Dori Ghezzi
Encyclopedia
Dori Ghezzi is an Italian
singer who was active as a recording artist between 1966 and 1989. In the 1970s, Ghezzi worked mainly in a duo with American singer Wess
, and the couple represented Italy in the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest
.
, in the province of Milan
.
After winning a regional song festival in 1966, Ghezzi was offered a recording contract with Milan
-based record label Durium
. In the following years, she released several successful singles including "Vivere per vivere" and "Casatschock". Ghezzi made her first appearance in the San Remo Festival in 1970, performing "Occhi a mandorla", a duet with Rassano, but the song failed to qualify for the final. In the period 1970-72, Ghezzi mainly recorded Italian cover versions of popular French and British songs of the time.
suggested that the pair team up as a duo to record "Voglio stare con te", a version of British hit "United We Stand
". This proved a big chart success, and Durium proposed that Wess and Ghezzi become a regular recording partnership. Ghezzi had a solo album ready for release in 1973, which, along with a single "Adamo ed Eva", would be her last solo recording venture of the 1970s. Thereafter, Wess and Ghezzi became a successful and prolific duo, releasing seven albums and many singles before they parted ways in 1979. They took part in San Remo twice, coming sixth in 1973 ("Tu nella mia vita") and second in 1976 ("Come stai, con chi sei?").
to be Italy's representatives at that year's Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Era
" ("It Was"). They went forward to the 20th Eurovision
, held on 22 March in Stockholm
, where "Era", an unusual song for Eurovision at the time, proved different enough to impress the voting juries and placed third in a field of 19.
and the couple had set up home in Sardinia
, where Ghezzi had given birth to a daughter in 1977. On the evening of 27 August 1979, Ghezzi and De André were kidnapped by members of Sardinia's Anonima Sequestri, and were held captive in the Supramonte
mountains for almost four months before being released (Ghezzi on 21 December, De André the following day) on payment of a ransom, reportedly in the region of 500 million lire
, believed to have been raised by De André's family. The pair subsequently stated that they had been well-treated by their captors; when the kidnappers were apprehended and put on trial, De André would show understanding and sympathy in his testimony.
in 1999 and Ghezzi has since dedicated herself to preserving and promoting his artistic heritage. She is the president of the Fondazione Fabrizio De André.
With Wess
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
singer who was active as a recording artist between 1966 and 1989. In the 1970s, Ghezzi worked mainly in a duo with American singer Wess
Wess
Wesley Johnson aka Wess was an American-born Italian singer perhaps mostly known for representing Italy along with Dori Ghezzi in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 in Stockholm, Sweden, placing 3rd...
, and the couple represented Italy in the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
.
Early career
Ghezzi was born in Lentate sul SevesoLentate sul Seveso
Lentate sul Seveso is a comune in the Province of Monza and Brianza in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 25 km north of Milan....
, in the province of Milan
Province of Milan
The Province of Milan : /) is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Milan. The provincial territory is highly urbanized, resulting in the third highest population density among the Italian provinces with more than 2,000 inhabitants/km2, just behind the provinces of...
.
After winning a regional song festival in 1966, Ghezzi was offered a recording contract with Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
-based record label Durium
Durium Records
Durium Records was the name of two United Kingdom-based record labels.-Durium :Durium Records was a United Kingdom-based record label of the 1930s. Its product and marketing were similar to that of the United States record company Hit of the Week Records...
. In the following years, she released several successful singles including "Vivere per vivere" and "Casatschock". Ghezzi made her first appearance in the San Remo Festival in 1970, performing "Occhi a mandorla", a duet with Rassano, but the song failed to qualify for the final. In the period 1970-72, Ghezzi mainly recorded Italian cover versions of popular French and British songs of the time.
With Wess
In 1972, Ghezzi's fellow Durium recording artist WessWess
Wesley Johnson aka Wess was an American-born Italian singer perhaps mostly known for representing Italy along with Dori Ghezzi in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 in Stockholm, Sweden, placing 3rd...
suggested that the pair team up as a duo to record "Voglio stare con te", a version of British hit "United We Stand
United We Stand (song)
"United We Stand" is a popular song by Tony Hiller and Peter Simmons. It was first recorded in 1970 by The Brotherhood of Man , becoming the band's first hit, peaking at #13 in the U.S., #9 in Canada, and #10 in the U.K. It is considered a worldwide standard and has been recorded by over 100...
