The concert Zucchero was supposed to give in Oberhousen (Germany) this Friday has been cancelled (instead Zucchero will preform in Hungary the day before), the concert will now take place on August 17, tickets bought for the June 28 show will still be valid.
I lay down June 22, 2002
Today exactly one year ago John Lee Hooker, "The boogie man", died at the age of 83 (he would have turned 84 in August 2001). Hooker was, together with greats like B.B. King and Buddy Guy, one of the few blues gods left. His career started early in the 1940´s with huge hits like "Boom boom" and "Boogie chillon". In the 80´s his career seemed to have ended but with the brilliant "The healer" album (featuring amongst others Carlos Santana) he came back in the spotlight. Hooker stopped touring and recording a few years before he died (although he did still play gigs in his own bluesclub in San Fransisco), but he made an exception for Zucchero: the last song John Lee Hooker ever recorded is "Ali D´Oro" in which he sings "I lay down, with an angel". I´m sure he does....
Official fanclub updated June 21, 2002
The official Zucchero fanclub, on low key since the end of last year, has made a new start with a new website which in the feature will feature among other sections a "Video and Foto" section. Yesterday exactly one year ago Zucchero's new website was put online and since then the website has been updated on a very regulary form, keep up the good work!!!
Irene Fornaciari works on Spirit June 21, 2002
Irene Fornaciari, one of Zucchero's daughters, is working along on the Italian lyrics of the Italian version of the soundtrack of the Dreamworks movie Spirit. The original version of the album is written and recorded by Bryan Adams. Zucchero will sing all of Adams songs (7) on the Italian version of the soundtrack.
Zachary Alford replaced June 21, 2002
Zucchero's drummer during the first part of the tour and on the Shake album Zachary Alford has been replaced by Adriano Molinaro. It is unclear why the drummer, of Bruce Springsteen and David Bowie fame, is replaced.
RDS special tomorrow June 15, 2002
Tomorrow, sunday june 16, Italian radio station RDS will have a special on Zucchero. Fans can call Zucchero and ask questions and RDS made a special Zucchero mini site on their website. The show starts tomorrow at 23:00 (Italian time), you can listen online too (click on Live on the RDS site).
Duet with Lenny Kravitz? Nope... June 7, 2002
The planned duet with Lenny Kravitz during the june 8 gig in Rome is cancelled: Zucchero´s version of the story is that, because of the recording of the soundtrack of the Italian version of the new Dreamworks movie Spirit he and Kravitz didn´t have time to practice, however Kravitz claimed he didn´t even know he was going to do a duet with Zucchero. Whatever happened: no duet, just two separate sets.
Spirit OST June 5, 2002
The English soundtrack of the new Dreamworks animation movie (after the oscar winning smash hit Shrek) "Spirit" is made by Australian rockstar Bryan Adams, however: the Italian version of the movie will feature Zucchero singing the songs in Italian. Zucchero is currently recording the 7 songs. Something to look forward too, I´d say!
More concert dates June 5, 2002
A few more dates for this summer have been released:
02/08/2002 PULA ARENA
03/08/2002 RAGENSBURG BR3 GERMAN RADIO FESTIVAL
04/08/2002 CIVITAVECCHIA LARGO MARCO GALLI
11/08/2002 ZOFFINGEN HEITERE OPEN AIR
12/08/2002 COLMAR FESTIVAL
13/08/2002 MONTPELIER FESTIVAL
14/08/2002 LOURDES FESTIVAL
16/08/2002 BONN MUSEUMPLATZ
24/08/2002 SOPOT SOPOT FEST. POLAND
Don´t forget! June 3, 2002
Tonight at 21:00 (Italian time) the second part of the NDR2 Zucchero radio concert will be broadcasted including songs like Dunne Mosse, My Love, Diamante, Shake, Con le Mani, X colpa di chi and many more. For more info check this site. You listen to the station online: go to this site and click on "Live Hören".
