RIP Alfio Cantarella

 

Alfio Cantarella, the former drummer of Equipe 84 has passed away. As reported by some local newspapers, the musician passed away after a few days of hospitalization in the intensive care unit of the Magalini hospital in Villafranca di Verona, where Cantarella had lived for about thirty years before moving to the Little Fraternity of Dossobuono following the disappearance of his wife. Last July, the drummer had celebrated 81 years.

Born in 1941 in Biancavilla, in the province of Catania, as a boy Alfio Cantarella moved to Milan and in 1960 joined the Marino’s. The group, after merging with Francesco Guccini and Victor Sogliani’s Snakers, later became I Gatti. From the union of some elements of this complex and another Modena group, Le Tigri, a new formation was born in 1963 that Victor Sogliani, Maurizio Vandelli, Franco Ceccarelli and Alfio Cantarella decided to call Equipe 84. The group debuted with the 45 rpm “Canarino va”, the anthem of the Modena football team and, after signing his first recording contract, made his debut on the Vedette label with two 45 rpm singles (“Papà e mammà” and “Now you can return”) in 1964. The year later, in addition to releasing five 45s, Equipe 84 released the eponymous debut album and in 1966 participated in the Sanremo Festival with “Un giorno tu mi cercherai”, which has on the back “L’antisociale”, written by Francesco Guccini.

After the group’s first real success with “Io ho in mente te” and the album of the same name, followed by the album “Stereoequipe”, in 1970 Alfio Cantarella was found in possession of drugs and, due to the arrest, was forced to suspend the exhibitions.

Once these problems had been resolved, in 1973 Cantarella returned fully to the line-up, which in the same year released the album “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, released after “ID” of 1971 and “Casa mia”, however published as Nuova Equipe 84. After the publication of the album “Sacrificio” in 1974, in the spring of 1981 Vandelli announced the dissolution of the group, which three years later Sogliani and Ceccarelli reformed with Cantarella to perform at the concert in honor of Francesco Guccini in June 1984 in Bologna, where they presented “Auschwitz” sung by Sogliani. Later Alfio Cantarella left the group again to devote himself to the activity of manager.

After the musical glories of the sixties and seventies, Cantarella was producer in the eighties of the works of Zucchero and Sergio Caputo, as well as of the tours, as general manager of the booking, of artists such as Franco Battiato, Alice, Eugenio Finardi, the Pooh, Miguel Bosé, the Rockets, Giuni Russo, Anna Oxa, Matia Bazar and Mango. In 1994 he then set up “Tutto Musica” based in Villafranca di Verona and continued his activity as a producer and organizer of musical events. Some of the artists with whom the company has collaborated are: Lucio Dalla, Vasco Rossi, Zucchero, Beppe Grillo, Maurizio Vandelli, i Ricchi e Poveri, le Orme, I Deep Purple, i Dik Dik, I New Trolls, I Pooh, Shel Shapiro, Francesco Guccini, the Chameleons, the Nomads, Nino Frassica, Fiorella Mannoia, Bobby Solo, Cesare Cremonini, Amii Stewart, Ron, Enrico Ruggeri, Luca Barbarossa, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Francesco De Gregori, Gino Paoli, 883, Patty Pravo , Antonella Ruggiero, PFM, Iron Maiden, Lùnapop, Keith Emerson, Pitura Freska, Elio e le Storie Tese.

CANTARELLA, Alfio

Born: 7/19/1941, Biancavilla, Catania, Italy

Died: 3/30/2023, Villafranca di Verona, Veneto, Italy

 

Alfio Catarella’s western – musician:

A Fistful of Songs” 1966