Fabio Treves: vocals, harmonica
Alex 'Kid' Gariazzo: vocals, guitars, mandolin, ukulele
Fabio Treves, known to all blues enthusiasts as the 'Puma of Lambrate,' is universally regarded as the ‘godfather’ of Italian Blues. With tenacity and absolute dedication, he has devoted his entire life to the blues, becoming one of the most representative and significant Italian figures in this musical genre, as well as a true point of reference for the Italian blues community. He emerged in the early '70s as a blues harmonica player. In 1974, he founded the Treves Blues Band (which this year celebrates 50 years of activity and is marking the 70th birthday of its indomitable leader with a highly popular tour across Italy). During those years, Fabio met Texan guitarist and harmonica player Cooper Terry, with whom he started a long musical partnership. He has worked with notable artists such as Dave Kelly, Pick Withers, Sunnyland Slim, Johnny Shines, Homesick James, Willie Mabon, Billy Branch, Paul Jones, Alexis Korner, Bob Margolin, Sam Lay, Louisiana Red, and many others. In 1980, he recorded a live album with blues guitarist Mike Bloomfield and played with Frank Zappa (Fabio is the only Italian artist to have performed on stage with the great genius from Baltimore). His 2004 CD “Bluesfriends” features guests like Roy Rogers, Chuck Leavell, Willy DeVille, John Popper, and Linda Gail Lewis. Treves has released 21 albums (his first record, “Treves Blues Band,” released in 1975, is the first blues album in the history of Italian discography) and has been involved in about a hundred collaborations; he has lent his harmonica skills to the albums of Angelo Branduardi, Pierangelo Bertoli, Claudio Rocchi, Eugenio Finardi, Shel Shapiro, Pino Scotto, Giorgio Conte, Francesco Baccini, Marco Ferradini, Riccardo Cocciante, Ivan Graziani, Mina, and collaborated with Articolo 31 and Elio e le Storie Tese. He has participated in numerous international blues festivals and in 1976 hosted a blues radio show in Milan; he has written two Blues Guides and hosted the “Blues Express” show on Rock FM. Since 2004, he has been hosting “Life in Blues” on LifeGate Radio. In 2013, he collaborated on the album "Album biango" by Elio e le Storie Tese. On December 7, 2014, Fabio Treves was awarded the Ambrogino d'oro, a prestigious honor from the City of Milan. Rolling Stone magazine included him in the special photographic issue “The 100 Faces of Italian Music,” published in February 2015, which led to an exhibition of the same name. In 2015, Treves and the Treves Blues Band supported Deep Purple on their Italian tour and in 2016, they were the opening act for Bruce Springsteen's concert at the Circus Maximus in Rome. Fabio has also taught photography at the Umanitaria in via Pace, Milan.
Alex “Kid” Gariazzo, born in Biella in 1972, has been the singer and talented guitarist of the Treves Blues Band since 1995 (defining him as a guitarist is certainly an understatement, as he also plays mandolin, banjo, ukulele, lap steel, bass, sitar, electric, acoustic, and resonator guitars), with several CDs and over 1,000 concerts in Italy and abroad, as well as radio and television appearances. The ‘Kid,’ well-known to the FolkClub audience who has seen him perform with great class and ease alongside many Italian and international artists (such as Lou Marini, Hamish Stuart, Bocephus King, and Carlo Pestelli, to name a few), is also a highly regarded composer and sought-after producer; he collaborates as a live and studio session musician with American artists like Michael McDermott (Tenco Prize 2022), Jono Manson, Doug Seegers, and Scarlet Rivera, and is the mastermind behind the dazzling Smallable Ensemble. He conducts seminars on the Blues and the relationship between blues and folk music. He co-authored the book “I 100 dischi ideali per capire il blues” (Ed. Riuniti, 2001). With a crystalline voice and splendid guitar technique, Alex consistently delivers a captivating stage presence, exceptional versatility, inventiveness, and technical mastery.
Nine years after their duo concert, Fabio and Alex return to our stage to celebrate with us the 70th birthday of the ‘Puma of Lambrate’ and the 50-year career of the Treves Blues Band. They will revisit the history of the Blues in an acoustic version, from its origins and work songs, from archaic blues to the electric blues of Chicago, up to contemporary blues.
