LAST FORMULA

La grande casa is the fourth studio album by Formula 3 and was released in 1973 on the Numero Uno label with the historic line up featuring Tony Cicco (drums, percussion, vocals), Gabriele Lorenzi (piano, organ, Minimoog, synth, bass, vocals) and Alberto Radius (electric and acoustic guitar, bass, vocals). This time the album was produced by Mogol who took charge of the lyrics with results that, in my opinion, are not always up to the music composed by the band. For prog lovers this work might be considered a step backwards and a disappointing return to shorter, simpler pieces after its excellent predecessor but it’s not without interest and in some way it anticipates the sound of Il Volo, the band born from the ashes of Formula 3 with Alberto Radius and Gabriele Lorenzi...

The melancholic opener “Rapsodia di Radius” starts by an excellent acoustic guitar intro, then the music and lyrics conjure up the image of a world where there are many open spaces but there’s no room for love. It’s a world where rage and selfishness rule and where freedom gets drowned in a moot. Fear looms large and life is like rag a falling down between feet of lead while man seems incapable to look after himself and is like a dove that risks to die before taking off to the sky. Anyway, the beautiful, dreamy instrumental coda lets the light of hope shine through the clouds...

“La ciliegia non è di plastica” (The cherry is not of plastic) is a simple pop rock song about a beautiful, independent and veracious girl attracted by the sirens of advertisements and tabloid stories that make her insecure. The music and lyrics invite her to be more confident because she’s round, sound and tasty like a cherry and point out that her sense of freedom could be frightening for some men...

“Libertà per quest'uomo” (Freedom for this man) begins softly and with a dark mood, then the rhythm rises as the keyboards introduce the melody. After another calm instrumental passage the voices of a choir begin to soar repeating in a loop like a mantra “freedom, freedom for this man” and bringing a ray of light in the darkness...

The melancholic “La grande casa” (The big house) evokes in music and words a deep sense of solitude. A man is driving back home and his new house is big but empty. When he opens the door, all alone in the silence, he feels like a stranger, he can hear nothing but the sound of his steps echoing in the dark. This is not what he desired and now he dreams of someone to hug, someone who could tell him that he’s not alone any more...

The bittersweet “Cara Giovanna” (Dear Giovanna) begins by a romantic piano solo intro that gives way to an acoustic guitar arpeggio. Then the music and lyrics depict a man talking to a woman about their love story that is ending. According to the man, his partner conceives love as paper that she wants to burn, in her eyes he sees a strange light and the desire to search for new adventures. For him it’s hard to accept her choice...

The last track, “Bambina sbagliata” (Wrong baby), depicts another troubled love affair between a young man and a girl. The man seems disappointed and escapes from the charms of the girl who fails to bind him with her sweet, sugary ropes and whipping looks. For him the only solution is going away, forgetting, flying, running away...

On the whole, a good album but not essential in a prog collection.

You can listen to the complete album HERE

Formula 3: La grande casa (1973). Other opinions:
Jim Russell: La Grande Casa is the underappreciated little brother of the previous Formula 3 album that gets all of the accolades. But this little kid is charming and should not be written off by those who appreciate early 70s acoustic rock albums. It is not typical of other Italian Symphonic genre releases in that it has an almost folksy hippie rock feel courtesy of generous acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies. The music has an intimate, romantic, communal vibe that occasionally reminds me of the Californian rock of the period though it doesn't give up its own identity either... (Read the complete review HERE)