Chrissie Hynde and The Pretenders, Rome 2003

A nice little concert in Rome's Centrale del Tennis. American-born Hynde played some of the group’s most famous hits, such as "Back On The Chain Gang", "I Got You Babe" (an old Sonny and Cher hit) and "I'll Stand By You". Hynde was also once famous for walking around without wearing underwear and was also married to Ray Davies of The Kinks (pic by M. Rimati).

Lucio Dalla

Dalla, an Italian singer, played in Rome’s Teatro Olimpico a few years ago. The concert? Nice. Some very good tunes for a musician who has been writing and singing since 1966 (pic by M. Rimati)

Stewart Copeland, Rome

The Police’s former/current drummer played in Rome’s auditorium a few years ago (at the time of writing The Police have played in Turin). Being the drum aficionado that I am, I couldn’t miss this one considering that in August, 1983 I actually saw him together with Sting and Andy Summers just one month before they split up (until their reunion in 2007 circa).

I believe that the band’s name actually comes from Copeland’s father who had worked in the past for the CIA (Copeland is also the only American of the band). Unfortunately, he didn’t play any Police songs that night in Rome. Nevertheless, Copeland was incredible as at one point he looked like an octopus hammering away at the drums with at least 8 arms (all pics by M. Rimati)!

Mr. Eric “Slow Hand” Clapton, Lucca, July 7th, 2006

We travelled some 700 kms (there and back) to the small walled-in town of Lucca (the only one apparently left in Italy with standing walls), not too far from Pisa, to see “Mr. Slow Hand” himself, Eric Clapton. He began on time at 9:30 pm and played for 2 hours non-stop with just one encore. He began with “Pretending” which is one of my favourite. Clapton was backed up by 11 members, including some pretty young guitarists who could have even been his kids (just think of the honour of playing next to him!).

This was the second time for me to see Clapton. The first was way back in 1995 in Rome. He began that concert by saying, “If you’ve come to hear my old hits, forget it, as I’m only going to play blues”. Which he did. In Lucca instead (a splendid town by the way) he played some old and new hits, such as “So Tired” and everyone’s favourite, “Cocaine” and “Layla”.

His opening act was the great American soul-rock guitarist, Robert Cray. A special treat as Cray later joined Clapton for a few tunes, including “Crossroads”. While staring at Clapton, I kept on thinking about his long relationship with friend George Harrison, especially on the song “Layla” which was named in honour of George’s first wife, model Patti Harrison (who then hooked-up with Clapton). So great was their friendship that they remained good friends with Clapton rendering George homage one year after his death in London’s famous Royal Albert Hall with the “Concert For George” concert. I also kept on thinking about the concert for Bangladesh. Harrison had organised that event in 1971 in New York’s Madison Square Garden to also help his dear friend and mentor (on the sitar), Ravi Shankar, Norah Jones’s father. He got some good friends involved, such as Bob Dylan and Clapton. Harrison’s assistants would rush to JFK to await for Clapton’s plane from London, but he wasn’t there. So they’d go back. And he still wasn’t there. He finally showed up but was in pretty bad shape as he was going through a rather bad period with drugs (Dylan on the other hand was extremely nervous to be on stage again). But there was the great Clapton on stage playing next to Harrison, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. The guitar solo part as we all know belongs to Clapton who had originally recorded it with Harrison, and, if I’m not mistaken, is on The Beatles’s “White Album”.

Clapton played about 20 songs that night in Lucca. Someone in the 1970s had written on a wall somewhere in England: “Clapton is God”! Slow Hand’s performance in Lucca still confirmed that unique statement (all pics by M. Rimati)!

Hey! Bo Diddley

Yes, Mr. Hey! Bo Diddley himself at Rome's new Auditorium on April 22nd, 2005! I couldn't miss one of the great'ol blues men on one of his rare concerts in Italy. Born in 1928 in Mississippi, Diddley also copied Berry’s duck walk (he had also played together with Berry on the "Two Great Guitars" album). He’s also been famous for his rather bizarre-looking guitars (created by Diddley himself). Diddley’s popularity got a boost when in 1963-1964 he backed the Stones, the Everly Brothers and Little Richard.

Diddley was the opening act of Rome’s new Blues Festival in 2005. His five-piece band also included two women, one on bass and one on keyboards. This was Diddley’s 50th anniversary tour. Two hours of great non-stop blues music which included “I’m A Man”, his most famous “Hey! Bo Diddley” and “I’m Bad”. Diddley was seated throughout the concert holding in his hands some of his typical handmade guitars. One of his opening remarks? “A graveyard is noisier than this place. Let’s make some noise”! So we all got down and made some mean noise, as ordered by Mr. Diddley himself! Towards the end of the concert Diddley actually got up. We all thought that he was going to leave the stage to come back for the usual encore (which actually lasted almost 20 minutes). Instead, he gave his guitar to a roadie and walked next to his drummer and then took two drumsticks and began playing the floor tom-tom and then the hi-hat. This went on for about 15 minutes. Something rather unusual for a rock concert, I must say. Not a full house but nevertheless a most entertaining concert with someone who has rubbed shoulders with the likes of Carl Perkins and the great Janis Joplin (pic by M. Rimati)!

Hail! Hail! Rock’n’roll!

Yes, the inventor of the famous duck walk, in Rome! This was about two years ago. Tickets were rather high (47 euros) but I thought I couldn’t absolutely miss Mr. “Johnny Be Goode” himself. Berry was on the eve of his 80th birthday that night. He was accompanied by both his daughter and son. He played most of his hits, including also Maybellene and Sweet Little Sixteen. He only played for one hour and with not even one encore! His duck walk? He did it for about 3 seconds and naturally the crowd went wild.

As I got up close to the stage to take pictures, I kept on looking at him in awe for here was a man who had inspired thousands of musicians all over the world, beginning with The Beatles (the one artist which the Fab Four sang most of their songs from 1962-1966 was Berry himself), Keith Richards (Richards had organised for Berry’s 60th birthday in 1986 two concerts in St. Louis. That would be eventually turned into the Hail! Hail! Rock’n’Roll video and album) and his former mate, bass guitarist Bill Wyman (who played for more than 30 years with the Stones). In fact, Wyman likes to tell the following story in his DVD on the history of the blues: he was 18 and on military duty in Germany. He came back to London and one day went to a movie theatre where there was a Berry movie. The year was 1957. Watching Berry for the very first time doing his duck walk (copied to by AC/DC's Angus Young), Wyman himself said the following: “Not only was it the most exciting moment of my life but the hairs on the back of my neck stood up”!

John Lennon had also been a keen admirer of Berry and had him play at the Toronto “R&R Revival Festival”. Lennon’s drummer that day was Alan White who would later go on to play with that other great band, Yes Berry’s encore that evening in Rome was naturally Johnny Be Goode. And we all naturally went crazy (all pics by M. Rimati)!

B.B. King

This concert with “Blues Boy” King took place just a few years ago at the “Centrale del Tennis” in Rome. I think the tickets were about 57 euros. Kind of funny as King kept on saying in English: “I’m so happy to be in Rome” (no kidding, with the money he made that night!). This was the second time for me to see this great old bluesman, a musician who has also played with Eric Clapton, one of his many admirers (Clapton's album, "Riding with the King", together with King is pretty damn good). Also, the Stones together with AC/DC’s Angus and Malcolm Young do a great version of King’s “Rock Me Baby” in their 2003 four-set DVD, “Four Licks” (all pics by M. Rimati).