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Hi Barend, Hi Trees, Basically the article is about the new album were Gino was supposed to have only 2 or 3 new songs and 10-11 remasterized old songs but Universal Music was so impressed with the new material that they decided to put 7 new songs instead. Gino also talk about how he find more and more difficult to travel by plane, specially since 9/11. He adore being on stage with the band, but hate the travelling. He explain that he live in Portland since 1993 years and moved there to have a more private life with his family. He also say that he is seriously thinking of moving back to Montr?al when his son will have completed his college. To conclude Gino says that he has a lot of project for the coming years. He has another album already written, he his also working on an Opera and Richard Marx contacted him to propose to Gino to produce his next album. Bye for now and give me some news, A big Gino Vannelli fan...
 When you feel the need to translate the whole article from French to English please do and e-mail us your translation to us so we can put it overhere on this web page and we will write your name also on this web page, if you want of course.
Hi Barend, Hi Trees,
Enjoy, and please confirm that your received if at all possible.
p.s. I saw Gino's personal l"ove and thanks to barend and trees " on the cd sleeve of my new cd "These are the days"..................WOW WOW WOW...............AMAZING..........
excellent recognition for you guys.................and well deserved................
xoxoxo  Translation French to English of article number (2) Thanks to : Elisabeth Sikander and Anita Bakker. His old fans still love him! After a little escapade on the jazz side, Gino Vanelli was back in “pop-rock” formula on Monday, January 30 at the André-Mathieu Hall. With flawless professionalism, Gino reminded us that a showman always remains a showman! Charm, groove, emotion: the admirers of the Montreal native who now lives in Toronto were hardly ever disappointed. If the man has managed to reinvent himself repeatedly since he first launched into pop music in the seventies under the stage name Vann-Elli, the lack of audacity in his delivery made for a bit of a flat note. Nevertheless, Vannelli took hold of the mic with the self-assurance of an old trucker and went on to demonstrate his ample charisma. Oscillating between rock hymns and ballads, the artist proved he has not lost any of his electric sex-appeal, his gaze still moving quite a few women. Speaking briefly in
between songs, the singer candidly admits “that there’s a little bit of Judas
in everyone,” before starting this repertoire where several stories of love
found and lost, of these small betrayals that everyday men and women experience,
follow one another.
Gino Vanelli confirmed that he still knows how to communicate the large
palette of human emotions he has been carrying around for the last three decades.
(B.L.) (photo: Martin Alarie)
Le vendredi 03 février 2006
Le sourire dans la voix, Gino Vannelli admet qu’il aurait dû s’en tenir au bon vieil adage de ne jamais dire « jamais », lors de son dernier entretien avec LE SOLEIL. À l’époque, le Montréalais d’origine, qui compte des titres comme Wild Horses, Black Cars et I Just Wanna Stop au nombre de ses classiques, jugeait qu’il n’y avait plus de place pour lui dans le monde de la pop. Qu’est-ce qui a donc changé en deux ans pour qu’il s’y replonge à nouveau ? « Des choses étranges sont survenues après Canto... laisse-t-il entendre. Après m’être consacré à cet album, j’avais le sentiment d’être placé devant un choix, soit je refaisais le même genre de disque dans un style pop-classique ou que je répondais à la demande de Universal, qui voulait que je produise un album de meilleurs succès. Puis, je me suis mis à écrire des chansons pop qui pouvaient avoir un potentiel radiophonique et bien s’amalgamer à mes vieilles chansons. Tout d’un coup, c’est redevenu amusant pour moi de composer ce genre de chansons. Tant et si bien que j’en ai écrites sept au lieu des deux qu’on m’avait commandées ! » Très vite, il est donc devenu clair au musicien qu’il se lancerait dans le deuxième projet. Portant le double chapeau d’artiste et de réalisateur, Gino Vannelli a lui-même élaboré la formule de ce CD, faisant un trait entre le passé et un présent prenant notamment la forme du simple It’s Only Love. « Le concept des sept nouvelles pièces et des sept succès est né pendant le processus d’enregistrement. C’est comme si l’album faisait se rejoindre deux époques de ma carrière. (…) Avec les vieux titres, l’objectif était de les mettre à jour sans les dénaturer. Parce que c’était la mission spécifique qu’on s’était donné. Avec Canto, il n’y avait pas de paramètres. Sur celui-ci, je devais arriver à écrire des titres à potentiel radiophoniques. Sinon, quel aurait été l’objectif de faire cet album de meilleurs succès ? » Intéressant exercice Loin de trouver l’exercice bassement commercial, Gino Vannelli a vu dans la création de chansons visant le grand public un intéressant exercice de style. « J’ai cessé de penser qu’écrire pour la radio, c’était vendre son âme au diable. À mes yeux, c’est comme la poésie. C’est écrire à l’intérieur des contraintes d’un genre. Dans le cas de la radio, ça change tous les paramètres mélodiques. Les chansons doivent être simples, accrocheuses, tout en demeurant originales. » Pour l’auteur-compositeur, qui ne s’était pas adonné à ce genre d’exercice depuis plusieurs années, la travail s’est muté en une réflexion sur la façon dont on consomme la musique aujourd’hui. « Les habitudes ont beaucoup changé, constate-t-il. Les émotions liées à la musique ont