From left to right: Lino Patruno, Gianni Magni, Roberto Brivio, Nanni Svampa

History

I Gufi ("The Owls", also spelled just as Gufi) was an Italian musical and comedy ensemble, mainly successful in the second half of the 1960s.

Career

The group formed in Milan between 1963 and 1964, and debuted on stage with the show "I Gufi cantano due secoli di Resistenza" (i.e. "The Owls sing Two Centuries of Resistance").

With a repertoire which mixed cabaret and songs and which was characterised by satirical themes and black humor, they had their breakout in 1966 with the show "Il teatrino dei Gufi" (i.e. "The Little Theatre of the Owls"), with which they long toured across Italy. The same year they started appearing in a number of RAI television shows, where they blue material encountered some censorship issues.

After undergoing a legal complaint for foul language for the song "Sant’Antonio allu desertu" (St. Anthony in the Desert), from which they were acquitted, between 1967 and 1969 the group got further success with the shows "Non so, non ho visto, se c'ero dormivo" (I don't know, I didn't see anything, and if I was there, I was asleep) and "Non spingete, scappiamo anche noi" (Don't push, we are running away too).

Following the album Il Balilla, in 1971 the group disbanded because of some personal conflicts among the members. For about a decade, the four Gufi pursued solo projects.

Gianni Magni embarked on a successful career as stand-up comedian and film actor.

Nanni Svampa recorded a few albums re-interpreting songs by Georges Brassens in the Milanese dialect.

Lino Patruno became a full-time jazz guitarist, recording and performing with musicians such as Dan Barrett, Bill Coleman, Bud Freeman and Frank Tate.

Roberto Brivio continued to work in theatre.

In 1981 Gufi briefly reunited in 1981 for "I Gufi a colori" (The Owls in Colour), a series of television shows on Antenna 3 Lombardia.

Members

Roberto Brivio (Milan, 21 February 1938 - Monza, 22 January 2021) – guitar, accordion and vocals

Gianni Magni (Milan, 16 May 1941 – Milan, 16 July 1992) – vocals

Lino Patruno (Crotone, 27 October 1935) – guitar, banjo, bass and vocals

Nanni Svampa (Milan, 28 February 1938 – Varese, 26 August 2017) - guitar, piano and vocals

Discography

Albums

• 1965 - Milano canta • 1965 - Il cabaret dei Gufi • 1965 - I Gufi cantano due secoli di resistenza • 1966 - Il teatrino dei Gufi • 1966 - I Gufi • 1966 - Il teatrino dei Gufi n°. 2 • 1967 - Il cabaret dei Gufi n. 2 • 1967 - Il teatrino dei Gufi in TV • 1967 - Non so non ho visto se c'ero dormivo • 1968 - Milano canta n°. 3 • 1968 - Il cabaret dei Gufi, vol. 3 • 1969 - Non spingete, scappiamo anche noi • 1981 - I Gufi

Collections

• 1971 - La Balilla (LP) • 1971 - I Gufi cantano il loro meglio (LP) • 1997 - Il cabaret dei Gufi vol. 1 (CD) • 1997 - Il cabaret dei Gufi vol. 2 (CD) • 2004 - Gufologia (6xCD) • 2008 - I Gufi - The Album (CD)

Singles

• 1965 - La balilla/Porta Romana • 1965 - Il gatto con gli stivali (favola per bambini) parte prima/Il gatto con gli stivali (favola per bambini) parte seconda ) • 1965 - Orango tango/Il gattone deluso • 1965 - Il cimitero è meraviglioso/Si può morire • 1965 - E mi la dona biunda/L'è tri di ch'el piov el fioca • 1965 - La circunvallazion/A l'era sabet sera • 1965 - Piazza fratelli Bandiera/Ghe ammo un qualvun • 1965 - Il neonato/Va Longobardo • 1966 - Il Mario mama/Ho preso un granchio • 1966 - Il bassotto/Il mio caro canguro • 1966 - Io vado in banca/La ballata dei Gufi • 1967 - Parlerà o non parlerà/Ferriera • 1967 - La balilla n° 2/Porta Romana n° 2 • 1967 - Giochi d'estate/Evviva il mondo beat • 1967 - Soldati a me/Non maledire questo nostro tempo ) • 1969 - La sbornia/Un semaforo bianco e blu • 1981 - Pazzesco/Sudameritalia • 1986 - Grande fiera d'aprile/La festa

Bibliography

• Nanni Svampa, Canzoni e risate, a cura di Giuseppe Vettori. • Enrico Borgatti, Milano ride e canta, Milano, Borgatti, 1985. • Michele Moramarco, I mitici Gufi, Reggio Emilia, Edishow, 2001. • Lino Patruno, Una vita in jazz, Roma, Pantheon, 2001. • Nanni Svampa, Scherzi della memoria. I peggiori sessant'anni della mia vita. • Antonello Catacchio, Quando volavano i Gufi, Il Manifesto, 31 ottobre 2004.

External links

Discography at Dicogs

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