The cover says Campo Di Marte, the label says Campo De Marte…The cover has it right.
One of the most coolest prog collectors I know came into the store a few weeks ago while hunting for some new records. He’s widely regarded as owning one of the most wide-ranging and impressive psych/space/prog collections in LA. Whenever he comes to the store we have conversations about what he’s found lately, what holes he needs to fill in his collection, and some of his all-time best deals. We also talk food and travel, but inevitably our chats turn to music. So when he started to tell me about a trip to Florence, Italy he took in the early ’80s, I knew it was going to end in an Italian record store.
His trips never revolved around amassing more vinyl, but if he came across a store on his travels he might stop in and by some LPs to ship home. One day in Florence he decided to take a walk around near his hotel. He came upon a record store and poked his head inside to see what they sold. It was mostly classical music. He asked the guy behind the counter if he sold rock music, and the guy produced one single box of albums. The first five or six titles were all generic, but the remainder of the box consisted of a dozen copies of one title: Campo Di Marte. He said he knew from the cover, which he described as, “A bunch of natives with razors or swords stuck in their skin” that it was probably something he needed. He considered buying all the copies, in case it was really good and he could trade it with friends, but in the end settled for just one. Too bad, Campo Di Marte LPs sell for a few hundred dollars a piece these days.
Campo Di Marte hailed from Florence, and had the distinction of being the only progressive Italian prog group to record an album for the venerable United Artists label. They formed in 1971, and didn’t even settle on a band name until the recording sessions for Campo Di Marte were underway (I guess that explains the different spelling variations on cover/label). The moniker they used is the same as a quarter in their hometown. Often described as “symphonic prog,” each track has a unique style. With excellent musicianship and vocals, what is not a terribly original or unique album (see: Dedalus, other “experimental” Italian bands) it is a solid record with a number of good songs. Due to problems with the label, the record didn’t hit shelves until a few years after it was recorded. By that time the band had lost interest in making music together. They reformed in 2003 but haven’t recorded anything since the eponymous album released in 1973. A colored vinyl reissue of the album was released by AMS in 2007. Check it out.
Campo Di Marte
Campo Di Marte
United Artists, 1973
MediaFire DL Link
01. Primo Tempo
02. Secondo Tempo
03. Terzo Tempo
04. Quarto Tempo
05. Quinto Tempo
06. Sesto Tempo
07. Settimo Tempo
