estate again with Italian Boys , and founding member Gerry Manzoli left the group. In 1984 the band recorded the club anthem Cuore nerazzurro for Inter Milan . Two years later, Valerio Veronese took the place of Mancuso, and in 1991, Massimo Brunetti became a fifth member of the group. As a supergroup together with members of the bands Equipe 84 and Dik Dik , the Camaleonti presented Come passa il tempo at the Sanremo festival in 1993 , but did not reach the final. Over the years, the band released other albums with changing labels, mostly best-ofs. Founding member Paolo De Ceglie died in 2004, and Massimo Di Rocco took his place.
Discography
Albums
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks / months, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks / months, awards, notes) |
Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
 IT
|
|||
| 1968 | Io by lei |
IT5 (2 months) IT |
CBS 63350
|
| 1969 | Vita d'uomo (in cerca della verità) |
IT17 (1 month) IT |
CBS 52724
|
| 1973 | I magnifici Camaleonti |
IT15 (12 weeks) IT |
CBS 65669
|
| 1974 | Amicizia e amore |
IT17 (6 weeks) IT |
CBS 69056
|
More albums
- The Best Records in the World (1966; Kansas, DMK 007)
- Portami aunt rose (1967; Kansas, DMK 008)
- Piccola Venere ed altri successi (1975; CBS 69149)
- Che aereo stupendo ... la speranza (1976; CBS 69234)
- In vendita (1977; Camaleo, CM 38501)
- ... e camminiamo (1979; Durium, ms AI 77408)
- L'ora dell'amore (1986; CGD, 9031 70173-2)
- Perché ti amo (1986; CGD, 9031 70174-2)
- Come passa il tempo ei più grandi successi (1993; Dischi Ricordi, RTR 41022)
- Libero (1996; Nar International, 4429 5003-2)
- Applausi ed altri successi (1997; Nar International, 12842 202827)
- I più grandi successi (1998; Tring, TBP130)
- 2001 ed oltre (2001; Nar International)
- Musica e memoria (2004; Nar International)
- 50 anni di applausi (2015; Clodio Management)
Singles (selection)
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
|
IT
|
|||
| 1967 | Portami aunt rose Portami aunt rose |
IT15 (1 week) IT |
Kansas, DM 1025
B-side: Una risposta |
| Not c'è niente di nuovo Io per lei |
IT9 (5 weeks) IT |
CBS, 2770
B-side: Vita facile |
|
| L'ora dell'amore Io per lei |
IT1 (16 weeks) IT |
||
| 1968 | Io per lei Io per lei |
IT4 (17 weeks) IT |
|
| Applause Io by lei |
IT1 (15 weeks) IT |
CBS, 3654
B-side: Torna Liebelei |
|
| 1969 | Viso d'angelo Vita d'uomo |
IT2 (21 weeks) IT |
CBS, 4114
B-side: Lei aspetta te |
| Mamma mia Vita d'uomo |
IT5 (16 weeks) IT |
CBS, 4627
B-side: In poche parole ti amo |
|
| 1970 | Eternità I magnifici Camaleonti |
IT2 (15 weeks) IT |
CBS, 4793
B-side: Bella che balli |
| Ti amo da un'ora |
IT10 (12 weeks) IT |
CBS, 5008
B-side: Per carità |
|
| Lei mi darà un bambino I magnifici Camaleonti |
IT19 (4 weeks) IT |
CBS, 5206
B-side: Poker |
|
| 1973 | Come be bella I magnifici Camaleonti |
IT10 (6 weeks) IT |
CBS, 1293
B-side: Donna donna |
| Perché ti amo I magnifici Camaleonti |
IT1 (20 weeks) IT |
CBS, 1478
B side: Vado in bianco |
|
| 1974 | Amicizia e amore Amicizia e amore |
IT4 (14 weeks) IT |
CBS, 1986
B-side: Penza |
| 1975 | Piccola Venere Piccola Venere ed altri successi |
IT5 (14 weeks) IT |
CBS, 2914
B-side: Gimcana |
| 1993 | Come passa il tempo Come passa il tempo |
IT12 (7 weeks) IT |
Web links
- Official website
- Camaleonti at Rockol.it
- I Camaleonti at Discogs (English)
supporting documents
- ↑ Guido Racca: M&D Borsa Album 1964-2019 . Self-published, 2019, ISBN 978-1-09-470500-2 , pp. 130 .
- ↑ Guido Racca: M&D Borsa Singoli 1960-2019 . Self-published, 2019, ISBN 978-1-09-326490-6 , pp. 147; 422 .