A night of rebellious rock and blues

Zucchero’s raspy voice heated up the Catalan festival Porta Ferrada

Zucchero during his concert at the festival Porta Ferrada (by ACN)
Zucchero during his concert at the festival Porta Ferrada (by ACN) / ACN

ACN | Sant Feliu de Guíxols

August 9, 2017 01:12 PM

The Italian singer Zucchero brought his raspy voice to the Catalan festival Porta Ferrada in Sant Feliu de Guíxols on the Costa Brava on Tuesday night. The concert in this small coast town was part of the Italian rock-blues singer’s world tour in which he presented his twelfth studio album, “Black Cat”.

Zucchero was one of the headliners at this year’s festival program and he came straight from eleven nights in a row filling the Verona Arena, two sold out shows at the Royal Albert Hall in London and a world tour that continues until October 28 visiting Australia, Asia, Europe and America.

Adelmo Fornaciari, the artist’s real name, was accompanied on stage by a 12-person band, with organist Brian Auger as one of the key players to help present the new song from this latest album. In the album, the artist goes back to the spirit of his late eighties album “Oro Incenso & Birra” mixing rock, blues, and Mediterranean melodies.

Heating up the night

Zucchero opened the concert with “Partigiano reggiano”, “13 buone ragioni”, “Ci si arrende”, “10 more days”, “Hey Lord” and “L'anno dell'amore”. After playing “Black Cat”, Zucchero announced that he was going to go back in time and encouraged the audience to get on their feet and dance to some of his earlier hits. To heat up the summer night at Porta Ferrada, the Italian offered “Baila (Sexy Thing)”, followed by “Never is a Moment”, “L’urlo”, “Blue” and “Un soffio caldo”.

Tribute to Pavarotti

During the second part of the concert, Zucchero reminded the audience about the international artists he has shared the stage with over time. One of the most emotional moments of the night was his tribute to the tenor Luciano Pavarotti with a song more opera like than rock and blues.

During the encore, the Italian singer played one of the more commercial songs which marked his career: “Senza una donna”. It was a fitting finale to the over two-hour long almost sold-out concert at the Porta Ferrada festival.

The world tour goes on

After Catalonia, the singer continues his world tour in Austria and Italy. Zucchero began his career in 1970 and he is one of the most successful Italian artists. In his almost fifty-year career, he has shared the stage with many international artists such as Pavarotti, Eric Clapton and Ray Charles.