Io Canto

by Laura Pausini

Overview

Laura Pausini, a multilingual Italian pop singer who won a Latin Grammy in 2005 for Best Female Pop Vocal Album, decided to record an album of cover songs when she returned to the studio to record her followup effort. This is a fairly standard practice for pop/rock artists, of course, especially in the wake of a mammoth success like the one Pausini experienced with Resta in Ascolto (released concurrently in Spanish as Escucha in the U.S.). Io Canto (likewise released concurrently in Spanish, as Yo Canto) is a somewhat unusual covers album, however, for it's comprised of Italian pop/rock songs from the 1970s, '80s, and '90s -- few, if any, of which will be familiar to listeners across the Atlantic. Pausini performs the songs in a manner similar to that of Resta in Ascolto: the songs are heavily produced, layered with guitar, bass, and drums in addition to strings and synthesizers, and the performances are quite dramatic, often soaring to intense heights during the choruses, complemented by lyrics that are moody and poetic. Consequently, anyone who enjoyed Resta in Ascolto will find much to savor on Io Canto, as the two albums sound similar musically. The difference is in the songwriting, which is wonderfully varied, in terms of lyrics as well as arrangements, resulting in one of the most interesting albums of Pausini's career to date. Io Canto is interesting not only because of the array of songwriting showcased throughout, but also because of how personal these songs are to Pausini. She expresses this herself in her liner notes: "Recording an album of covers, and therefore having to choose among the songs which have been with me, are with me, and will be with me every day of my life, was no easy task. It would take ten albums like this one just to be able to touch on the essence of all the music I love. Decisions had to be made. And decisions were made. And so here is the music I listen to when I'm at my saddest, or when I feel a moment is special, the songs I used to sing as a young girl when I first started performing, and above all those which taught me to love music, and how music can move you so deeply, regardless of its genre or style." A lot of the songs on Io Canto are indeed deeply moving, beginning with the surging title track, which opens the album powerfully, as if sung from a mountaintop with arms outstretched. And so begins the second dazzling album in a row by Pausini, who seems to have found a comfortable place for herself musically in the wake of the indifference shown to her English-language crossover bid in 2002. That disappointing album's title was From the Inside, but this album feels ten times more heartfelt, as these covers reveal aspects of Pausini's personality generally eclipsed by the towering melodrama of the usual material bestowed upon an international mega-star of her stature. ~ Jason Birchmeier

Product Details

Release Date:	08/04/2023
Label:	Warner Music
UPC:	5054197647468
Rank:	35348

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Laura Pausini   Primary Artist,Vocals (Background)
Juanes   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Johnny Hallyday   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Tiziano Ferro   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Oversea Orchestra   Primary Artist
Tony Franklin   Bass
Paul Bushnell   Bass
Greg Howe   Guitar (Electric)
Nathan East   Bass
Ramon Stagnaro   Guitar,Soloist,Guitar (Acoustic)
Michael Landau   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Max Costa   Keyboards,Percussion
Emiliano Fantuzzi   Bass,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Riccardo Galardini   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Dado Parisini   Piano,Keyboards,Fender Rhodes,Vocals (Background)
Antonella Pepe   Vocals (Background)
Tim Pierce   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Giorgio Secco   Guitar (Acoustic)
Daniel Vuletic   Piano,Keyboards,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Vinnie Colaiuta   Drums
Cesare Chiodo   Bass
Alfredo Golino   Drums
Celso Valli   Piano,Director,Conductor,Keyboards,Synthesizer Bass,Vocals (Background)
John Beasley   Piano,Keyboards
Massimo Varini   Guitar (Electric)
Rafael Padilla   Percussion
Gabriele Fersini   Guitar (Electric)
Paola Carta   Keyboards,Organ (Hammond),Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Maurizio Deilazzaretti   Drums
Roberto Gallinelli   Bass
Gabrielle Parisi   Vocals (Background)
Filippo Martelli   Conductor
Luca Velletri   Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Celso Valli   Audio Production,Arranger,Producer,Drum Programming,String Arrangements
Laura Pausini   Audio Production,Arranger,Producer,Liner Notes
Biagio Antonacci   Composer,Lyricist
Cheope   Composer,Lyricist
Ivano Fossati   Composer,Lyricist
Claudio Baglioni   Composer,Lyricist
Carlos Ramon   Musical Adaptation
Zucchero   Composer
Lucio Battisti   Composer
Lucio Dalla   Lyricist
Audio 2   Composer
Mario Lavezzi   Composer,Lyricist
Vladi Tosetto   Composer,Lyricist
Samuele Bersani   Composer,Lyricist
Renato Zero   Composer,Lyricist
Michele Zarrillo   Composer
Gino Paoli   Lyricist
Riccardo Cocciante   Composer,Lyricist
Mike Tacci   Engineer
Matt Serrecchio   Studio Assistant
Vasco Rossi   Composer,Lyricist
Max Costa   Mixing,Programming,Pre-Production
Emiliano Fantuzzi   Pre-Production
Dado Parisini   Mixing,Arranger,Producer,String Arrangements
Eros Ramazzotti   Composer,Lyricist
Tiziano Ferro   Composer,Lyricist
Daniel Vuletic   Arranger,Producer,Programming,Pre-Production,String Arrangements
Gianluca Grignani   Composer,Lyricist
Suzie Katayama   String Contractor
Pino Daniele   Composer,Lyricist
Clark Germain   Engineer
Antonio Baglio   Mastering
Luca Bignardi   Mixing,Engineer,Programming,Drum Programming
Raf   Composer,Lyricist
Paola Carta   Engineer,Co-Arranger,Programming,Pre-Production
Sergio Pappalettera   Artwork
Vincenzo Incenzo   Composer,Lyricist
Marco Luberti   Composer,Lyricist
Matteo Bolzoni   Engineer,Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Francesco Landi   Engineer
Gabrielle Parisi   Management,Executive Producer
Raf "X"   Composer
Massimo Luca   Lyricist
Saverio Principini   Session Producer
Francesco Luzzi   Mixing,Engineer
Nino Bonocore   Composer,Lyricist
Marco Borsatti   Engineer
Beppe d'Onghia   Composer
Filippo Martelli   String Arrangements
Adelio Cogliati   Composer,Lyricist
Michele Canova Iorfida   Arranger
Giancarlo DiMaria   String Arrangements
Danilo Riccardi   Composer,Lyricist
Gabriele Gigli   Engineer,Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Nicola Fantozzi   Engineer,Mixing Assistant,Studio Assistant
Mogol   Composer
Paolo Carta   Producer,Co-Arranger
Giuseppe D'onghia   Composer
Jean Pierre Lemaire   Lyricist
Jean-Pierre Kernoa   Lyricist
Michele De Vitis   Lyricist