01	Madre Di Cose Perdute						20:29
	02	Sette?						21:26

Garybaldi [Italy]
Nuda (72), Astrolabio (73)

A Hendrix-influenced band featuring the talents of guitarist extraordinaire Bambi Fossati. Their only reissue to date the album Astrolabio features two side long suites, both great cosmic jams resembling none of the previously mentioned Italian bands, but just as innovative. A must.
In the 1971 the band Gleemen change its name to Garybaldi, keeping the same members. The first LP is blues-rock (inspired from Experience). The second is more instrumental. When the band dissolved, Bambi Fossati and Maurizio Cassinelli went to Bambibanda E Melodie.
Italian band. I've only heard some of Astrolabio, and that was great. Great, flowing guitar work over a smooth background of sound. Italian vocals. Recommended.


Garybaldi - Astrolabio (1973)

Those of you slightly bored with the leagues of same-y sounding Italian symphonic groups from the 70s might find Garybaldi's excellent Astrolabio a refreshing palette cleanser. The band is spearheaded by the often intense, often exquisite guitar work of Bambi Fossati, whose playing and soloing drenches pretty much the entire album from front to back. Though clearly inspired by Jimi Hendrix, his backing band adopts an almost symphonic feel at times, with soaring keyboards (oddly uncredited) providing a textured backdrop to Fossati's seething guitars. At times the overall effect is almost, for lack of a better term, "Floydian" in its sheer grandeur. This is particularly true on the phenomenal first side, "Madre di Cose Perdute". This piece is definitely an example of a perfectly executed sidelong piece in which every moment is accounted for. Energetic, surging guitar solos trade off with effective melodic themes, swooshing synthesizers and melodic bass. Vocals are sparse and unimportant, though effective when present. One comparison that comes to mind is Grobschnitt's classic Solar Music Live, given a similar sort of sound and semi-improvisational vibe. The second side was apparently recorded live, and features some audience banter in the very beginning. Musically, "Sette?" is slightly closer to Fossati's Hendrix roots, sounding a little raunchier, with a backbeat-heavy groove at times.

Brilliant moments abound here as well, and even our mystery man keyboardist is afforded the opportunity to trade licks with Fossati. The playing is wonderful and there is a tangible sense of enjoyment and energy on the part of the band throughout, bringing the piece to similar climatic heights as the first side. Astrolabio is a solid addition for Italian progressive rock fans. A little different than your typical Italian fare, but great nonetheless. - Greg Northrup [January 2002]




1. Madre di Cose Perdute - 20:30
2. Sette? - 21:18
Bambi Fossati - Guitar, Leslie Guitar, Cosmic Guitar
Maurizio Cassinelli - Drums, Vocals
Sandro Serra - Bass, Vocals




GLEEMEN / GARYBALDI / BAMBIBANDA E MELODIE

GLEEMEN/GARYBALDI
1969-72
Bambi Fossati (guitar, vocals)
Lio Marchi (keyboards)
Angelo Traverso (bass)
Maurizio Cassinelli (drums)

1973
Marchi and Traverso quit, replaced by:
Sandro Serra (bass)


BAMBIBANDA E MELODIE
Bambi Fossati (guitar, vocals)
Roberto Ricci (bass)
Maurizio Cassinelli (drums)
Ramasandiran Somusundaram (percussion)


A band from Genova, Gleemen were formed in late 60's by Pier Nicolo "Bambi" Fossati, guitarist extraordinaire and Hendrix lover.

Their only album, issued in 1970, is a good rock album, with strong 60's influences and some typical elements of later Garybaldi work: the wild, Hendrix-inspired guitar playing of Bambi, the organ background and a solid rhythm section.
Some bluesy tracks are present, like the longest track on the LP Chi sei tu uomo, and the album has a very good average level, though by no means a progressive work.

The same line-up changed name to Garybaldi in 1971, the only difference being a slighly more progressive oriented sound, keeping the same style as previous band, and the wild Hendrix-inspired guitar playing of Bambi Fossati above all.

They had a very interesting debut with the single Martha Helmuth in 1971, the back cover of it stating "from now on we're not Gleemen, we're Garybaldi" to declare their change of style.
Nuda, a year later, is a much more mature album than Gleemen, with the long beautiful suite Moretto da Brescia taking the whole of side two and the four tracks on side one also on a very good level. A very important album, housed in one of the best covers of the era, designed by cartoonist Guido Crepax.

