Richard Benson (musician)

Richard Philip Henry John Benson (born 10 March 1955) is a British-Italian guitarist, singer, music journalist, and actor.

Richard Benson
Benson in 2014 during a show in Ciampino, Italy
Background information
Birth nameRichard Philip Henry John Benson
Born (1955-03-10) 10 March 1955
OriginWoking, England
GenresProgressive rock, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal
Occupation(s)Guitarist, singer-songwriter
InstrumentsVocals, guitar
Years active1970–present
LabelsPlaygame Music, INRI
Websitewww.richardbensonofficial.com

Life

Benson was born in Woking, England to a Belgian mother (with Italian origins) and a British father. He moved to Italy and was an active musician since his early teens.

In 2000 he suffered a serious leg injury when he fell off a bridge. He claimed that the accident was the result of an assault but there are suspicions that Benson actually attempted suicide since he was diagnosed with arthritis shortly before. Benson had to undergo prolonged rehabilitation to be able to walk again.[1]

In November 2016 Benson and his wife Ester Esposito appeared in a video on repubblica.it where they revealed financial problems and asked for donations to pay for medical procedures. Benson can be seen stooped and hardly able to walk due to arthritis. It is also revealed that Benson suffers from heart problems and already had to undergo surgery at that point.[2]

Musical career

In 1971 Benson recorded with the progressive rock band Buon Vecchio Charlie a self-titled LP, which was only released in 1990 when the original record company brought out some of their early productions on CD. The album features Benson on vocals and 12-string guitar.

In 1972 he took part in the festival Villa Pamphili.[3]

In 1983 he released his first single, Animal Zoo, an Italo disco production.[4] In the following year he released his second single, Renegade, a song (along with the B-side "Flash Back") with electro-rock tones.[5]

In 1984, he wrote and recorded music for the cult movie The Incinerator (Italian title L'inceneritore) in which he also appeared in a small role as a street gang member.

In 1987 he produced the compilation album Metal Attack (RCA Italy – Talent), where he sings on the track Exotic Escape that he also co-wrote.[6]

In 1999 he released a solo album called Madre Tortura that featured progressive hard-rock tracks. In 2015 he released L'inferno dei vivi on the label INRI, a rock-opera-style concept album with electronic elements, and the accompanying single I Nani.[7]

In 2016 Benson released Duello madre, a digital compilation of tracks from earlier releases.[8]

He is currently working on new songs, releasing rough acoustic live performances on YouTube.

TV and movies

During the 1970s and 1980s Benson hosted various programs about contemporary alternative music on TV and radio. In 1992 he played himself as a TV host in Carlo Verdone's successful film Maledetto il giorno che t'ho incontrato.

In the 1990s and 2000s Benson often appeared as a guest on RAI, the prime Italian channel, usually judging musicians. His appearances were often over the top and satirical in nature.

Discography

Albums
  • 1999: Madre Tortura
  • 2015: L'inferno dei vivi – a rock-opera produced by Federico Zampaglione[9]
  • 2016: Duello madre (compilation/digital downloading)

Singles
  • 1983: Animal Zoo
  • 1984: Renegade

Albums with others
  • 1990: Buon Vecchio Charlie by Buon Vecchio Charlie (recorded in 1971)

Live bootlegs
  • 2003: Bootleg Infernale
  • 2004: Il Natale del Male

References
  1. bastonate.com - True Believers. Richard Benson
  2. Roma, Richard Benson è malato: "Sono rimasto senza un soldo, aiutatemi", repubblica.it
  3. (in Italian) Info at stampamusicale.altervista.org
  4. Richard Benson (2) – Animal Zoo, discogs.com
  5. Richard Benson (2) – Renegade, discogs.com
  6. (in Italian) Info at maxsmeraldi.com He also performed four music "intermissions" inserted inbetween the tracks. Archived 26 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Discogs - L'inferno dei vivi
  8. Discogs - Duello Madre
  9. (in Italian) Richard Benson back in music stores with "L'inferno dei vivi". Panorama, 18 March 2015.
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