également changé. Plusieurs générations d’auditeurs n’écoutent plus la musique qu’en toile de fond. Dans les années 70 et 80, les gens étaient autrement passionnés par la musique. Ils écoutaient les albums du début à la fin, dévoraient les paroles. J’essaie de garder ça à l’esprit aujourd’hui. Nous, les musiciens, ne sommes plus le centre de l’univers. C’est nous qui devons rejoindre les gens. C’est moi qui dois sortir de mon monde pour entrer dans le leur. » Et trouver des façons de se renouveler, convient Vannelli, qui s’est adjoint un nouveau coréalisateur pour These Are The Days, le compositeur slovène Rok Golob, en plus de mettre à profit ses connaissances des studios d’enregistrement et de leur équipement, lui qui possède ses propres installations à une dizaine de kilomètres de chez lui, à Portland, en Oregon. « Ça faisait déjà un moment que je travaillais avec les ordinateurs. Mais avant d’enregistrer, je me suis tapé toutes les lectures possibles sur les logiciels d’enregistrement. Ç’a pris tout ce que je savais pour enregistrer cet album pop. » Question de bien rendre sur scène le fruit de son travail, Gino Vannelli s’est également entouré d’un nouveau groupe de musiciens pour une nouvelle série de spectacles qui l’amènera notamment à Québec mercredi. « C’est un nouvel album. Je voulais un nouveau groupe. Je ne voulais pas refaire une tournée canadienne avec le même spectacle. (…) Avec ce disque, on espère pouvoir se produire un peu partout dans le monde. Avec Canto, on n’a pas tourné autant qu’on l’aurait souhaité, même si on a beaucoup joué. Avec le nouvel album, on s’engage d’abord sur une tournée canadienne. En mars, ce sera l’Europe. Plus tard dans l’année, on visitera l’Asie. » Avec les années, la plaisir de jouer dans la province qui l’a vu naître ne s’est pas atténué chez Gino Vannelli. « C’est toujours spécial pour moi de revenir jouer au Québec. Je viens tout juste de donner un spectacle à l’Assomption (la semaine dernière). Le Québec, c’est le lieu de ma naissance et j’aurai toujours une connexion spéciale avec l’endroit. Je prends cette excuse pour mettre de la pression sur mes nouveaux musiciens. Je leur dit qu’ils doivent faire oublier les excellents instrumentistes qui m’accompagnaient la dernière fois ! » Quand il n’est pas occupé à écrire de nouveaux chapitres à sa discographie, l’auteur-compositeur travaille à un roman historique auquel il aimerait bien pouvoir bientôt mettre un point final. « Huit chapitres sont déjà terminés. Je vais éventuellement prendre une année sabbatique et me louer un chalet à quelque part comme Chicoutimi pour le terminer... Mais ce n’est pas pour tout de suite. Cette année sera complètement consacrée à présenter le nouvel album sur scène. Pour le roman, ça ira probablement dans deux ans. »
Vous voulez y aller ? Translation French to English of article number (3) by Anita Bakker Dijkers :
Quebec, it's my place of birth and I will always have a special connection with the place....
Friday Februari 3 2006 << I am at a point where I don;t want to make another album with songs>> Gino Vannelli said this two years ago. After having explored the path of pop classics with Canto, he returns to the old love songs with These Are The Days. A CD that was released 3 weeks ago, on which 7 of his biggest hits, accompanied by 7 new pieces. With a smile in his voice , Gino Vannelli admits to the old saying: never say never. In his second interview with LE SOLEIL, than, the Montreal native, who is responsible for titles like Wild Horses, Black Cars and I Just Wanna Stop, decided that there was no longer a place for him in the world of pop. What has changed in the past two years that brought him back again? Strange things have surfaced after Canto.. he says. After consacrating myself to the album, I found myself with a choice: Should I keep to the same pop-classical style CD, or should I respond to the request of Universal, who wanted me to make a CD that would be more successful ? And besides, I was apprised to write pop songs that could have radio potential and that would mix well with my older songs. Whatever, it is fun again to compose that genre of music. Besides the two songs I was asked to write, I wrote seven instead. Soon the musician had dedicated himself to his second project. Wearing both the hat of the artist and the achiever, Gino Vannelli developed the formula for his CD, making a step back in the past and one in the present -less complicated- form of It's Only Love. The concept of the seven new pieces and the seven successes was born in the recording process. It's like the album connects the two periods of my carrier. With the old titles the goal was to connect them without misrepresenting them. Because this had been the specific mission that needed to be done. With Canto, there were no parameters. On this one, I had to write the titles for potential radio audience. Or else, what would have been the point of creating the CD with old success numbers that were better? Intéressant exercice Stylish compositions Staying away from commercial compositons, Gino Vannelli has found the public with songs created with style "I have stopped thinking that writing for the radio was like selling your soul to the devil. In my eyes, it's like writing a poem... It's writing within the lines of the style. In case of the radio , that changes all parameters of the melodies. The songs must be simple, catchy and at the same time original. For the writer-composer, who hasn't devoted himself to that kind of genre for many years, the transition is a change in the way people like to consume the music these days. "Habits have changed a lot" Gino concludes. "The emotions in the music have changed likewise. More