Menta Lmind

During the period of lockdown in 2020, tenor Alessandro Fisher and his wife spent many hours in their garden. A heightened awareness of the beauty of nature, the flowers in their garden and the changes to the garden as winter moved to spring, and then to summer formed the basis of this beautifully curated recital.

Adelmo Fornaciari Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI, more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero, is an Italian singer-songwriter and musician, with an Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. His stage name, Zucchero, is the Italian word for sugar, as his elementary teacher used to call him. His music is largely inspired by gospel, soul, blues and rock music, and alternates between Italian ballads and more rhythmic R&B-boogie-like pieces. He is credited as the "father of Italian blues", introducing blues to the big stage in Italy. He is one of the few European blues artists who still enjoy great international success.

Adelmo Fornaciari Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI, more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero, is an Italian singer-songwriter and musician, with an Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. His stage name, Zucchero, is the Italian word for sugar, as his elementary teacher used to call him. His music is largely inspired by gospel, soul, blues and rock music, and alternates between Italian ballads and more rhythmic R&B-boogie-like pieces. He is credited as the "father of Italian blues", introducing blues to the big stage in Italy. He is one of the few European blues artists who still enjoy great international success.

If the aim of Flamencopolis is to alter any misguided impressions that flamenco is a staid music and dance style whose components are set in stone with little room for innovation, it succeeds wildly. In recent years, artists such as Ojos de Brujo, Ketama and the rocking Raimundo Amador (the latter two are included here, the former, unfortunately, are not) have taken the basic elements of traditional flamenco and created from them something appropriately called nuevo flamenco. Placed side by side with the more traditional form, which often occurs on this project, the two branches of the music sometimes sound so dissimilar that one could make a case that they are not even related. But as if to prove the point that they are indeed, and that the possibilities go even further, Flamencopolis not only converges the new and old flamenco styles, but invites artists from outside of the genre to collaborate with some of flamenco's greats, thus making even more clear that flamenco is capable of seamless integration.

Reissues come loaded with rare bonus tracks - live versions of “Collision” and the Burt Bacharach and Hal David classic, “This Guy’s In Love With You”, plus rare mixes of “Last Cup of Sorrow”, “Pristina”, and more.