Various Artists – Ciao Bella! Italian Girl Singers Of The 60s [LP] Online now

Various Artists – Ciao Bella! Italian Girl Singers Of The 60s [LP]

Side 1
1. Baluba Shake – Brunetta e i suoi Balubas
2. No – Mina
3. Il Mio Posto Qual’è – Ornella Vanoni
4. Sono Qui Con Voi (Baby Please Dont Go) – Caterina Caselli con Gli Amici
5. Un Amore Inutile – Isabella Iannetti
6. La Notte È Fatta Per Rubare – Catherine Spaak

Side 2
1. Il Geghegè – Rita Pavone
2. Questa Sinfonia (Symphonie) – Carmen Villani
3. Ragazzo Triste (But You’re Mine) – Patty Pravo
4. Non È Mai Tardi (Dressed In Black) – Rita Monico
5. Se Telefonando – Mina
6. Pà Diglielo A Mà – Nada 

Good music, of course, is not exclusive to the English-speaking world, and collections devoted to the female vocalists of France, Japan, Spain and Germany are also available, but to the best of my knowledge their Italian counterparts have not been anthologised. If “Ciao Bella!”, released as a 12-track 180g white vinyl LP in gatefold sleeve, is the first of its kind, let’s hope it’s not the last.

The album opens with Brunetta’s prized dance floor-filler ‘Baluba Shake’ and closes with ‘Pà Diglielo A Mà’, a dramatic ballad by big-voiced Nada. The prolific Mina – queen bee of Italy’s female singers – gets two tracks: folk rock nugget ‘No’ and ‘Se Telefonando,’ a sophisto-pop epic courtesy of maestro Ennio Morricone.

If you’re into groovy girls, you’re welcome.