I Camaleonti


I Camaleonti are an Italian pop group from Milan, mostly active between the late 1960s and the early 1970s.

Background

I Camaleonti were formed in 1963 in Milan. The original line-up included Livio Macchia, Antonino Cripezzi, Paolo de Ceglie and Gerardo Manzoli. In 1965 the band's line-up was augmented with the arrival of Riki Maiocchi on vocals and guitar. The band initially adopted a beat sound, and scored a hit single with a cover of the Small Faces' "Sha-La-La-La-Lee". In 1966, vocalist and guitarist Riki Maiocchi left the group to pursue a solo career and was replaced by Mario Lavezzi. With Lavezzi on board, the group gradually began to switch to a more melodic pop sound, soon achieving success with a modern rendition of a popular 1930s tune penned by Cesare Andrea Bixio, "Portami tante rose". Between 1968 and 1973 I Camaleonti had four singles topping the Italian charts, including "Applausi", "Io per lei" and "L'ora dell'amore". Between 1970 and 1993 they entered the Sanremo Music Festival five times,, finishing third in 1979 with "Quell'attimo in più". Despite numerous line-up changes, the band is still active to these days.

Personnel

Studio Albums