generations of listeners do not longer listen intensely . In the 70 and 80, people were differently passionate about music. They listened to albums from the first song to the last , knowing all the lyrics to the songs. I have tried to save that spirit today. We, musicians, are no longer the center of the universe. It's us who have to reunite with the people. It's me who has to leave my world, to enter theirs" And finding his way to renew himself, fits Vannelli, who has assigned a co director for These Are The Days: Slovenic composer Rok Golob, in addition benefiting from his knowledge of recording studios and recording equipment. Golob owns his own equipment only around ten kilometers from him, in Portland Oregon. " There was a time when I traveled with computers. But before recording, I was stuck with all these books on how to download software in order to record music. That just took everything I knew on how to record the album. " ..Question on how the outcome will be on stage, Gino Vannelli has also surrounded himself with a new group of musicians for a new serial of shows that will start in Quebec this Wednesday. " It's a new album. I wanted a new group. I didn't want to tour in Canada with the same show. With the new CD , we hope to be able to produce a little bit around the world. With Canto, there hasn't been as much touring as I had wished to, even though we have performed quite a lot. With the new album, we will be going on a Canadian tour. In March it will be Europe. Much later in the year we will visit Asia" With the years, the pleasure of performing in his native province (Quebec) hasn't attenuated Gino Vannelli "It's always special for me to come back to perform in Quebec. I just did a show in the "Assomption" (last Saturday). Quebec, it's where I was born , and I will always have that special connection with the place. I use that excuse for putting on the pressure on my new musicians. I tell them that they have to forget the excellent instrumentalists that accompanied me the last time." When he isn't busy writing a new chapter in his discography, the author-composer is working on a history novel , which pretty soon he aims bring to a completion." I finished eight chapters already. Eventually I will take a sabbatical year and lease a castle, like Chicoutimi did, where I will finish my book. But that's not going to happen soon. This year I will completely devote myself on presenting my new album on the stage. The novel will probably be done in two years."
translation: Anita Bakker Dijkers
Le public était heureux hier de renouer avec l’idole pop-rock canadien des années 70, Gino Vannelli. Toujours en pleine possession de sa voix, le chanteur a présenté quelques nouvelles chansons tirées de son plus récent album These Are the Days, paru en janvier, entrecoupées de ses incontournables succès. C’est un Vannelli souriant qui s’est présenté sur la scène de la salle Albert-Rousseau avec 30 minutes de retard. Il a débuté en force avec ses classiques Wild Horses et Living Inside Myself. Puis, il a poursuivi avec son nouveau simple It’s Only Love. Passé et présent se mariaient sans heurts comme sur son dernier opus qui regroupe sept nouvelles chansons et sept succès. Le chanteur a retravaillé musicalement ses anciennes chansons pour leur donner une touche de modernité tout en conservant l’essence de celles-ci. On sent qu’il a pris ses distances par rapport à la pop classique qu’il explorait sur son disque Canto, lancé il y a deux ans. À l’époque, il affirmait même ne plus vouloir enregistrer d’albums, jugeant qu’il n’y avait plus de place pour lui dans le monde de la pop. Le temps et son public encore fidèle l’ont fait changer d’idée, si bien qu’il est revenu au son pop-rock de ses débuts. Vêtu simplement d’un jean et d’une chemise, Gino a tout de suite amadoué les spectateurs en leur parlant en français. Le Montréalais d’origine, qui habite aujourd’hui en Oregon, a raconté avec humour une anecdote d’un séjour à Québec lorsqu’une femme, « d’environ 110 ans ! », l’avait confondu avec le chanteur aveugle Andrea Bocelli. Au moment d’entonner A Little Bit of Judas, Gino Vannelli s’est davantage révélé comme chanteur. Sous un éclairage rouge, il a donné une teinte de blues à cette chanson, mettant ainsi en valeur sa voix soul et le talent de ses musiciens Randy Porter (piano), Alan Hinds (guitare), Sandy Wilson (contrebasse) et Rheinard Melz (batterie). Dans les pièces plus rythmées comme Brother to Brother, il se donnait également à fond, jouant au chef d’orchestre avec ses musiciens ou exécutant quelques pas de danse à la John Travolta, qui ont fait crier ces dames. En deuxième partie, Vannelli a créé un court moment intime avec les spectateurs lorsqu’il a lu les paroles de sa nouvelle chanson Venus Envy, qui traite de la beauté et des apparences. Avant de commencer I Just Wanna Stop, il a dit aux spectateurs qu’ils avaient le droit de chanter avec lui, mais seulement s’ils ne faussaient pas ! « Ça me donne des frissons partout », a-t-il lancé. Il faut dire que le chanteur n’a aucun problème avec la justesse de sa voix. Hier, elle retentissait avec puissance et précision dans la salle, que ce soit dans les ballades comme Wheels of Life ou dans une Black Cars bien rock. On pourrait reprocher à l’artiste de s’être esquivé assez rapidement, après seulement une heure et demie de spectacle et un rappel. De plus, il aurait pu s’adresser davantage au public, qui suit sa carrière depuis 30 ans. Sa prestation s’est tout de même terminée par une ovation. Rien d’étonnant direz-vous ? La nuance est qu’il s’agissait de la deuxième pour le chanteur puisque le public avait déjà bondi sur ses pieds à la fin de la première partie. It’s Only Love...
