Luigi Tenco
Luigi Tenco (born March 21, 1938 in Cassine , † January 27, 1967 in Sanremo ) was an Italian Cantautore .
Life
Youth and school days
Luigi Tenco was born in 1938 to Teresa Zoccola and Giuseppe Tenco, but never got to know his father because he died during pregnancy under unclear circumstances. He spent his early childhood in his native Cassine and in Ricaldone , the birthplace of his mother. In 1948 the family moved to Liguria , first to Nervi , then to Genoa , where the mother opened a wine shop.
Tenco began his education at a humanistic high school, but soon switched to one with a scientific focus. During his school days he founded two bands, the Jelly Roll Boys Jazz Band named after Jelly Roll Morton with Danilo Dègipo (drums), Bruno Lauzi (banjo), Alfred Gerard (guitar) and himself on the clarinet, and later the Diavoli del Rock ("Devil of Rock"), together with Roy Grassi and Gino Paoli .
Studies and first successes
After graduating from school, he began studying engineering, but soon moved to the Faculty of Political Science. During this time he was a member of Mario De Sanctis' Modern Jazz Group . With Marcello Minerbi and Luigi Coppola he also founded a trio, nicknamed Trio Garibaldi , which only existed for about three weeks.
In 1959 he made his first record with the group I Cavalieri , which, in addition to Tenco, consisted of Gianfranco Reverberi, Paolo Tomelleri, Enzo Jannacci and Nando De Luca. Two singles were released, Mai (German: Never ) and Mi chiedi solo amore (German: You just want love from me ). During this time, Luigi Tenco adopted the pseudonym Gigi Mai . Other pseudonyms were Dick Ventuno and Gordon Cliff.
Solo career
In 1961, Luigi Tenco began solo career with a first single Quando . The following year he made film experiences with Fabrizio De André , in La cuccagna by Luciano Salce . In the same year his first album was released, which contained successes such as Mi sono innamorato di te ( I fell in love with you ) and Angela - the title Cara maestra ( Dear teacher ) intended for the album was banned by the censors.
In 1963 the friendship with Gino Paoli broke up due to a relationship with the young Stefania Sandrelli . In September of that year his two songs Io sì ( I already ) and Una brava ragazza ( A brave girl ) were banned by the censors. Shortly before, he had left his record company Ricordi and switched to Jolly (Joker) .
In 1965 he was called up for military service, most of which he performed in a hospital. The following year he switched to the record company RCA, and the song Un giorno dopo l'altro ( One day at a time ) was released, which became the theme of a television crime series about Commissioner Maigret . Other successes from this time are Lontano lontano ( Far, Far Away ), Uno di questi giorni ti sposerò ( One day I'll marry you ), E se ci diranno ( And if they tell us ) and Ognuno è libero ( Everyone is free ) . In Rome he met the Italian-French singer Dalida , with whom he had an affair.
suicide
In 1967 he took part in the Sanremo Festival with the song Ciao amore ciao . However, his entry did not qualify for the final. He locked himself in his room at the Hotel Savoy and shot himself in the head. He had bought the pistol the year before for self-defense.
A letter was found with the following content:
“Io ho voluto bene al pubblico italiano e gli ho dedicato inutilmente 5 anni della mia vita. Faccio questo non perché sono stanco della vita (tutt'altro) ma come atto di protesta contro un pubblico che manda Io tu e le rose in finale e ad una commissione che seleziona La rivoluzione . Spero che serva a chiarire le idee a qualcuno. ”
“I loved the Italian audience and senselessly sacrificed five years of my life to them. I don't do this because I'm tired of life (on the contrary), but as an act of protest against an audience that chooses Io tu e le rose for the finals and because of a jury that chooses La rivoluzione . I hope that this will make something clear to some. "
Tenco is buried in the Ricaldone cemetery, where a Tenco Museum has existed since 2006. To this day, doubts remain about the suicide version. A renewed examination of his exhumed skull in the spring of 2006 did not produce any new results.
The Tenco Club has existed in Sanremo since 1972 and has been awarding the international Tenco Prize to songwriters since 1974 .
Cantautore Fabrizio De André , who was a close friend of Tenco, dedicated the song Preghiera in gennaio (“Prayer in January”) to him after his suicide, which says:
“Quando attraverserà / l'ultimo vecchio ponte, / ai suicidi dirà, / baciandoli alla fronte, / 'Venite in Paradiso, / là dove vado anch'io, / perché non c'è l'Inferno / nel mondo del buon Dio' . ”
“When he / will cross the last old bridge / he will say to the suicides / while kissing them on the forehead: / 'Come to paradise / wherever I go, / for in the world of the dear God / there is no hell. '"
Discography
Publications during his lifetime
- Luigi Tenco Ballate e Canzoni (1962)
- Luigi Tenco Canta De André, Jannacci, Bob Dylan, Mogol (1963)
- Ti ricorderai di me (1963)
- Se stasera sono qui (1964)
- Pensaci un po (1964)
- Le canzoni di Luigi Tenco (1965)
- Luigi Tenco, Ricordi (1962)
- Luigi Tenco , Jolly (1965)
- Tenco , RCA (1966)
Posthumous publications
Singles
- Ciao amore, ciao / E se ci diranno , RCA (1967)
- Quando / Mi sono innamorato di te , Ricordi (1967)
- Ti ricorderai / Angela , Ricordi (1967)
- Guarda se io / Vedrai, vedrai , RCA (1967)
- Io vorrei essere là / Io sono uno , RCA (1967)
- Se stasera sono qui / Cara maestra , Ricordi (1967)
- Pensaci un po '/ Il tempo dei limoni , Ricordi (1968)
- Vedrai, vedrai / Ah, l'amore, l'amore , Jolly (1970)
- Più mi innamoro di te / Serenella / Più mi innamoro di te (con orchestra) , Cgd (1984)
Albums
- Ti ricorderai di me , Ricordi (1967)
- Pensaci un po , Ricordi (1969)
- Luigi Tenco , RCA (1972)
- Luigi Tenco canta Tenco, De André, Jannacci, Bob Dylan , Joker (1972)
- Agli amici cantautori , Saar (1977)
- Luigi Tenco , Ricordi (1982)
- Luigi Tenco , Ricordi (1984)
literature
- Fegatelli Colonna Aldo: Luigi Tenco. Vita breve e morte di un genio musicale , Mondadori, 2002, ISBN 88-04-50087-5 (Italian)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Simone Coacci: Luigi Tenco. Una storia sbagliata. In: Onda Rock. Retrieved June 8, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ http://www.quotidiano.net/caffè/sanremo-luigi-tenco-1.1728787
- ^ Preghiera in gennaio. (PDF) In: FabrizioDeAndré.it. Retrieved June 8, 2020 (Italian).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Tenco, Luigi |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Gigi May |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian singer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 21, 1938 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Cassine |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 27, 1967 |
| Place of death | Sanremo |