There are so many strange things out there, that the strange case of an artist who in the space of a few hours begins a tour in which he talks about himself and his songs (sitting) in the solemn and quiet setting of the most noble is almost not so strange. Italian theaters, for a few intimate (seated) people, then an hour later he performs with guitars spread out in one of the most popular (non)places in the nation, namely a motorway service station – and in that context he announces that he will hold a concert for over 100 thousand people – but, essentially, behind his house. It is a continuum of public and private chasing each other.
On the other hand, Luciano Ligabue has always sought a compromise that would not compromise his openly dual nature as a singer-songwriter who cautiously opens his world to others and as a rocker who screams at the sky together with a crowd of similar people, with whom he shares the pronoun “us”. And so, the radio that plays Neil Young is perhaps playing a piece from Rust Never Sleepsan album from a thousand years ago that presented one side of acoustic and solitary songs, while on the other it had pieces with a thunderous impact. And some nights, my, my, in Ligabue that first side appears, while some nights, hey, hey, the other prevails.
His theater shows, apparently already all sold out, are the completion of a very long tour in which he played in places of more usual dimensions, clubs, stadiums, arenas, forums. “But Dedicated to us it's an album that I care a lot about, and I wanted to propose it also in the theatrical dimension, which is the most challenging for me. It implies something really intimate even if it's not my natural territory. My previous experiences have taught me that it is a context in which details win, all those little things that you manage to put into singing and playing an instrument: you are a little more restrained but maybe you do something that is even richer musically. ».
The songs, chosen every evening from a menu of 45 songs, are interspersed with the reading, book in hand, of passages from his autobiography. These moments of public intimacy include some arrangements aimed at highlighting more subtle nuances in several songs, but do not exclude very rock pages – and in such situations, both he and the four musicians who accompany him struggle to remain seated. And the same goes for the public.
Thus, also for this reason, from what was seen on the zero date of the tour in the little jewel that is the Asioli theater of his Correggio, it is to be assumed that the balance between the different personalities of the protagonist will be found only after a bit of running-in, or rather, road-trip along a road which in the end in any case will lead him, without fail, to a new mass celebration in his personal cathedral, on 21 June 2025.
«Next year we will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first Campovolo and the 30th anniversary of Happy Birthday Elvis and of Some nightswhich has also become the claim of this new party: The night of certain nights”. A deluxe edition of the album will also be released next year. An operation which he cares a lot about and which, he assures, is not due to a lack of new ideas. «I continue to write songs, I write a lot of them, I throw away a lot of them. But right now I have no intention of making an album of new material, I'm digging through all the archives to recover outtakes and demos of Happy Birthday Elvis for next year's celebratory version.”
Another project in the pipeline is a documentary film – and it is no coincidence that during the aforementioned mini-exhibition at the Fiorenzuola service station, drones were flying and filming the scene. Because the pendulum, after having swung towards acoustic guitars and books and theaters and the traditional paternal pride in knowing he was supported by his son Lenny on drums, moves naturally from tradition to galloping innovation, which for the mega concert will bring a kind of Ligawatch instead of the ticket. It will be delivered to your home without shipping costs and will contain both the codes for entry and the applications to participate in the Ligabuesco experiences of Memphis Boulevard, a sort of LigaLand that will be created for the occasion at Campovolo. The digital bracelet will also be the tool for personalized credit management for food and drinks, camping accommodation and merchandising, in an event where cash will be useless, and to which people will be welcomed from the day before – therefore, for whoever wants, The night of certain nights it will be two nights long.
On the choice of the fateful song as the banner of the entire operation, he adds: «My relationship with Some nights includes fascination and mystery. In July 1995 I wasn't coming from a triumphal period, I didn't know how things would go or even what song we would focus on as a single: given that in my previous albums we had focused on songs with very high bpm, I thought it would be state Alive dead ox. For this reason, everything that came out of that song still amazes us today. And it proves once again that there is no recipe, that songs do whatever the fuck they want and what those who listen to them want, because in the end the significant phrase of Some nights it is different for every person who knows it.”
At the moment there are no indications about any guests of the celebratory live. They ask him about Jovanotti and Piero Pelù, given the recent remix of My name is never again and the great abundance of ongoing wars. At this moment there is nothing decided on the matter. He could also choose to opt out. Which is a bit the same attitude that, unlike several colleagues of his generation, he has towards featuring with exponents of the rap scene. «When I was a child in the '60s, songs were made up of melody and chorus; I continue to be fond of the concept of melody and singing, it's the world I know best so I don't judge others, but at the moment I'm not attracted and I'll stop here, although you never know in life, there could be possibilities of contamination and duets”.
On the other hand, later Some nightsthe future could hold certain prime time slots. That is: for those who are sincerely interested in the Sacred Kermesse that enchants the nation, Liga has given its availability to the Sanremo Festival. Okay, maybe not the next one, that wasn't explicit. But since someone else will give us the title, we cannot completely avoid mentioning the circumstance. Also because he believes he has a bad impression to redeem. «I have to go back because the last time I screwed up. In that climate in which it is as if someone's life and death were at stake, I thought of being ironic. In my head, my triumphal entrance was meant to be a punk thing but it turned out to be a disaster, firstly because I don't know how to act, and secondly because in reality I felt the fangs of Sanremo on my carotid artery, and I wasn't amused. So maybe next time I'll go there and stand still and maybe just lip-sing.”