Translation French to English of article number (4) by Elisabeth van de Hove and Anita Bakker. The public was happy yesterday to reconnect with Gino Vannelli, the Canadian pop-rock idol of the 70's. Still in full possession of his voice, the singer presented some new songs from his latest album These are The Days, which came out in January, interspersed with his inevitable hits. A smiling Vannelli appeared on the Albert Rousseau stage with a 30-minute delay. He started out strong with his classics Wild Horses and Living Inside Myself. Next, he continued with his new single It's Only Love. Past and present blended smoothly, just as they do on his latest release, which combines 7 new songs and 7 old hits. The singer has musically refashioned his old songs to give them a modern touch while preserving their essence. It's obvious that he has distanced himself from the classic pop genre, which he explored on his Canto CD two years ago. In those days he even stated that he wouldn't record any more CD's, because he felt that there was no longer a place for him in the world of pop music. Time and his still-devoted fans have made him change his mind and return to the pop rock sound of his earliest years. Simply dressed in jeans and shirt, Gino at once charmed the audience, talking to them in French. The Montreal native, now living in Oregon, shared a funny anecdote about one of his stays in Quebec, when a woman--she must have been around 110 years old--confused him with the blind singer Andrea Bocelli. Striking up A Little Bit of Judas, Gino Vannelli showed himself at his best as a singer. Performing in red stage light he gave the song a hint of the blues, bringing out his soul voice and the talents of his musicians Randy Porter (piano), Alan Hinds (guitar), Sandy Wilson (doube bass) and Rheinard Melz (drums). In the more rhythmic compositions, like Brother to Brother, he again gave all of himself, playing the role of conductor to his musicians or performing a few dance steps a la John Travolta that made the ladies scream. In the second half, Vanelli created a short moment of intimacy with the audience, when he read the words of his new song Venus Envy, which is about beauty and appearances. Before starting Just Wanna Stop, he told the audience that they could sing along, but only if they didn't sing off key. "That makes me shiver all over," he joked. It needs to be said that he himself never has any problems with the accuracy of his voice. Yesterday, it rang out in the auditorium with power and precision, be it in ballads like Wheels of Life or in a rocking Black Cars. One could blame the artist for slipping away after only one and a half hour of show and one encore. Also, he could have talked more to his audience, considering they have been following his career for over 30 years. Nonetheless, his performance ended with an ovation. Not surprising, you think? The difference is that it was the second one for the singer, as the audience had already jumped to their feet at the end of the first half. It's only love... Entrevue exclusive: Gino Vannelli, un voyage intérieur jeudi 23 février 2006 | Showbiz | commenter
Lire la suite... Atteindre les sommets de la gloire dans la vingtaine n'est pas donné à tout le monde. Pourtant, c'est ce qu'a connu Gino Vannelli, lui qui vient tout juste de lancer son 15ième album, These Are The Days.
"Pour commencer, il faut comprendre ce qu'est la religion. La plupart des gens croient que la religion, c'est d'aller à l'église, ou ouvrir un livre, ou ètre en paix avec soi-mème ou encore faire partie d'une communaut?. Mais le véritable sens de la religion, à son fondement, est de faire le pont entre le monde que nous connaissons et le monde que nous ne connaissons pas. Et Dieu sait que le monde que nous ne connaissons pas est tellement plus vaste que le monde que nous connaissons! Alors, pour moi, l'étude de la religion, la partie académique, empirique, était très importante, pour comprendre le monde dans lequel j'étais, pour comprendre le monde que je ne comprends pas et à propos duquel je suis très curieux" C'est un questionnement qui a été génèré par divers facteurs, un manque de succès sur le plan musical jusqu'au point ou l'on m'a empêchè d'enregistrer pendant 3 à 4 ans. C'est là que les questions sont venues: "Je suis si déprimé! Je ne peux ètre qui je veux. Est-ce que l?'artiste et l'homme sont indissociables? Peuvent-ils ètre séparés? Est-ce que l'un peut survivre sans que l'autre survive ou est-ce que les deux coulent avec le navire?? C'est une question très importante. C'est ce qui a été à l'origine de mon voyage spirituel.? Il n’y a pas que le boulot qui soit derrière les interrogations de l’artiste. Quand on débute sa carrière avant même la vingtaine, la trentaine, ça peut nous paraître vieux, même si ce n’est pas le cas. «Pour moi, 32 ou 33 ans, ça me semblait vieux à cette époque. Je pensais que ma vie était finie. Je regardais ça plus comme un athlète que comme un chanteur, un artiste. Pour moi, le déclencheur a vraiment été le fait que je ne pouvais pas faire mon travail. J’étais alors sous contrat avec Arista. La compagnie ne voulait pas me laisser enregistrer le matériel que je voulais enregistrer, et ne voulait pas me libérer de mon contrat pour que je puisse enregistrer avec une autre compagnie. Alors ma vie s’est retrouvée sur ‘pause’.» «C’est à ce moment que ma vie a changée, est devenue très sombre, très déprimée. Et c’est à ce moment que je me suis mis à étudier. Je me suis dit ‘Il doit y avoir plus que ç! a. C’est impossible que ma vie soit finie à cet âge.’ Alors c’est là que j’ai commencé.» «J’ai bien eu quelques moments d’inspiration au cours des années qui ont suivi – j’ai enregistré Black Cars vers 1984 – mais j’étais tellement anxieux de mieux me connaître spirituellement que j’ai poursuivi dans cette veine pendant près de 7 ans. J’ai alors eu l’occasion d’étudier les enseignements de maîtres de la Cabbale, de maîtres indiens et bouddhistes; j’ai aussi touché à la philosophie, et j’ai lu, j’ai lu et j’ai lu. Puis j’ai arrêté; je voulais une expérience plus tangible, alors je suis allé rester avec des moines dans des monastères; je suis allé dans les montagnes au Pérou et ailleurs à travers le monde. Je voulais… J’étais fatigué de faire l’amour à travers une fenêtre. C’est une chose de lire à propos d’une musique sublime, c’est autre chose d’en faire l’expérience.» Des années de carrière, des années de cheminement per! sonnel. Aujourd’hui, à le regarder, Gino Vannelli semble bien dans sa peau, détendu. Il a le sourire facile. La cinquantaine lui va très bien. Mais lui, qu’en pense-t-il? «Je pense que je suis raisonnablement bien. Assez bien pour passer à travers les journées en souriant, en étant intéressé par les jours, intéressé par ma carrière, intéressé par les gens autour de moi, assez bien pour envisager l’avenir. Je suis aussi suffisamment inconfortable pour continuer d’envisager l’avenir, continuer d’être intéressé, continuer d’aller plus loin et continuer de questionner. Alors je réalise qu’il y a un certain niveau d’inconfort qui va toujours être là et auquel je vais devoir m’habituer, mais les choses sont ainsi faites.»
Décidemment, le petit montréalais qui, à 17 ans, rêvait d’une carrière musicale a fait beaucoup de chemin, dans la vie bien sûr, mais dans sa vie, surtout.
Translation French to English of article number (5) by Elisabeth van de Hove and Anita Bakker. Gino Vannelli was passing through Montreal recently to promote his new album These Are The Days. I had the pleasure to have this interview with him that was published in two parts. Part 1 appeared in volume 2, number 23 of the magazine Star Systeme, on the shelves on February 24. A second part is presented to you here exclusively. Happy reading... (Read more...) Reaching the top of your glory in your twenties is not given to every one in this world. Yet, that's what happend to Gino Vannelli, who just released his 15th album, These Are The Days. His dazzling ascent did not prepare him for the bumps in the road. When a conflict with his record company put the brakes on his carrier, Gino started questioning himself, looking for meaning in life, in his life. These developments led him to study religion and spirituality. "To begin with, you have to understand what religion is. Most people believe that religion means going to church, or opening a book, or being at peace with oneself, or again, being part of a community. But the true meaning of religon, the fundamental part, is to build a bridge between the world we know and the one we don't know. And God knows the world we don't know is much bigger than the one we do know. ! So, for me, the study of religion, the academical, empirical part, was very important, to understand the world in which I lived, to understand the world that I don't comprehend but I am so curious about" This questioning was generated by different factors, the lack of success in the music area--to the point that I couldn't any recordings for 3 or 4 years. That's when the questions arrived: I am so depressed! I can't be who I want to be. Are the artist and the person indivisible? Can they be separated? Can one survive without the other, or are they both sinking with the boat? It is a very important question. That was the foundation of my spiritual voyage. " Work was not the only thing behind the artist's questions. When one starts one's career before even reaching twenty, being thirty may feel old, even if it really isn't so. "32 or 33 seemed old to me at the time. I thought my life was over. I looked at it from the point of view of an athlete, more than a singer, an artist. The trigger for me was really the fact that I could no longer do my work. At the time I was under contract with Arista. The company woud not let me record the material that I wanted to record, and they did not want to release me from my contract so I could record with a different label. So my life was stuck in "Pause." "At that moment my life changed, it became very somber, very depressed. And it was at that moment I began to study. I told myself, there has to be more than this. It's impossible my life is over at this age. So that's where I started. In the course of the following years, I did have some moments of inspiration--I recorded Black Cars around 1984--but I was so eager to get to know myself better spiritually that I continued in that vein for close to 7 years. I had a chance to study the masters of the cabbala, the Indian and Buddhist masters, and I also touched on philosophy. And I read, read, read. Then I stopped. I wanted a more tangible experience, so I went to stay with monks in monasteries; I went to the mountains in Peru and elsewhere, all over the world. What did I want? I was tired of making love through a window. It's one thing to read about sublime music, and quite another thing to experience it." Years of career, years of personal quest. To see him today, Gino Vannelli appears to be at ease, relaxed. He smiles easily. His fifties suit him very well. But what does he think of it? "The best thing you can do is do your best." "I think I am doing reasonably well. Well enough to go through my days smiling, interested in the day, interested in my career, interested in the people around me; well enough to envision the future. I also feel uncomfortable enough to keep envisioning the future, keep being interested, keep going forward and asking questions. So I realize there's a certain level of discomfort that's always going to be there and that I'll need to get used to, but that's just the way things are. Getting older isn't comfortable for anyone. You can't lie to yourself. You fight it. My way of fighting is yoga. I use lots of techniques to keep up my strength: I can run, I can lift weights, I have good endurance, I keep my voice in shape, I do all kinds of things. But the inevitable is there: human beings have a limited life span. The best thing you can do is do your best. So the things I look forward to are new projects, unrealized dreams, the pleasure of being with good friends, of starting new bands, a good book, a nice hot bath, talking with my son about how his life is going, where he's off to."