available now
Shake "An intoxicating, delicious collection that begs to be listened to, digested, and listened to again and again" (Billboard) Italian - English - Spanish - Tour versions in stores now
Pav and friends news May 27, 2002
More news on the Pav and friends spectacle of tomorrow (!!!), according to rumours going on right now Zucchero will play Miserere with Luciano Pavarotti AND Andrea Bocelli and a medley of Sento le campane and Baila (sexy thing). The "group song" at the end of the show will most likely be either My Way or Hey Jude. Besides Zucchero, Bocelli and naturally Pavarotti, Sting, Raf, James Brown (!!), Elisa, Grace Jones, Augusto Enriquez, Gino Paoli and the legendary Lou Reed will preform playing both solo and in a duet with Luciano Pavarotti.
Sento le campane video May 27, 2002
The great video of Zucchero´s new single (the fourth of the Shake album)"Sento le campane" is now online, and you gotta admit: the video´s have been awesome! Baila rocked, Ahum rocked, Dindondio probably rocked but I never saw it (:-D) and this video ROCKS! Go check it out on www.zucchero.it!
Don´t forget: Pav and friends May 23, 2002
On tuesday May 28 this years Pavarotti and friends will be held in Modena. Friends this year are, among others, Sting, Elisa, Lou Reed, James Brown and Zucchero. The entire show will be broadcasted live on Rai 1 but there will also be some extra tv shows concerning Pavarotti and friends:
Friday, May 24 on Rai Uno at 16:05, special show including interview with Big Luciano
Tuesday, May 28 on Rai Uno at 16:05, looking ahead to the show
Tuesday, May 28 on Rai Uno at 20:40, countdown and show live
Radio concert part 2 May 20, 2002
The second part of the show Zucchero gave in Hamburg, Germany last march will be played on German radio network NDR2 on June 3 at 21:00. The tracklist will be Dunne Mosse, Diamante, My Love, Con le mani, Solo una sana..., Diavolo in me, Shake, Va, Pensiero, Senza una donna (Without a woman) and X colpa di chi. For more info check this site. You can also listen to the station online: go to this site and click on "Live Hören".
Zucchero at TWclassic May 17, 2002
Zucchero will be one of the artists playing at a new one-day festival in Werchter, Belgium called TW-classic. The idea of the show is to put world famous artists who have already earned their reputation and fame together. Other artists to preform are Sita (a Dutch singer with no talent whatsoever), Clouseau (Belgium band), Joe Cocker and Bryan Adams. The show will be held on July 14 in Wechter park.
First Zurich concert sold out May 17, 2002
The first of two concerts Zucchero will give in Zurich this summer (July 28 and 29) is sold out, tickets for the second show are still available on www.ticketcorner.ch.
Ciao Marina! May 13, 2002
Some sad news here: Marina Testori, Zucchero´s personal press agent, is too busy right now to work on the Official Fanclub and has therefore decided to quit. We´d like to take the chance to thank everybody, and espacially Marina, for all their hard work: even though the Official Fanclub is not, shall we say the smoothest organisation to work with all the time, they do a great job promoting Zucchero and we owe them all a lot. In blues we trust and let the good times roll! Damned! :-D
I trenta Italiana May 10, 2002
This year the Giro D´Italia starts in Groningen (the Netherlands) and because of that the local radiostation Radio Noord broadcasted a Top 30 of Italian songs. 7 Zucchero songs were listed:
29 Menta e rosmarino
22 Ahum
20 Cosi Celeste
15 Diamante
12 Baila (sexy thing)
08 Senza una donna
06 Il Volo
This is the Top 5:
05 Andrea Bocelli & Giorgia - Vivo Per Lei
04 Alice e Battiato - I treni di Tozeur
03 Bino - Mama Leone
02 Matia Bazar - Ti sento
01 Al Bano & Romina Power - Felicita
Needless to say that I believe Zucchero should AT LEAST be in the top 5 (and that the top 5 sucks BIG TIME, only the Bocelli/Giorgia song is cool!), and most likely on number 1, but appereantly SOME PEOPLE haven´t been voting ;-)). However, Zucchero did have the most songs in the top 30!
