Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band born in the sixties in Venice as a beat group. Conventionally it represents with the Premiata Forneria Marconi and the Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso the cutting edge of the Italian progressive, as well as one of the groups that have enjoyed
greater visibility abroad. In recent years the group has participated in some of the most important progressive rock events in the world. Le Orme (Italian: "The Footprints") formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s. They are one of few Italian rock bands to have success outside their own country, having played concerts across North America and Europe, and releasing an album in English at the height of their success.
It's easy to forget that America and England didn't exist in a vacuum in the 1960s, and that rock's influence
was felt far beyond the English-speaking world. France, Italy, Germany, and much of the rest of Europe spawned their own groups emulating the sounds of psychedelia and other cultural exports from the U.S.A. and the U.K. Le Orme were part of this phenomenon, a quintet formed in Italy in the late '60s that cut two albums of psychedelic rock for the Lord label in Milan.
Aldo Tagliapietra (vocals, acoustic guitar, flute, celesta), Nino Smeraldi (electric guitar, vocals), Claudio
Galieti (bass, cello, vocals), Toni Pagliuca (keyboards), and Michi Dei Rossi (drums, percussion) started out sounding something like the Beatles circa the Magical Mystery Tour and Yellow Submarine albums, complete with distorted lead guitar solos and songs intended to evoke the variant states of mind associated with certain recreational drug use. Smeraldi, who co-wrote (with Tagliapietra) all of the songs on their first album, also arranged all of their material.
In the spring of 1971 Le Orme recorded their second studio album, Collage. Thanks to its promotion through the RAI radio program Per voi giovani, the album was quickly successful, earning a top 10 placing in the Italian charts. This was followed up with Uomo di pezza in 1972, which topped the Italian
charts. Uomo di pezza also generated a hit single, "Gioco di bimba", and the band toured Italy in December 1972 with Peter Hammill of Van der Graaf Generator (VdGG being on hiatus at the time). It was with their next album however, Felona e Sorona, considered to be one of the "finest examples of Italian progressive rock", that Le Orme truly gained prominence beyond their home country. At the request of Tony Stratton Smith, Le Orme recorded an English version of Felona e Sorona for Charisma Records, with translation provided by Peter Hammill.
Le Orme stayed together during the 1970s, cutting four albums in that vein and then disbanding in 1982. In 1986 the band re-formed -- including Tagliapietra, Pagliuca, and Dei Rossi in the lineup -- with the
intention of touring but then released the Orme album in 1990, heralding a return to recording as well as performing on a semi-regular basis. Pagliuca left the group in 1992, replaced by keyboardist Michele Bon, but during the '90s and 2000s the group persevered, issuing such albums as Il Fiume (1995), Elementi (2001), and L'Infinito (2004), and also making concert and festival appearances in Europe as well as North America. However, Tagliapietra departed the group in 2009, leaving Le Orme in a trio formation with only Dei Rossi remaining from the band's '60s and '70s heydays.
01. LE ORME - AD CLORIAM 1969
The cover of Le Orme's Ad Gloriam is about as psychedelic as it is possible to be or imagine; it is a swirl
of color and a collage of pop-art images, featuring drawings (and photos) of the band members and various op-art images of well-endowed women scattered amid butterflies and geometric shapes. The music is also, indeed, psychedelic, and runs the gamut from pleasant, Beatles-influenced ballads to more spaced-out interludes emphasizing Tagliapietra's flute and Smeraldi's lead guitar.