Surely, the little Montrealer who at 17 dreamed of a musical career has come a long way, in life, of course, but even more so, in his life.
Hi Barend,Trees. Le vendredi 03 février 2006 Gino Vanelli était en spectacle au Club Soda, hier soir. Il est redevenu, l'instant d'une soirée, le crooner brillant qu'il a été du milieu des années 70 au milieu des années 80.
Le vrai Gino Vanelli À l'écoute du récent album These Are The Days, on constate que notre Gino national renoue avec la pop. En témoignent sept chansons inédites auxquelles s'ajoutent sept «classiques» remasterisés. De prime abord, les nouveaux titres du crooner n'amènent rien de neuf au moulin Vannelli. La production y est décidément trop propre, trop conventionnelle malgré les éléments jazzy qui s'y lovent timidement. Le pétard de Ville d'Anjou a trop voulu vendre de disques, trop voulu plaire, il a ménagé la chèvre et le chou. Sur scène, toutefois, ces nouveaux titres prennent une tout autre dimension, idem pour les anciens. C'est vous dire qu'au Club Soda, Gino Vannelli redevenait hier le crooner brillant qu'il a été du milieu des années 70 au milieu des années 80. Détrompez-vous, Vannelli n'était pas un simple chanteur de charme. Authentique connaisseur de musique, solide compositeur, futé recruteur de musiciens, doté d'un organe vocal d'exception. Hier, il nous a rappelé tout ça en nous offrant sa meilleure performance depuis la fin des années 90, alors qu'il tournait en petite formation sous la direction musicale du superbassiste Alain Caron. Ce dernier n'étant pas libre pour une autre chevauchée, le beau Gino a embauché les meilleurs musiciens de Portland (Oregon), où il réside désormais. Choix judicieux, force est de constater. Le superbe guitariste Allen Hinds, l'impeccable bassiste Sandin Wilson, le très compétent claviériste Randy Porter et le fort solide batteur Reinhardt Metz contribuent effectivement à transcender le répertoire entier du chanteur d'origine montréalaise. D'entrée de jeu, la version plutôt sauvage de Wild Horses tranche carrément avec le côté propret de la production originelle. La «power ballade» Living Inside Myself nous rappelle à quel point la voix du crooner peut faire s'écrouler les murs de Jéricho. It's Only Love en version jazzy électrique, avec un pont instrumental supplémentaire à la version studio, se compare avantageusement à moult travaux de Sting. Après une livraison bluesy de A Little Bit of Judas, le crooning allumé revient en force, on investit la période la plus riche du chanteur avec la sensuelle Wheels of Life et la monumentale Brother to Brother, qui met en lumière toute la virtuosité du personnel. Après l'entracte, Vannelli a revêtu une nouvelle chemise, sa crinière bouclée et non moins abondante est prête à d'autres ébats. L'homme n'a pas la grosse tête pour autant, capable d'autodérision comme l'illustrent quelques anecdotes bien senties. Autre «power ballade» connue de son répertoire, Hurts To Be In Love précède I Die A Little More Each Day, reggae pop plutôt quelconque. On a tôt fait de retourner à la substance avec la jazzy funky Venus Envy, puis on plonge tête première dans la grande nostalgie avec l'enchaînement de I Just Wanna Stop, Black Cars et People Gotta Move au rappel. Inutile d'ajouter que les fans s'étaient levés de leur siège pour faire un triomphe à leur Gino. En 1998, il nous avait laissé présager un retour en force avec cette pop jazzifiée et groovy, ce à quoi il a préféré la grandiloquence symphonique et le bel canto pour Gino et orchestre. Il a préféré l'exercice de style à cette substance unique que lui confère le jazz électrique. Hier, l'artiste de 53 ans était enfin de retour sur cette piste. Il est d'ailleurs à se demander pourquoi il n'enregistre pas sa musique de cette manière tellement plus concluante. Pourquoi, au fait, ne pas opter en studio pour ces espaces plus vastes réservés à l'improvisation? Pourquoi ne pas intercaler davantage de solos virtuoses? Pourquoi ne pas endisquer ces versions plus viriles? Pourquoi évacuer cette dimension essentielle à son oeuvre? Les fans de musique qui se rendront ce soir au Club Soda risquent de se poser les mêmes questions... après avoir été ravis par la seconde performance montréalaise de Gino Vannelli en autant de soirs. Translation French to English of article number (6) by Elisabeth van de Hove and thanks to Anita Bakker we received this translation : Gino Vannelli did a show at the Club Soda last night. For just one evening he again became the brilliant crooner he was from the mid 70’s to the mid 80’s. (Photo caption: The real Gino Vannelli) Listening to the recent album These Are the Days, one finds that our national Gino is renewing his ties with pop music. Seven previously unpublished songs, added to seven remastered “classics” bear witness to it. At first glance, the crooner’s new titles bring no new grist to the Vannelli mill. The production really is too clean, too conventional, in spite of the jazzy elements timidly coiled up in it. The firecracker of Ville d’Anjou wanted to sell too many CDs, wanted too much to please, he tried to have his cake and eat it, too. On stage, however, those songs take on a whole new dimension; the same goes for the old ones. What I’m saying is that yesterday at Club Soda, Gino Vannelli again became the brilliant crooner he was from the mid 70’s to the mid 80’s. Make no mistake, Vannelli was not a simple “chanteur de charme” but an authentic music connoisseur, a solid composer, a shrewd recruiter of musicians, gifted with exceptional vocal chords. Yesterday, he reminded us of all that by offering his best performance since the end of the 90’s, when he was touring with a small band under the musical direction of super bassist Alain Caron. As