". This proved a big chart success, and Durium proposed that Wess and Ghezzi become a regular recording partnership. Ghezzi had a solo album ready for release in 1973, which, along with a single "Adamo ed Eva", would be her last solo recording venture of the 1970s. Thereafter, Wess and Ghezzi became a successful and prolific duo, releasing seven albums and many singles before they parted ways in 1979. They took part in San Remo twice, coming sixth in 1973 ("Tu nella mia vita") and second in 1976 ("Come stai, con chi sei?").
Eurovision Song Contest
In 1975, Wess and Ghezzi were chosen by broadcaster RAIRAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
to be Italy's representatives at that year's Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Era
Era (song)
"Era" was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975, performed in Italian by American-born singer Wess and Dori Ghezzi...
" ("It Was"). They went forward to the 20th Eurovision
Eurovision Song Contest 1975
The Eurovision Song Contest 1975 was the 20th edition of the contest hosted by SR and held in Stockholm, Sweden. The arena for the event was the newly built Stockholm International Fairs in Älvsjö in southern Stockholm. ABBA's victory in Brighton the previous year gave Sweden the right to host the...
, held on 22 March in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, where "Era", an unusual song for Eurovision at the time, proved different enough to impress the voting juries and placed third in a field of 19.
Kidnap
In 1974 Ghezzi became the partner of singer Fabrizio De AndréFabrizio De André
Fabrizio De André was an Italian singer-songwriter.Known for his sympathies towards anarchism, libertarianism, and pacifism, he also was a convicted atheist , and his songs often featured marginalized and rebellious people, prostitutes and knaves, and attacked the Catholic Church...
and the couple had set up home in Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, where Ghezzi had given birth to a daughter in 1977. On the evening of 27 August 1979, Ghezzi and De André were kidnapped by members of Sardinia's Anonima Sequestri, and were held captive in the Supramonte
Supramonte
The Supramonte is an area of mountains and highlands located in central-eastern Sardinia, Italy. It lies northeast of the Gennargentu massif, spanning eastwards until it reaches the Tyrrenian See in the Gulf of Orosei. It has an extension of about 35,000 hectares, encompassing most of the...
mountains for almost four months before being released (Ghezzi on 21 December, De André the following day) on payment of a ransom, reportedly in the region of 500 million lire
Italian lira
The lira was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. Between 1999 and 2002, the Italian lira was officially a “national subunit” of the euro...
, believed to have been raised by De André's family. The pair subsequently stated that they had been well-treated by their captors; when the kidnappers were apprehended and put on trial, De André would show understanding and sympathy in his testimony.
1980s
Following the split from Wess, Ghezzi resumed her solo career in 1980 with the release of the album Mamadodori, dedicated to her daughter. Piccole donne followed in 1983 and the song "Margherita non lo sa" earned Ghezzi third place at that year's San Remo. 1987 saw the album Velluti e carte vetrate and 14th place at San Remo with "E non si finisce mai", while her last album Il cuore delle donne, the title track of which became Ghezzi's final San Remo entry (placing 16th), came in 1989. Ghezzi and De André married on 7 December 1989.Retirement
Ghezzi retired from her singing career on medical advice in 1990, having developed a serious problem with her vocal cords, and has since made only infrequent and secondary contributions to recordings by other artists. De André died of lung cancerLung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1999 and Ghezzi has since dedicated herself to preserving and promoting his artistic heritage. She is the president of the Fondazione Fabrizio De André.
San Remo Music Festival entries
- 1970: "Occhi a mandorla" (with Rossano) - Semi-final
- 1973: "Tu nella mia vita" (with Wess) - 6th
- 1976: "Come stai, con chi sei?" (with Wess) - 2nd
- 1983: "Margherita non lo sa" - 3rd
- 1987: "E non si finisce mai" - 14th
- 1989: "Il cuore delle donne" - 16th
Albums discography
Solo- 1973: Dori Ghezzi
- 1980: Mamadodori
- 1983: Piccolo donne
- 1987: Velluti e carte vetrate
- 1989: Il cuore delle donne
With Wess
- 1973: Wess & Dori Ghezzi
- 1974: Un corpo e un'anima
- 1975: Terzo album
- 1976: Amore bellissimo
- 1976: I nostri successi
- 1977: Insieme
- 1979: In due
- 2000: Tu nella mia vita
External links
- Fondazione Fabrizio De André (Italian)