Aria (Alan Sorrenti album)

Last updated
Aria
Aria (Alan Sorrenti album).jpg
Studio album by
Alan Sorrenti
Released8 June 1972 (1972-06-08)
Studio
Genre
[1] [2] [3]
Length39:32
Label Harvest Records
Producer Michelangelo Romano
Alan Sorrenti chronology
Aria
(1972)		Come un vecchio incensiere all'alba di un villaggio deserto
(1973)
Singles from Aria
  1. "Vorrei incontrarti/Un fiume tranquillo"
    Released: 1972

Aria (Italian: air, also aria ) is the debut album by Italian singer-songwriter Alan Sorrenti, released in 1972. Displaying progressive and psychedelic sounds blending folk, rock and jazz, it has been highly praised by the critic, being considered one of his best albums. [2] [3]

Contents

Aria blends dreamy, ethereal, suggestive melodies with changes in rhythm and register, thus displaying the advanced technic of the musicians within an overall fable-like atmosphere. Lyrics are poetic and sometimes hermetic: love is one of the main themes, sometimes seen in a more transcendental way (as in the title track "Aria"), whilst in "Vorrei incontrarti" (I'd like to meet you) the theme is the desperate research of love, a love that heals the soul from the feelings of loneliness and emptiness. [2]

Also in 1972, "Vorrei incontrarti" was released as a single from the album, with the song "Un fiume tranquillo" as its B-side.

Reception

Aria received wide critical acclaim and is considered the best work by the Neapolitan artist. The album achieved good success and Alan Sorrenti's virtuoso voice has drawn comparisons to Tim Buckley and Peter Hammill. [3] Cesare Rizzi, who gives the album top scores, regards it as one of the best examples of Mediterranean progressive rock and considers the eponymous song one of the most inspired moments of the genre in Italy. [4] Critic Riccardo Bertoncelli considers Aria the first completely accomplished Italian pop album. [5] Diego Ballani of the magazine Rumore includes it amongst the Italian music classics to be discovered and affirms it "still radiates wonder". [6] The album was also selected for the book I 100 migliori dischi del Progressive italiano, published in 2014 by Tsunami Edizioni and is present at position number 52 in the ranking of the 100 most beautiful Italian albums of all time according to Rolling Stone Italia. [7]

Tracklist

Lyrics and music by Alan Sorrenti.

A Side
No.TitleLength
1."Aria"19:45
B Side
No.TitleLength
2."Vorrei incontrarti"4:56
3."La mia mente"7:34
4."Un fiume tranquillo"7:57

Charts

Chart (1972–1973)Peak position
Italy ( Musica e dischi ) [8] 14

Personnel

Arrangements by Alan Sorrenti and Albert Prince; mixing by Giulio Spelta; production by Corrado Bacchelli and Bruno Tibaldi. [9]

Bibliography

References

  1. ↑ Giovanni Davoli (18 February 2021). "I grandi dischi del rock progressivo italiano degli anni '70: guida per chi non c'era". Impatto sonoro. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Setola, Salvatore. "Alan Sorrenti - Aria: Le pietre miliari italiane di OndaRock". Ondarock (in Italian). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 "Aria di Alan Sorrenti: il misconosciuto capolavoro della musica italiana". 9 September 2023.
  4. ↑ Cesare Rizzi (2003). Progressive & Underground. Giunti. p. 183.
  5. ↑ Riccardo Bertoncelli (1973). Pop story. Suite per consumismo, pazzia e contraddizioni. Arcana. p. 221.
  6. ↑ Diego Ballani (July–August 2018). "Le guide pratiche di Rumore - 50+50: Italia sotterranea - Prima parte - anni 60 e 70". Rumore #318/319.
  7. ↑ I 100 dischi italiani più belli di sempre secondo Rolling Stone
  8. ↑ "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 24 June 2025. Set "Tipo" on "Album". In the "Artista" field, type "Alan Sorrenti". Then, in the "Titolo" field, search "Aria".
  9. ↑ "Alan Sorrenti - Aria". discogs. 1972.
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