The band had an intense live playing, supporting the likes of Uriah Heep, Van der Graaf and even Santana in their italian tours, and theirs was a constant presence at the most important italian prog festivals in the early 70's.

Second album, Astrolabio, released on Fonit label, is a lesser work than Nuda, with just two side-long tracks, Sette? (recorded live) and Madre di cose perdute, both tracks also issued on a single in shortened form. The tracks contain long improvised parts that confirms the high level of Fossati's playing but seem less inspired and can't be compared with the first album. Keyboard player Lio Marchi is also present on the album though not a member of the band, that kept playing as a trio until the end of 1973.

In 1974 a new incarnation of Garybaldi was formed by Bambi Fossati along with old cohort Maurizio Cassinelli, bassist Roberto Ricci and indian percussionist Ramasandiran Somusundaram as Bambibanda & Melodie. Their only album has the usual leading role for Bambi's guitar, but the use of percussion gives a more latin-inspired feel that sometimes reminds Santana.

Percussionist Ramasandiran Somusundaram, previously active as session musician, also released an album and no less than three singles (in a more commercial vein) between 1974 and 1976 on the Magma label.

Bambi Fossati kept playing under the name of Bambibanda for some years before reforming the old group in late 80's with a new line up including Marco Mazza (guitar) and Carlo Milan (bass) along with Maurizio Cassinelli, and they released an album, more song-oriented, in 1990, as Bambi Fossati & Garybaldi.

A new album has been released in 2000, called La ragione e il torto.


GLEEMEN

LP
Gleemen CGD (FGS 5073) 1970 gatefold laminated cover with inner opening
Album reissued on CD by Mellow in 1993 (MMP 168)


SINGLES (with picture sleeve)
Lady Madonna
Tutto risplende in te RiFi (RFN-NP 16271) 1968
Shilaila dea dell'amore
Un'amica CGD (CGD 119) 1971 both tracks from the album


GARYBALDI

LP
Nuda CGD (FGL 5513) 1972 triple gatefold laminated cover
Astrolabio Fonit (LPQ 09075) 1973 gatefold laminated cover
Fonit / Vinyl Magic (LPP 415) 1991 available as gatefold as above or single cover with inner
Bambi Fossati & Garybaldi Artis (ARLP 009) 1990 single cover
CD reissues: Nuda on CGD (75262-2), Astrolabio on Fonit (CDM 2036 - now deleted) and Warner/Fonit (28187-2), Bambi Fossati & Garybaldi on Artis (ARCD 014 - now deleted)


SINGLES (with picture sleeve)
Martha Helmuth
Corri, corri, corri CGD (CGD 130) 1971 both unreleased tracks
Sette?
Madre di cose perdute Fonit (SPS 0430) 1973 excerpts from the second album


CD (relevant issues)
Bambi comes alive Mellow (MMP 174)) 1993 1993 live recordings
Blokko 45 Musicando (MUS 020) 1996
La ragione e il torto Private pressing 2000


BAMBIBANDA E MELODIE

LP
Bambibanda e melodie Fonit (LPQ 09085) 1974 single laminated cover
Fonit / Vinyl Magic (LPP 431) 1991 single non laminated cover
Album also reissued on CD by Fonit (CDLP 431)


Gleemen has never been reissued on vinyl, hence its rarity, and only had a CD reissue by Mellow.
It originally came with a gatefold laminated black cover with the record inserted from the inside centre of the sleeve. The record still had the 60's black/silver CGD label design.

Also on CGD, Nuda was released in a stunning triple gatefold laminated sleeve, one of the best covers of the italian prog of the 70's, designed by Guido Crepax (father of the erotic cartoon character Valentina), and has never been reissued, nor counterfeited. It's a highly regarded album, though not among the most expensive ones.

Astrolabio was originally released on the Fonit LPQ series in a very dark looking gatefold laminated cover, and it's rarer than Nuda. It's been re-released in the Fonit / Vinyl Magic series in 1991 both in gatefold and single cover (in this case with an inner sleeve reproducing the inside part of the original gatefold).

Bambibanda e Melodie is also rare and again part of the Fonit LPQ series; it has been reissued in 1991 along with many other Fonit/Cetra rarities with the same single sleeve (but non-laminated in this case) as the original.

No counterfeits or other issues exist.

Bambi Fossati & Garybaldi have a website at http://avantgarde.hypermart.net/menu.htm