(P.F.M) Premiata Forneria Marconi: Storia Di Un Minuto 1972 + Cook (Live In U.S.A) 1974

 

Italy's leading progressive rock outfit of the early '70s, PFM would have remained a purely Italian phenomenon had they not been signed to Emerson, Lake & Palmer's Manticore label. Their sound

was more distinctly rooted in the pre-classical era than that of their Germanic counterparts. In addition to electric keyboards (synthesizers, etc.), they also relied on violin and flute (recorder, actually) as major components of their music. Their name, by the way, was short for Premiata Forneria Marconi, the name of the bakery that originally sponsored them.
                                                    

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 recorded five albums with English lyrics between 1973 and 1977. During this period they entered both the British and American charts. They also had several successful European and American tours, playing at the popular Reading Festival in England and on a very popular national television program in the United States.
                                               

PFM introduced new sounds, such as the synthesizer, to the Italian musical world. They were also

among the first to combine symphonic classical and traditional Italian musical influences in a rock music context. Such innovations and their longevity have earned PFM a place among the most important bands in the Progressive rock genre.
                                         

The original core members of PFM were Franco Mussida (guitars, vocals), Flavio Premoli (keyboards), Luciano Dovesi (bass), who preceded Giorgio Piazza (bass), and Franz Di Cioccio (drums, vocals).

They came together in the mid-1960s while playing together as backup musicians for many different Italian pop, rock and folk singers such as Lucio Battisti, Mina, Adriano Celentano and Fabrizio De André. They appeared on many recordings for other artists during this period and quickly established themselves as top players on the Italian scene before forming the group 'I Quelli' (deliberately ungrammatical, roughly translates to 'The Them', or 'Those Guys') in 1968. I Quelli released one album and some successful Italian singles.
                                                 

Premiata Forneria Marconi was officially formed in Milan in 1970 when the members of I Quelli met Mauro Pagani from the group Dalton. Pagani helped the group expand their sound to include violin and

flute. By this time they were already highly experienced musicians who could play the kind of complex progressive heavy rock played by the leading English and American groups. Their early live performances included songs by groups such as King Crimson and Jethro Tull. Other early influences included Chicago, Ekseption, and The Flock.
                                      

The debut recording from Italy's favorite sons of progressive rock. The band had been appearing as

special guests in support of bands such as Procol Harum, Deep Purple, and Yes, in addition to playing several festivals. Their hard work paid off, and the result is this excellent recording. Recorded live in the studio, PFM proved they were every bit as creative and talented as the U.K. bands of the time. Their symphonic prog rock commingles elements of folk, classical, and jazz in a genuine manner.
                                          

This is achieved by their transcendent and pliant level of musicianship. "Impressioni di Settembre" and

the two-part "Dove...Quando" demonstrate the band's ability to create rich harmonies with pop-like melodies. The band can also lay it down pretty heavy, as can be heard on the rocking "È Festa," which turned out to be one of their most requested songs. 

Storia di un Minuto stands as one of the best progressive rock debuts in history, and along with Per un Amico and Photos of Ghosts, is essential to any serious collection.

STORIA DI UN MINUTO  1972

                                               

Premiata Forneria Marconi – Storia Di Un Minuto
Label: BMG – 74321 765422
Series: I Dischi D'Oro
Format:    CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Digipak 2000
Country: Italy
Released: 1972    
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock, Classic Rock

TRACKS

                                                    

01. Introduzione    1:08
02. Impressioni Di Settembre  (Lyrics By – Mogol)  5:40
03. È Festa    4:50
04. Dove… Quando… (Parte I)    4:06
05. Dove… Quando… (Parte II)    6:00
06. La Carrozza Di Hans    6:46
07. Grazie Davvero    5:50

MP3 @ 320 Size: 83 MB
Flac  Size: 202 MB

COOK (LIVE IN U.S.A) 1974

                                                             

On the 1974 U.S. tour PFM played concerts with Little Feat, The Beach Boys, The Allman Brothers

Band, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, Peter Frampton and Dave Mason. They were a victim of theft just before the concert with Santana on July 25 at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle. The stolen items included a 1969 Gibson Les Paul and a Gibson ES-335 (with three pickups, which had "Altaloma" engraved on them) as well as two bass guitars.
                                          

1974 concerts were recorded in Toronto, Canada (Convocation Hall) on 22 August, and the Schaeffer Music Festival show in Central Park NYC on 31 August. Tracks from these shows were released as

PFM's final album for Manticore, titled, Cook. The album spent eight weeks on the Billboard 200 chart, and peaked at #154 in January 1975. The same recordings were used with different artwork for the next European album titled Live in USA. PFM reached their biggest American audience when they appeared on NBC's Midnight Special program on February 21, 1975. Their nationally televised performance included "Celebration" and the instrumental "Alta Loma Nine 'till Five".
                                                    

Premiata Forneria Marconi – Cook (Live In U.S.A.)
Label: Victor – VICP-60811
Format:    CD, Album, Remastered Aug 25, 1999
Country: Japan
Released: 1974    
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock

TRACKS

                                                                         

01. Four Holes In The Ground  (Written-By – Premoli, Mussida, Pagani, Sinfield)  7:26
02. Dove... Quando  (Written-By – Mussida, Pagani)  4:43
03. Just Look Away  (Written-By – Premoli, Mussida, Pagani, Sinfield)  8:48
04. Celebration (Including The World Became The World)  (Written-By – Premoli, Mussida, Sinfield)  8:33
05. Mr. 9 Till 5  (Written-By – Premoli, Mussida, Sinfield)  4:32
06. Alta Loma 5 Till 9 (Including William Tell Overture)  (Written-By – Premoli, Mussida)  15:50

Notes:
This album has been released under the name "Live In U.S.A." in Italy and "Cook" in the US, UK and Japan.

MP3 @ 320 Size: 117 MB
Flac  Size: 320 MB