Genre
Italian jazz and chanson. Razmataz is a narrative concept album set in the Paris of the 1920s, telling the story of Razmataz - a Harlem dancer and her troupe - in what Conte described as "a story about the meeting between old Europe and young black music." The eighteen tracks are sung predominantly in French, deploying music hall, tango, jazz, guaracha, and waltz to recreate the sensibility of a specific historical moment with Conte's characteristic irony and tonal ingenuity.
Release
Released in October 2000 by CGD East West as a triple project: a studio album, a partly animated DVD, and an illustrated book - the three formats together constituting a single multimedia artwork. The eighteen tracks include "Razzmatazz," "Paris, les paris," "Guaracha," "La reine noire," "Ça depend," "Talent scout man," "The black Queen," "La java javanaise," "La petite tendresse," and the closing "Mozambique fantasy (ouverture)" - an eight-minute centrepiece.
Production
Produced by Renzo Fantini. Paolo Conte wrote all lyrics and music, arranged all compositions, and played piano throughout. Recorded by Massimo Visentin at Studiottanta Fortuna Records, Calliano Monferrato, Piedmont; mixed at Fonoprint, Bologna, Italy. The ensemble featured Jino Touché on bass, Daniele Di Gregorio on vibraphone and percussion, Massimo Pitzianti on accordion and bandoneón, and Luca Velotti on reeds.
Reception
The album was enthusiastically received across Europe and won the Targa Tenco 2000 for best Italian album - Conte's seventh Targa over the course of his career. The French and Dutch markets, where Conte has always maintained a particularly devoted following, gave the album exceptional commercial response.
Paolo Conte
Paolo Conte (born January 6, 1937, Asti, Piedmont) is a singer, pianist, songwriter, painter, and lawyer, one of the most original and internationally respected figures in the history of Italian popular music. He began his career writing hits for others - most notably "Azzurro" (1968) for Adriano Celentano - before launching his recording career in 1974. His style is built on an encyclopaedic knowledge of early twentieth-century popular music and a talent for constructing entire imaginary worlds through music and lyrics. His accolades include seven Targa Tenco awards, the Premio Tenco lifetime achievement award (1983), a David di Donatello for best film score for "La freccia azzurra" (1997), the "Cavaliere di Gran Croce" of the Italian Republic (1999), and the "Chevalier des Arts et des Lettre"s from France (2001).
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