The son of composer and entertainer
Enrico Simonetti, he was the
keyboard player for the Italian
progressive rock band
Goblin, which initially formed under the name Cherry Five. He has been influenced by
Keith Emerson,
Brian Auger,
Rick Wakeman and
Tony Banks. Simonetti's film work includes the scores to many popular and cult films such as
Conquest (1983),
The New Barbarians (1983),
Cut and Run (1985),
Midnight Killer (1986),
Hands of Steel (1986),
Body Count (1987), and
The Versace Murder (1998). Beginning in 1978, Simonetti founded a number of electronic disco projects. In 1979, with Giancarlo Meo, he formed perhaps his best-known project behind singer
Vivien Vee (Viviana Andreattini), whose song "Give Me a Break" became a minor hit in the American dance charts. Later Vivien Vee tracks, particularly "Blue Disease" from 1983, showcased some of the darker and edgier sounds familiar from the Goblin years. Another project he was involved in was
Easy Going, with "Baby I Love You" from 1978, and "Fear" from 1979. In 1983, he was the central member of the
Italo disco group Crazy Gang. In 1999, Simonetti formed the heavy metal band Daemonia, which has recorded updated versions of Goblin favorites in addition to original material. Daemonia has also contributed tracks to U.S. DVD releases of Italian horror movies. He composed the title track "Mater Lacrimarum" for
The Mother of Tears soundtrack in 2007, which features background vocals by
Dani Filth. In 2008 Claudio Simonetti visited
Kyiv with the aim of finding a unique voice that would harmonise with his music. The composer created a duet with
Ukrainian countertenor Alex Luna. In 2009, Simonetti collaborated with the Los Angeles heavy metal band
Rusty Eye. He played keyboard on "Mondo Cane" and "Wings of the Demon" from the album
Possessor. On 16 October 2010, Simonetti with his group Daemonia took part in the event
Soundtracks – A tribute to Pino Rucher. The event was sponsored by the Municipal Authorities of
San Nicandro Garganico and
Manfredonia. Also in 2010, Simonetti reunited with his former Goblin bandmates Massimo Moranti and Maurizio Guarani along with his group Daemonia's rhythm section to form New Goblin. They played several concerts around the world. This lasted until the fall of 2013 when he left New Goblin along with Daemonia's rhythm section to reform Daemonia under the new banner Simonetti's Goblin. In 2013, he played keyboard on the "Aggregat 4" track from the
Simulakrum Lab album, a vintage synthesizers music project created by Paolo Prevosto. 2015 released with the Murder Collections, new arranged version of his film themes, include
Profondo Rosso,
Suspiria,
Tenebrae, and
Dawn of the Dead. ==Solo filmography==