Caronte

The Trip were an Anglo-Italian group that had origins in London. Enrico “Riki” Maiocchi, of the pop group I Camaleonti, recruited a young Ritchie Blackmore, Billy Gray and Avrid Andersen, among others, and moved to Turin, Italy. Blackmore bowed out early, and was replaced by organist Joe Vescovi; but by the time the band recorded their first album in 1970 for RCA Italiana, Maiocchi was out too. Their debut finds The Trip mixing blues rock with heavy organ and rich harmonies, and some classical influences. However, their second album, Caronte, based on the mythological character Charon, finds their music moving toward the realm of British prog rock. Vescovi, with his self-proclaimed influence of Keith Emerson, is up to task; so while the influence is obvious, there’s still originality in The Trip’s take on the progressive. Yet they never lose their heavy blues-rock roots, as the opener “Caronte I” attests. “Two Brothers” follows suit, opting for vocals this time, à la Atomic Rooster or Lucifer’s Friend. “Little Janie,” an ode to Janis Joplin, eschews the prog for something lighter, while the similar “L’ultima ora e Ode a J. Hendrix” is a little more run-of-the-mill, offering only a few plaintive guitar lines over the prolonged final section. Gray and drummer Pino Sinnone then left, the latter replaced by Furio Chirico, and the new three piece recorded 1972’s Alantide. Venturing deeper into the style of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, it features the furious drumming of Chirico. One final album, the even more playful Time For A Change, was released on Trident Records in 1974. But it was time for a change, indeed. The band split, with Chirico co-founding Arti e Mestieri and Vescovi briefly joining Aqua Fragile and then I Dik Dik.