Franco Cerri

Franco Cerri (born January 29, 1926) is an Italian guitarist, born in Milan.

Franco Cerri is considered as “the best Italian guitarist” and “one of the best guitarist that European jazz has produced” and became popular in Italy thanks to his participation to the television show Buone Vacanze. He was not only one of the world's most popular and the most authoritative Italian guitarists, but was also one of the most important stylists of the European jazz world.

He began his long and prolific career in 1945 with Gorni Kramer and in 1949 he accompanied Django Reinhardt. In the 1950s he was near great jazz masters. Working with musicians from Chet Baker to Gerry Mulligan, and from Billie Holiday to Lee Konitz, and in modern jazz quartet or quintet, with musicians such as Tullio De Piscopo, Pino Presti, Gianluigi Trovesi, Flavio Ambrosetti and Jean-Luc Ponty, he became a leader in the Italian and European jazz world.

On January 1, 2006 he was named "Commendatore della Repubblica" (official title awarded for service to Italy) by President of the Italian Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi.

As leader

 * 1952 - The Franco Cerri Quintet, with Flavio Ambrosetti
 * 1958 - Jazzin' with Cerri
 * 1959 - Franco Cerri and his European Jazz Stars, with Lars Gullin (b.sax), Flavio Ambrosetti (trp), George Gruntz (p), Karl Theodor Geier (b), Pierre Favre (d)
 * 1960 - Franco Cerri Quartet
 * 1960 - Franco Cerri Quartet and Choristers
 * 1961 - Franco Cerri International Jazz Meeting
 * 1963 - Bossa nova (Columbia, QPX 8043)
 * 1964 - ''Chitarra, QPX 8059)
 * 1966 - 12 bacchette per una chitarra
 * 1968 - La sera a casa con te (CGD, POP 73)
 * 1970 - Franco Cerri Jazz (Dire, FO 338)
 * 1973 - Metti una sera Cerri (Music, LPM 2012; with Nando De Luca (p), Pino Presti (elb), Tullio De Piscopo (d)
 * 1974 - From Cathetus to Cicero, with Stefano Cerri (elb) and Gianluigi Trovesi (t.sax)
 * 1975 - A Limen
 * 1975 - Querce platani e cerri
 * 1976 - Nuages (Dischi Ricordi)
 * 1976 - Franco, Tony e Pompeo (Mallobia, LP 003; with Tony Scott (clarinet) and Bunny Foy (v)
 * 1977 - Un suo modo di dire (Dire, FO 347)
 * 1978 - Noi duero
 * 1979 - Demoiselle
 * 1981 - Omaggio a Bill Evans (Dire, FO 361; with Enrico Intra (p) and Lucio Terzano) (b)
 * 1982 - Effetto Alfa
 * 1984 - Franco Cerri Today! (Dire, FO 372)
 * 1985 - From Milan to Frankfurt
 * 1990 - Jazz in Italy (with Enrico Intra quartet; Ariston Records, ARJ/701)
 * 1990 - Di jazz in jazz (Dire, FO386)
 * 1993 - Cerri & Cerri
 * 1995 - A Django, en souvenir de Milan
 * 1997 - From Milan to Brussels
 * 1998 - Images
 * 1999 - Di Jazz in Cerri...di Cerri in Jazz
 * 2000 - In punta di Cerri
 * 2003 - From Cathetus to Cicero (re-edit - CD)
 * 2004 - Ieri & oggi (re-edit of Metti Una sera Cerri + bonus tracks - CD)
 * 2006 - Just Smile with Renato Sellani (p), Gianni Basso (ts), Matteo Brancaleoni (voc), Massimo Moriconi (b), Stefano Bagnoli (dr), Fabrizio Bosso (tr), (host)
 * 2011 - Bossa with Strings (Blue Serge)
 * 2012 - Cerrimedioatutto (M.A.P. Golden Jazz)

As sideman

 * 1971 - Parabola (Roberto Vecchioni)
 * 1972 - Saldi di fine stagione (Roberto Vecchioni)
 * 1973 - L'uomo che si gioca il cielo a dadi (Roberto Vecchioni)
 * 1990 - A briglia sciolta (Caterina Valente)
 * 2001 - Go man! (Nicola Arigliano)
 * 2006 - Just Smile (Matteo Brancaleoni)
 * 2010 - Bossa & Friends (Alvaro Belloni, with Giovanni Falzone, Rudy Migliardi, Attilio Zanchi and Riccardo Fioravanti
 * 2013 - Shirley Bunnie Foy (60th Anniversary) (Shirley Bunnie Foy)