the latter was not available for another ride, handsome Gino hired the best musicians of Portland (Oregon) where he now resides. Obviously a judicious choice. The superb guitarist Allen Hinds, the impeccable bassist Sandin Wilson, the very competent keyboard player Randy Porter and the really solid drummer Reinhardt Metz contribute effectively to transcend the whole repertoire of the Montreal-born singer. Right from the start, the rather untamed version of Wild Horses squarely contrasts with the prissy side of the original production. The power ballad Living Inside Myself reminds us how the crooner’s voice can make the walls of Jericho collapse. It’s Only Love in a jazzy electric version, with an instrumental bridge supplementary to the studio version, compares advantageously to many a Sting opus. After a bluesy delivery of A little Bit of Judas the fired-up crooning is back in full force, and we enter the singer’s richest period with the sensuous Wheels of Life and the monumental Brother to Brother that puts the virtuosity of the band members in the spotlight. After the break, Vannelli has put on a new shirt; his curly mane, as abundant as ever, is ready for another round of frolicking. The man doesn’t have a swelled head, though; he’s capable of self-mockery as illustrated by a couple of well-received anecdotes. Another well-known power ballad from his repertoire, Hurts to Be in Love, precedes I Die a Little More Each Day, rather unremarkable reggae pop. We soon enough return to substance with the jazzy funky Venus Envy, then we plunge head over heels into grand nostalgia with a medley of I Just Wanna Stop, Black Cars, and People Gotta Move for an encore. No need to add that the fans had gotten off their seats to give their Gino a triumph. In 1998, he led us to forecast a comeback with this jazzified and groovy pop, after which he preferred to take the road of symphonic grandiloquence and “bel canto” for Gino and orchestra. He chose that style exercise over this unique substance that electric jazz confers upon him. Yesterday, the 53-year-old artist was finally back on this track.
Besides, one wonders why he doesn’t record his music in this much more convincing way. Why, in fact, not opt for these much larger spaces reserved for improvisation in the studio? Why not insert virtuoso solos more often? Why not put these more virile versions on CD? Why leave behind this dimension so essential to his oeuvre? The music fans who go to Club Soda tonight will probably ask themselves the same questions...after being enchanted by the second Montreal performance of Gino Vannelli in as many nights.
Hi B&T, Gino Vannelli finds you can 'update yourself' The 53-year-old singer has a new album with old hits and some newly penned tracks
Angela Pacienza, Canadian Press Gino Vannelli, the curly-haired pop star known for smash hits like Wild Horses and Black Cars, resurfaced earlier this year with an album that contains old hits as well as newly penned tracks. "It was a kick to do. A big learning experience," said the singer, 53. "With an open mind, a little humility . . . You can really actually update yourself." The Montreal-born singer, famed for his funky grooves, had sworn off the pop genre after his early '90s album received lukewarm receptions. He turned to jazz and big band and later classical, releasing Canto in 2003, an album which had him singing romantic arias in French, Spanish and Italian. "Never say never," said Vannelli of These Are the Days. The album features seven new songs and seven remastered old ones. The first single, the jazzy-pop track It's Only Love, has Vannelli back on radio waves. "It seemed to me that after Canto that I didn't want to go and record another classical album," he explained. But then Universal Canada called to suggest a "best of" album. The label wanted to include one or two new songs as is now tradition on greatest hits album. Vannelli, who settled in Portland, Ore., more than a decade ago, said he ran into some trouble when he sat down to pen new songs having spent time dabbling in jazz and classical genres, as well as updating his music theory degree from McGill University. "It was quite a task I found to come up with something very contemporary. I really wanted the songs to be as good in their own right as some of the hits were in the past," he said. "I found that my skills were more inclined to lean towards a complex, different kind of material. It took a few months to align myself with a new pattern." He listened to Top 40 radio and studied modern-day pop stars such as John Mayer. He also spent time poring over his 19-year-old son's music collection. "Too many people that record more complex music, classical or jazz, when they get into the pop realm they take for granted that they know everything. They don't have conviction." "I tried to understand the [pop] language again . . . Then the pop sensibility just came out." It's been about 40 years since Vannelli first started in the music business. Under the moniker Van Elli, he signed his first record contract at 16. He then took off to the States, where he put out six albums in the 1970s, including Brother to Brother. In his heyday, he was all over the airwaves. He opened for Stevie Wonder and, in 1975, became the first white artist to appear on Soul Train. In those days, music "was everything" to people, recalled Vannelli. "I came from the generation where kids didn't have IPods and computers. People sat down and really listened," he said. "Today more people do something while listening to music. I had to come to grips with that. You're trying to help people get through their day, and, yet you're trying to be artistic and all those things to satisfy your own needs as an artist."
