Francesco Guccini - Youth and Musical Beginnings

Youth and Musical Beginnings

Guccini's first job was as a teacher at a boarding school in Pesaro, but he was fired after a month and a half. He then worked as a journalist at the Gazzetta di Modena for two years. In April 1960, Guccini interviewed Domenico Modugno, who had just won two consecutive Sanremo Festivals. This inspired Guccini to write "L'antisociale", his first composition as a singer-songwriter. In 1958 Guccini was guitarist and vocalist in a group first called Hurricanes, then Snakers and finally Gatti. The group included Pier Farri (drums), who would later become Guccini's producer; Victor Sogliani (saxophone), future member of Equipe 84; and Franco Fini Storchi (guitar). Guccini wrote his first songs while in the Snakers, in a style inspired by The Everly Brothers and Peppino di Capri. The group performed for two years, touring around Northern Italy and Switzerland. In 1961 the Guccini family moved to Bologna, and Francesco enrolled at the University of Bologna to study foreign languages. The next year he undertook mandatory military service, an experience he described as "substantially positive". When he returned to Bologna, Guccini was asked to join the band Equipe 84, but he declined in order to continue his studies. He later quit university just before taking his degree (he was conferred a degree honoris causa in science education in 2002). The band Cantacronache was an important influence in Guccini's artistic growth, as was Bob Dylan.