From rare and unreleased gems from the CAM Sugar archives, *Tropicale* traces the incandescent links between Italian film music and 1960s tropical culture, through bossa nova, samba, Latin jazz, exotica, calypso, mambo and other tropical rhythms.
Featuring music by Ennio Morricone, Piero Piccioni, Bruno Nicolai, Armando Trovajoli and many other cult composers, the selection represents the danceable side of the Dolce Vita years, when Italian cinema, and society as a whole, sought escape through exotic music, design and lifestyle.
In 26 tracks, 8 of which are completely unreleased and 13 never before issued digitally, South American and Caribbean soundscapes meet the flamboyance of Italian jazz, resulting in a unique blend of Mediterranean and Latin melodies and sensibilities, overflowing with congas, fiery percussion, taut double bass riffs, brass and exhilarating drum breaks. The selection testifies to Italian cinema's fascination with tropical sounds, which applies equally to carefree comedies and to the experimental cinema of Pier Paolo Pasolini and Michelangelo Antonioni.