Gino Vannelli plays the River Rock Casino Friday.
Eighties pop-icon Gino Vannelli almost became a monk. Vannelli, who plays River Rock Show Theater Friday, released his 15th album in February, These are the Days, a combination of past hits and new songs. “It’s done with a sense of perspective that I don’t think I quite had in the early days.” And no wonder. It’s his first pop endeavor since that journey in the late ‘80s that took him through the jungles of Peru, the deserts of Arizona and visits to monasteries throughout the world. He also studied religion and spent three weeks—14 hours per day—in an isolation tank, confronted with nothing but his own thoughts. “Whatever is present in you comes out because there are no distractions; all there is is darkness and air. See Page 18 Your mind drifts and good things and horrible things come out.” So why do it? “(I was) just looking for answers that are (not) pat -- that you can’t find in a book.” Asked if he found them, he laughs. “I’d say overall you don’t find an answer, you find a process. And either you enjoy the process or not. You learn and teach yourself to steady your perceptions -- that’s more cultivated than the dramatic revelation that we go for in the West, the ‘Here’s your lottery ticket for $6 million.’ It’s more the Eastern way -- ‘here’s your lottery ticket, you’ve lost everything.’” His journey led to a new approach to his life and art, especially in managing the anxiety of creation, he says. “Being a writer you have to sit down and look at the empty page. If you’re not willing to accept a little bit of discomfort and pain in the long run, it’s not going to work. So that’s what I learned -- a process of pain.” He took that knowledge, moved to Oregon and wrote a two jazz albums, Slow Love and Yonder Tree and then the classical Canto, produced in four languages. “A selected few know and appreciate (these albums); it makes for interesting shows,” he says, adding that his return to pop is like a journey to a new world. “You know when Black Cars was out, people weren’t on their email 10 hours a day or their Blackberries or their i-Pods. The competition is much fiercer.” Is he at all haunted by his ‘80s hits? “It’s difficult in the sense that those are the things I’m most known for, but I had albums in the ‘70s that went gold.” For his new work, Vannelli says he found himself listening with new ears, thinking of new ways to write a hook or consider “how much sugar do you put on it before it becomes acid.” “Then after you do an analysis, you throw your intellect down and get at the piano and start writing. And that’s when the good stuff happens.” Gino Vannelli performs at the River Rock Show Theatre, 8 p.m. Apr. 21. Tickets, www.ticketmaster.ca BACK TO CANADA 2006 To the top again... Back home... Copyright (c) 2006 - 2007 Barend and Trees in Holland You are on the THESE ARE THE DAYS web page 9 now...
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« J’en suis au point où je ne veux plus enregistrer d’album de chansons », racontait Gino Vannelli il y a deux ans. Après s’être aventuré dans les sentiers de la pop classique avec Canto, le voilà pourtant qui revient à ses anciennes amours avec These Are the Days, un disque sorti il y a trois semaines sur lequel se trouvent sept de ses plus grands succès, accompagnés de sept nouvelles pièces.
CRITIQUE09-02-2006 or 02-09-2006.
Gino Vannelli était de passage à Montréal récemment pour promouvoir son
nouvel album, These Are The Days. J'ai eu le plaisir de réaliser avec
lui une entrevue, publiée en deux temps. Un premier volet paraît dans le
volume 2, numéro 23 du magazine Star Système,! en kiosque dès le 24
février; un second volet vous est présenté ici, en exclusivité. Bonne
lecture!
Exclusive interview: Gino Vanelli, An Interior Voyage.
Sa montée fulgurante ne l'avait pas préparé aux embuches du chemin.
Lorsqu'un conflit avec sa compagnie de disques d'alors met un frein à sa
carrière, Gino s'interroge et cherche un sens à la vie, à sa vie. Son
cheminement le mène à l'étude de la religion et de la spiritualité.
«Ce n’est pas confortable de vieillir, pour personne. Vous ne pouvez pas
vous mentir. Vous le combattez. Ma façon de le combattre est de
pratiquer le yoga… J’utilise une foule de techniques pour me garder fort: je peux courir, je peux lever des poids, j’ai une bonne endurance,
je garde ma voix en forme, je fais plein de choses. Mais l’inévitable
est là: les humains ont une durée de vie donnée. Le mieux que vous
puissiez faire est de faire de votre mieux. Alors les choses que
j’anticipe, ce sont les nouveaux projets, les rêves inachevés, le
plaisir d’être avec de bons amis, de monter de nouveaux groupes, un bon
livre, un bon bain chaud, discuter avec mon fils de comment va sa vie,
vers où il s’en va.»
Photo Patrick Sanfaçon, La Presse