Concert #707 - Zucchero at Club Nokia (April 2, 2014)

Zucchero ... I love the guy. He's the Italian mega-star whose music first reached me here on the West Coast in 1995. Since then, I've been his slave, listening to his music virtually non-stop, with an ever-increasing appetite and passion. Major European acts hit the East Coast with decent frequency, but sadly, few make it to the West Coast, with Zucchero being a rare and welcome exception. I first saw him live in 1996, at the House of Blues on Sunset Boulevard, and it was divine.  Who would have thought, back in 1996, that I would get to see him in concert five more times? Well, it happened. His Wednesday night appearance at Club Nokia marked his sixth concert in LA since 1996, and I'm ecstatic to say that I caught each and every one of them. All of these shows took place in medium-size venues, which gave me the privilege of watching him in action from just a few steps away, a luxury not available to most of his European fans.

Zucchero at Club Nokia

Announced for 8:00 PM, the concert started half an hour late and went on for a generous two hours and five minutes. Seated at center stage with a bright light shining behind him, Zucchero opened his set with three gems from Chocabeck, his 2010 album. Throughout the evening, his voice was in top shape, sounding just like in his studio recordings. As expected, we got to hear many of his crowd-pleasing rockers and up-tempo dance numbers, such as "Diavolo In Me", "Il Mare Impetuoso", "L'Urlo" and "Baila Morena". To these ears, though, the finest moments of the concert were his gorgeous mid-tempo ballads, especially "Diamante" and "Il Volo", which were performed one after the other.

SET LIST
(songs listed in the order played)
Il Suono Della Domenica

Alla Fine

Un Soffio Caldo

Love Is All Around

Con Le Mani

Vedo Nero

Never Is A Moment

God Bless The Child

Blu

Guantanamera

Baila Morena

Overdose d'Amore

Il Mare Impetuoso Al Tramonto Sali Sulla Luna

Dune Mosse

Diamante

Il Volo

Un Kilo (with Don Was on bass)

L'Urlo

Solo Una sana

Diavolo In Me

 ENCORE #1

Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime (with Zucchero on piano)
Bacco Perbacco (with Randy Jackson on bass)
Senza Una Donna

     ENCORE #2

Miserere
Per Colpa De Chi

Zucchero and Kat Dyson at Club Nokia

Not unexpectedly, the crowd's behavior served as an unnecessary reminder as to why I seldom go anymore to larger concert venues, especially where alcohol is served. While most people were there to hear the music and respect all others in the process, there were also way too many party animals (by which I mean animals), incapable of distinguishing between public concert halls and their own living rooms. I found their incessant loud talking and mindless screaming highly distracting.

The crowd remained seated until the band launched into "Guantanamera", at which point the space directly in front of the stage became an instant dance floor, occupied by happy people of all ages. The security staff's efforts to restore order produced no results.

Toward the end of the show, Zucchero brought out two guests with somewhat similar backgrounds. First, producer and bassist Don Was joined the band for the playing of "Un Kilo", followed a bit later by Randy Jackson, a producer and bass player himself. Randy played bass on the infectious "Bacco Perbacco", an up-tempo number that whipped the crowd into a dancing frenzy.

Don Was at Club Nokia

Randy Jackson and Zucchero at Club Nokia

Zucchero came back for two encores. I could not have picked better songs for the second one: first the operatic "Miserere", featuring the voice of Luciano Pavarotti, followed by my favorite Zucchero rocker, the ultra-dynamic "Per Colpa Di Chi". It was a fitting end to an evening that was both exhilarating (Zucchero's incredible performance) and annoying (the crowd).

Zucchero's band was top notch. I particularly liked Kat Dyson, whose raw and soulful backup vocals were very special.

 Band line-up (incomplete)

Kat Dyson - Guitar, vocals

Elmer Ferrer Tres - Guitar

Adriano Molinari - Drums

Nicola Peruch - Keyboards

Polo Jones - Bass

Zucchero and members of his band at Club Nokia

Zucchero at the end of the concert

Zucchero addressed the crowd a few times during the show, but unlike in his earlier Los Angeles concerts, this time he did it in good English. He came across as a friendly and approachable person.