Le Orme – Ad Gloriam
Label: Akarma – AK 060
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Stereo 2000
Country: Italy
Released: 1969
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock
TRACKS
01. Introduzione 1:45
02. Ad Gloriam 5:31
03. Oggi Verrà 2:32
04. Milano 1968 3:12
05. I Miei Sogni 3:00
06. Mita Mita 2:53
07. Era Un Anno Fa 3:00
08. Fumo 3:39
09. Senti L'Estate Che Torna 3:18
10. Fiori Di Giglio 3:07
11. Non So Restare Solo 5:28
12. Conclusione 1:42
13. Tutto Passerà 2:47
LINE - UP
Acoustic Guitar, Flute, Celesta, Vocals – Aldo Tagliapietra
Bass, Cello, Vocals – Claudio Galieti
Drums, Timpani, Bongos, Tambourine – Michi Dei Rossi
Lead Guitar, Sarangi, Vocals – Nino Smeraldi
Organ, Electric Piano, Harpsichord – Tony Pagliuca
NOTES
Total time: 41'12".
Flac Size: 494 MB
02. LE ORME - COLLAGE 1971
Collage (1971) is the real "first" Le Orme LP, after two previous albums of beat music. It is also the first
album to feature the trio's progressive rock sound, albeit in an embryonic stage. As such, it is a mixed bag. On the one hand you get pompous, excessive keyboard workouts that owe a lot to the Nice ("Collage," "Sguardo Verso Il Cielo"), down to orchestral arrangements. On the other hand, you also get songs like "Era Inverno" and "Morte di un Fiore," both typical Italian prog songs (with acoustic guitar), both heralding what will become Le Orme's classic sound.
Le Orme – Collage
Label: Philips – 842505 2, Philips – 842505-2, Philips – 842 505-2
Format: CD, Album, Reissue 1990
Country: Italy
Released: 1971
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock
TRACKS
01. Collage 4:42
02. Era Inverno 5:00
03. Cemento Armato 8:08
04. Sguardo Verso Il Cielo 4:12
05. Evasione Totale 6:56
06. Immagini 2:58
07. Morte Di Un Fiore 3:00
LINE - UP
Drums, Percussion – Miki Dei Rossi
Electric Organ [Organo Hammond], Electric Piano, Audio Generator [Generatore] – Antonio Pagliuca
Vocals [Voce], Bass, Acoustic Guitar – Aldo Tagliapietra
Written By – A. Pagliuca - A. Tagliapietra
Written-By – A. Tagliapietra, A. Pagliuca
Lyrics By, Music By – A. Tagliapietra, A. Pagliuca
Flac Size: 354 MB
03. LE ORME - UOMO DI PEZZA 1972
One of the masterpieces by the Italian Group Le Orme. Since from the intro dedicated to Bach
Ciaccona and than Una dolcezza nuova, followed by the successful single Gioco di bimba covered many years later also from the most popular Italian band in Italy, Pooh. A concept album of a magic beauty. It was released in 1972 and was one of their best selling works, which won an Italian award disco d'oro.
Le Orme – Uomo Di Pezza
Label: Philips – 832 067-2
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Stereo Apr 28, 1987
Country: Italy
Released: 1972
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock
TRACKS
01. Una Dolcezza Nuova 5:28
02. Gioco Di Bimba 2:54
03. La Porta Chiusa 7:28
04. Breve Immagine 2:42
05. Figure Di Cartone 3:48
06. Aspettando L'Alba 4:43
07. Alienazione 4:43
LINE - UP
Tony Pagliuca – keyboards
Aldo Tagliapietra – voice, bass, guitars
Michi Dei Rossi – drums, percussion
GUEST
Gian Piero Reverberi – piano on track 1
Flac Size: 222 MB
04. LE ORME - FELONA E-AND SORONA 1973 (2016)
Aldo Tagliapietra (vocals, bass, guitar), Toni Pagliuca (organ/Mellotron, piano), and Michi Dei Rossi (drums), produced some of the best Italian progressive rock ever recorded. Influenced by Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Genesis, the band forged their own unique blend of sophisticated symphonic prog rock. Tagliapietra's vocals give the music an ethereal quality, and he actually sounds quite a bit like Sting (or the
other way around). Their high level of musicianship is evident on "Sospesi Nell 'Incredibile," but the focus is more on mood, song structure, and texture. The original recording contains Italian lyrics, while Van Der Graaf Generator vocalist Peter Hammill penned English lyrics for a subsequent release.
