Oltre (album)

Oltre - un mondo uomo sotto un cielo mago, simply known as Oltre, is the eleventh studio album by Italian songwriter Claudio Baglioni, released on 17 November 1990 by CBS Italiana, a subsidiary label of CBS Records International.

The album is characterized by world music features and it was recorded in the Real World Studios of English songwriter Peter Gabriel and in several European recording studios. Baglioni defined the album as the first of a trilogy about time: Oltre represents the past, Io sono qui is the present and Viaggiatore sulla coda del tempo represents the future.

The concept album divided critics due to its complexity and completely different format respect the previous works by Baglioni, it is also the most successful double album in Italian discography.

The album is based on a narrative inspired by Guscio, an epic poem written by Claudio Baglioni and included in the album’s box set distributed to the 500,000 fans who had pre-ordered it. Described by Baglioni as a “magical” work, it is conceived as a journey in search of one’s origins and destiny.

The album follows a stream-of-consciousness structure centered on Cucaio, Baglioni’s alter ego, whose story is told in reverse. It is divided into four sections corresponding to the four natural elements—water, fire, earth, and air—while the cover artwork, inspired by Aboriginal art, reinforces the symbolic dimension of the project.