Zucchero playing "Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime"

Zucchero at Club Nokia

The venue's soundboard

Zucchero merchandise

Club Nokia

Concerts #167, 177, 212, 450, 451 - Zucchero at the House Of Blues and the Grove of Anaheim (1996-2007)

If you're like me, then your roots are in Europe and you're absolutely crazy about Zucchero, the Italian megastar who conquered the entire Planet Earth, with one notable exception. Yes, you guessed it just right, the exception is the United States, a country that, musically speaking, is pretty much isolated from the non-English speaking world and that's both good and bad news.

The bad news is that most Americans will never get to know the many immensely talented artists who are household names elsewhere. The good news is that devout fans like myself have a chance to catch their idols in more intimate venues, something that would be impossible to do in Europe. Zucchero, for instance, plays the Royal Albert Hall when in London, but when he crosses the Atlantic, you are more likely to catch him at the House Of Blues on Sunset Boulevard, a place where I had the good fortune of attending not fewer than four of his West Coast concerts.

The Zucchero concerts I have attended over the years

• House of Blues (Sunset Blvd.) - April 14, 1996
• House of Blues (Sunset Blvd.) - April 26, 1997
• House of Blues (Sunset Blvd.) - October 2, 1999
• House of Blues (Sunset Blvd.) - October 15, 2007
• The Grove of Anaheim - October 17, 2007

Ironically, the first time I heard Zucchero sing was on American television, where he guested at one of Luciano Pavarotti's star-studded benefit concerts in the early 1990s. I wasn't particularly impressed, so I left him alone for a few years, until one day I saw his name in a list of upcoming HOB concerts. At that time I decided to dig a little deeper, so I got myself a used copy of Zucchero's then-current "Spirito DiVino" album. With monumental songs such as "Cosi Celeste", "X Colpa Di Chi" and "Il Volo", the album became an instant hit with me and, practically overnight, my passion for everything Zucchero went sky high.

The album that opened my appetite for Zucchero's music

If you want to be close to the stage at the House of Blues, all you have to do is get there when the doors open, plant yourself in front of the stage, stay there for two hours until the concert starts, then keep standing there until the curtains come down. That's not a customer-friendly formula, but it's not a big price to pay for the privilege of watching Zucchero in action from just a few steps away.

Some musicians affect me more than others, but few have hit me as hard as Zucchero. His live show is something to behold - he's a masterful performer, in constant touch with his audience, always intense, always radiating joy and always wearing one of his trademark hats.

Needless to say, someone of Zucchero's stature can assemble any back-up band he wants - this gave me the opportunity to watch a few world-class instrumentalists such as Americans David Sancious and Kat Dyson, as well as Italy's Mario Schiliro. I loved the way the band was able to reproduce with good accuracy the rich, multi-layered orchestrations of Zucchero's studio recordings.

David Sancious

Mario Schiliro

Zucchero & Kat Dyson

The great Solomon Burke was Zucchero's unannounced guest in October 2007 at the House Of Blues. Surrounded by his entourage, King Solomon watched the show from the main floor, then at one point he took the stage, seated in a wheelchair, to sing "Diavolo In Me" with Zucchero and it was exhilarating.

Solomon Burke & Zucchero

In April 1996, Zucchero was joined on stage by Corrado Rustici, his brilliant producer. An accomplished guitarist, Corrado dazzled me with his funky guitar playing, as he was standing directly in front of me. Corrado is little known in the States, in spite of his impressive resume that includes collaborations with the likes of Elton John, Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Andrea Bocelli, Sinead O'Connor, Eric Clapton and countless others.

Corrado Rustici

For Zucchero's appearance at the Grove Of Anaheim in October 2007, I managed to grab two front row seats. The sound wasn't the best there, but being once again "right there" was priceless. Toward the end of the show, I stood up and advanced to the edge of the stage, along with other fans and that gave me the opportunity to shake hands with the master, then seconds later, exchange a high-five with him. Unforgettable!

Here's a partial list of the songs performed by Zucchero at the concerts I have attended:

Cosi Celeste

Madre Dolcissima

Diavolo In Me

Datemi Una Pompa

Il Volo

Pane E Sale

X Colpa Di Chi

Miserere

OLSMM

Cuba Libre

Nel Cosi Blu

Un Kilo

Music In Me

Rossa Mela Della Sera

Baila

Diamante

Senza Una Donna

Hai Scelto Me

Nice Che Dice

I'm fortunate for having discovered Zucchero, in spite of his lack of exposure to the general public here in the States. His music has given me countless hours of immense pleasure and if he ever comes back to these shores, you can bet your life I'll be there.