Le Orme – Felona E/And Sorona 2016
Label: Love Music – LM002CD
Format: 2 x CD, Album
Country: Italy
Released: 1973 - 2016
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock
FELONA E SORONA
01. Sospesi nell'incredibile 10:22
02. Felona 2:08
03. La solitudine di chi protegge il mondo 2:09
04. L'equilibrio 3:42
05. Sorona 2:21
06. Attesa inerte 3:32
07. Ritratto di un mattino 3:25
08. Allìinfuori del tempo 3:46
09. Ritorno al nulla 4:35
FELONA AND SORONA
01. In Between 10:22
02. Felona 2:08
03. The Maker 5:51
04. Web of Time 2:21
05. Sorona 3:31
06. The Plan 3:25
07. The Balance 3:47
08. Return to Naught 4:36
LINE - UP
Tony Pagliuca – keyboards
Aldo Tagliapietra – voice, bass, guitars
Michi Dei Rossi – drums, percussions
Flac Size: 500 MB
05. LE ORME - CONTRAPUNTI 1974
Probably this is the best album by Le ORME, quite well produced (the production is not bad regarding of those times) and very elegant too. The harmonic solutions are fiery and never pretentious,
a sort of "baroque" ambitious project inside their typical romantic apparatus. In my opinion this music should have to be entirely performed in a theatre, in front of a silent crowd!! Highly recommended, even though actually the right rate should be "4 stars and an half" unless its weak production; nevertheless its importance - as a great reference for the Romantic Progressive bands in Europe - makes this album a Must Have...!
Le Orme – Contrappunti
Label: Philips – 842 506-2
Format: CD, Album, Reissue 1990
Country: Italy
Released: 1974
Genre: Rock
Style: Art Rock, Prog Rock
TRACKS
01. Contrappunti 5:50
02. Frutto Acerbo 3:32
03. Aliante 3:16
04. India 3:09
05. La Fabbricante D'Angeli 4:44
06. Notturno 3:48
07. Maggio 8:50
LINE - UP
Tony Pagliuca – keyboards
Aldo Tagliapietra – voice, bass, guitars
Michi Dei Rossi – drums, percussions
Gian Piero Reverberi - Piano [Pianoforte]
Flac Size: 192 MB
06. LE ORME - PICCOLA RAPSODIA DELL' APE 1980
Looking at Le Orme's late-‘70s output, there is a logical progression leading from Verità Nascoste (1977) to Piccola Rapsodia dell'Ape (1980). Verità Nascoste integrated the rock lessons learned (and ill-realized)
on Smogmagica to Le Orme's own sound; Storia o Leggenda took a more acoustic/Italian song approach to said sound; Florian pushed things further into acoustic/neo-classical territory; finally, Piccola Rapsodia dell'Ape retained part of the pastoral elements from Florian and reapplied them to the acoustic progressive rock approach defined on Storia o Leggenda. Piccola closes the third era in the band's life (the first one being the pre-Collage years, In Concerto concluding the second chapter).
Le Orme – Piccola Rapsodia Dell'ape
Label: Philips – 842 822-2
Format: CD, Album 1990
Country: Italy
Released: 1980
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock
TRACKS
01. Il Treno 3:50
02. Raccogli Le Nuvole 4:15
03. La Mia Sposa Bianca 3:46
04. Piccola Rapsodia Dell'ape 5:12
05. Charango 3:00
06. Fiori Di Luce 3:28
07. Fragile Conchiglia 6:24
08. Buona Notte 2:44
LINE - UP
Piano – Antonio Pagliuca
Violin, Charango, Bouzouki, Guitar [12-string] – Germano Serafin
Vocals, Violoncello, Classical Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Aldo Tagliapietra
Marimba, Vibraphone, Glockenspiel, Percussion – Giuseppe Dei Rossi
Michi Dei Rossi – drums
Written-By [Testi E Musiche Di] – Aldo Tagliapietra, Germano Serafin, Antonio Pagliuca
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