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Riccardo Bertoncelli: 'My clash with Guccini? We loved each other'

From ANSA · () Italian

Translated from Italian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Music critic Riccardo Bertoncelli reflects on his infamous 1975 review of Francesco Guccini's album "Stanze di vita quotidiana," which led to Guccini including a critical mention in his song "L'Avvelenata."
  • Bertoncelli states that despite the initial clash, the incident ultimately fostered a lasting friendship and mutual respect between him and Guccini.
  • He notes that while the song became famous, it overshadowed other musically sophisticated works by Guccini, and Bertoncelli now acknowledges his review was overly harsh for its time.

Fifty-one years after a scathing review sparked a legendary feud, music critic Riccardo Bertoncelli looks back on his clash with Italian singer-songwriter Francesco Guccini, not with animosity, but as the unlikely beginning of a deep friendship.

I was fond of Francesco, and he was fond of me.

— Riccardo BertoncelliDescribing his relationship with Francesco Guccini despite their past conflict.

Bertoncelli's 1975 review of Guccini's album "Stanze di vita quotidiana" was famously harsh, described as "unhappy and cut with an axe." This critique led Guccini to immortalize Bertoncelli in the lyrics of his iconic song "L'Avvelenata" ("The Poisoned One"), calling him "a failed musician, a pious man, a theorist, a Bertoncelli or a priest spouting bullshit."

However, Bertoncelli emphasizes that the conflict was a catalyst for a bond built on mutual respect and shared interests. "I was fond of Francesco, and he was fond of me," Bertoncelli told ANSA. He recounts how they met, discussed "L'Avvelenata" over the years, and discovered common ground in their appreciation for poets like Gozzano and Borges, and Carl Barks' Donald Duck comics.

We clashed at the beginning, it was 1975. I wasn't interested in singer-songwriters, and it was quite by chance that I wrote about that album. I was the classic drop that made the bucket overflow.

— Riccardo BertoncelliRecalling the circumstances of his review of Guccini's album.

Bertoncelli, now 74, acknowledges his review was exaggerated for its time, a period of starker criticism. He notes that Guccini himself was unhappy with the album's arrangements, and the tone of Bertoncelli's review bothered him. "He wanted to remove my name from the song, but I told him to keep it. It was an outburst," Bertoncelli recalls. He also observes that the notoriety of "L'Avvelenata" overshadowed Guccini's more complex songs, and that today, gossip often takes precedence over musical substance.

He wanted to remove your name from the song, but I replied 'it was an outburst, keep it.'

— Riccardo BertoncelliRecounting his conversation with Guccini about 'L'Avvelenata'.

In his new book, "Abitavo a Penny Lane," Bertoncelli dedicates a chapter to this episode, framing it as a testament to enduring friendship forged through initial artistic disagreement. He sees himself and Guccini as similar "mountain bears," different in origin but alike in their sometimes gruff exterior and shared artistic sensibilities.

Today, music doesn't matter, gossip does.

— Riccardo BertoncelliCommenting on the current media landscape compared to the time of his review.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ANSA in Italian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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