Lenny Kravitz/Pavarotti and Friends show May 10, 2002
Zucchero has said in an interview with La Repubblica that he would, even though it´s not really has favorite song, sing Miserere with Pavarotti and Andrea Bocelli during this years Pavarotti and Friends gala. He also gave some more information on the June 8 show with Lenny Kravitz: both Kravitz and Zucchero will play some solo songs and at the end of the show both bands and artists will get together (something to look forward to I´d say!).
James Brown joins Pav and Friends line-up May 7, 2002
Legendary soul singer James Brown had been added to the Pavarotti and Friends 2002 artists list. Other friends this year are Zucchero, Sting and Elisa. The Pavarotti and Friends concert will be held on tuesday, may 28, and will be broadcasted live on RAI 1.
Zucchero in chat May 7, 2002
Tomorrow, may 8, Zucchero will be in chat on the MTVItalia site, for more info check this site. The chat should start around 15:00/15.30.
The good news show May 6, 2002
Zucchero has said in an interview with the Italian newspaper Il Giorno that both a live cd and dvd will be released this autumn. The dvd will contain recordings from the two bluesugar-tour concerts in Paradiso, Amsterdam, the Shake tour concert in the Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam and a concert in Milan on the first of July this year. Zucchero will also release his autobiography in autumn and will sing the Italian version of the score for the new Dreamworks animationmovie Spirits written by Bryan Adams.
Vote for Zucchero May 3, 2002
You can vote for several Zucchero songs in the top 30 of favorite Italian songs on a local radio station in Groningen, were the Giro D´Italia will start this year and where Zucchero will preform live the same day. Go to this site, choose 5 songs (Baila, Cosi Celeste, Diamante, Il Volo, Madre Dolcissima, Menta e Rosmarino and Senza una Donna are under the name Zucchero Fornaciari and listed somewhere in the middle, Ahum is listed under the name Zucchero and is the last song in the list), you don´t have to fill out anything unless you want to vote for songs not in the list, you don´t have to fill in your name beneath either. If you´re done, press "versturen". You can vote only once unless you delete the cookie. Please vote and get Zucchero in the top, you only have a few days left to vote!!!
Tour dates for June and July May 3, 2002
All the tour dates for June and July, including concerts in Rome, France and Spain, have been released on Zucchero´s official site and updated in the Shake tour section (we are not responsible for any mistakes in the list). Shake on!
Beautiful reviews & people we love May 2, 2002
We officially love the people from Billboard for this review on the Spanish version of Shake:
ZUCCHERO
Album Title: Shake
Producer(s): Universal 314589
Genre: LATIN
Source: PRINT
Originally Reviewed: April 27, 2002
Italian Zucchero's homage to John Lee Hooker is an intoxicating, delicious collection of music that begs to be listened to, digested, and listened to again and again. Rather than simply cover the blues, Zucchero has created his own brand, kicking off with the trilingual (Spanish, English, Italian) "Baila Morena," a swinging track densely populated with crunching electric guitars, thick piano and organ vamps, and soaring bluesy female vocals over Zucchero's trademark rasp. The multi-layered blend of acoustic and electric and the interplay of various vocal ranges and languages set the tone for a stunning album with unfailingly excellent material, even when it veers into slightly different territory, including "Hasta El Fondo," anchored by vibrating Mellotron, or more traditional Italian pop like "No Sere Yo." Hooker lends his vocals—alternating with Zucchero's own Italian vocals—to "Ali D'Oro," and it's a wonderful endorsement to have. But this album flies unaided.
Can you spell "great review"???
May 1 concert May 2, 2002
Zucchero was the headliner in the May 1 concert in Rome yesterday. Other artists included Oasis and Italian singer, and Sanremo winner, Elisa. Zucchero played 4 songs, starting of with the new single Sento le campane, the other three songs were Music in me, Porca L´Oca, Diavolo in me and Baila (sexy thing). Pictures of the show should be uploaded to Zucchero´s official site somewhere this week.
