{{Short description|Italian singer-songwriter (born 1943)}} {{Infobox person | name = |image = Ricky Gianco.jpg |caption = Gianco in 1965 |birth_name = Riccardo Sanna | birth_date = {{birth-date and age|18 February 1943}} | birth_place =Lodi, Lombardy, Kingdom of Italy | death_date = | death_place = | occupation = Singer-songwriter }} '''Ricky Gianco''' (born '''Riccardo Sanna''', 18 February 1943), formerly known as '''Ricky Sann''', is an Italian singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer, considered one of the founders of Italian rock music.
== Career == Born in Lodi, Gianco started playing guitar as a child, and at 11 years old he won a music contest for amateur musicians, soon gaining some popularity thanks to his participation to numerous Mike Bongiorno's shows.<ref name="bio">{{Cite book |last=Deregibus |first=Enrico |title=Dizionario completo della canzone italiana |date=2006 |publisher=Giunti |isbn=978-88-09-04602-3 |chapter=Ricky Gianco |pages=217-8}}</ref> In 1958 he was guitarist of the band "Pepe, Pietruccio & Lallo", an early incarnation of Dik Dik.<ref name="bio" /><ref name="Pavese">{{cite news |last1=m.pizz. |title=Ricky Gianco «La mia vita fra rock e canzoni» |url=https://ricerca.gelocal.it/laprovinciapavese/archivio/laprovinciapavese/2014/03/15/NZ_16_95.html?ref=search |access-date=11 March 2025 |work=La Provincia Pavese |date=15 March 2014 |language=it}}</ref> He first adopted the stage name Ricky Sann as a tribute to Ricky Nelson.<ref name="bio" /><ref>{{cite news |author=Pedrinelli, Andrea |date=30 July 2016 |title=The song tells its story/4. Ricky Gianco tells his 60s |url=https://www.avvenire.it/agora/pagine/ricky-gianco- |access-date=11 November 2024 |work=Avvenire}}</ref> He made his recording debut with the single "Ciao ti dirò", which is regarded by some critics as the first Italian original rock song.<ref name="curcio">Cotto, Massimo (1990). "Gianco, Ricky". Castaldo, Gino (edited by). ''Dizionario della canzone italiana''. Curcio Editore. pp.772-3.</ref> In 1960, he formed "Ricky Sanna e il suo complesso", a band with Enzo Jannacci and Luigi Tenco.<ref name="Pavese" /> His 1960 song "Dubbi" is considered an early example of comedy rock song.<ref name="curcio" />
In 1961, Gianco co-founded Clan Celentano, but after some disagreements with Adriano Celentano one year later he left the record label and moved to England, where he knew the Beatles (taking part in their 1963 Christmas Show at the Astoria Cinema in Finsbury Park) and collaborated with Ivor Raymonde.<ref name="bio" /><ref name="curcio" /> Returned to Italy, he reprised his singing career with the label Jaguar and started a fruitful collaboration as songwriter with Gian Pieretti, having his major success with "Pietre", a song launched by Gian Pieretti and Antoine at the Sanremo Music Festival 1967.<ref name="bio" /><ref name="curcio" /> In this period he also served as producer for I Ribelli and I Quelli, a rock band that was the nucleus of Premiata Forneria Marconi.<ref name="bio" /><ref name="curcio" /> In 1970, he took part in the 20th Sanremo Music Festival with his song "Accidenti" as a member of the supergroup Il Supergruppo.<ref name="curcio" /> In 1972, he founded the label Intingo and two years later he co-founded the label L'Ultima Spiaggia.<ref name="bio" />
Following the semi-retirement of Gian Pieretti, in the mid-1970s Gianco started a long professional association with Gianfranco Manfredi, in music and on stage.<ref name="bio" /><ref name="curcio" /> His production of the time became more ironical and more politically and socially committed.<ref name="bio" /> In 1989, he recorded one of his better knew song, "Parigi con le gambe aperte", a duet with Gino Paoli, with whom he toured the same year.<ref name="bio" /> His 1991 album ''È rock & roll'' had among its guests Paoli, Jeff Porcaro, Steve Lukather, Pino Donaggio, James Burton, Enzo Jannacci and Giorgio Gaber.<ref name="bio" /> His 1992 and 2000 albums ''Piccolo è bello'' and ''Tandem'' also mainly consisted of duets and collaborations, notably Fabrizio De André, Franco Battiato, Robert Wyatt, and Ornella Vanoni.<ref name="bio" />
As a songwriter, Gianco's collaborations include Mina, Adriano Celentano, Patty Pravo, Peppino di Capri, Equipe 84, and Don Backy.<ref name="bio" /> In 2003, he received a {{Interlanguage link|Premio Ciampi|it}} for his career.<ref name="bio" /> In 2025, he was awarded the Premio Tenco; the same year, he announced his retirement.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bolognini |first1=Luigi |title=Ricky Gianco: “Celentano un genio, ma io non volevo fare il cortigiano. Jannacci quasi mi ammazzò” |url=https://www.repubblica.it/spettacoli/musica/2025/10/02/news/ricky_gianco_premio_tenco_intervista-424883953/ |access-date=18 October 2025 |work=la Repubblica |date=2 October 2025 |language=it}}</ref>
==Discography==
===Albums=== *1963: ''Una giornata con Ricky Gianco'' (Jaguar, JGR 73000) *1965: ''Ai miei amici di "Ciao amici"'' (Jaguar, JGR 74002) *1965: ''Ricky Gianco Show'' (Jaguar, JGR 74003) *1968: ''Ricky Gianco Special'' (Dischi Ricordi, MRP 9051) *1975: ''Braccio di Ferro'' (Intingo, ITGL 14005) *1976: ''Quel rissoso, irascibile, carissimo Braccio di Ferro'' (Intingo, ITGL 14007) *1976: ''Alla mia mam...'' (Ultima Spiaggia, ZLUS 55187) *1978: ''Arcimboldo'' (Ultima Spiaggia, ZPLS 34046) *1979: ''Liquirizia (soundtrack)'' (Fontana Records, 6323 811) *1982: ''Non si può smettere di fumare'' (Fonit-Cetra, LPX 100) *1989: ''Di nuca'' (New Enigma, NEM 47714) *1991: ''È Rock'n Roll'' (Fonit-Cetra, TLPX 277) *1992: ''Piccolo è bello'' (Fonit-Cetra) *1995: ''Il meglio di Ricky Gianco'' (compilation, D.V. MORE) *1997: ''Ricky Gianco: i successi'' (compilation, D.V. MORE) *2000: ''Tandem (Ricky Gianco & ...)'' (compilation of collaborations, CBS, COL 497529 1) *2005: ''Ricky Gianco Collection'' (compilation, EDEL) *2009: ''Di santa ragione'', EDEL *2010: ''Come un bambino'' (On Sale Music, 64 OSM 084)
==References== {{reflist}}
== External links == {{Commons}} * {{discogs artist}} * {{IMDb name}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gianco, Ricky}} Category:1943 births Category:Living people Category:Clan Celentano artists Category:20th-century Italian guitarists Category:Italian male guitarists Category:Italian rock guitarists Category:Italian rock singers Category:20th-century Italian male singers Category:20th-century Italian singer-songwriters Category:Italian male singer-songwriters Category:I Ribelli members