Music to watch bikes by: Rapha issues Giro CD

Even if you don’t own any of their kit, you’ll know that Rapha as a brand isn’t just about the clothes; whether you’re reading beautifully produced books such Graeme Fife’s The Great Road Climbs of the Pyrenees or enjoying a cup of its own blend coffee at the recently-owned Rapha Cycle Club in London, Rapha in its own words is about “celebrating the glory and suffering of road riding” – and now, that has been carried over into music with the launch of an album celebrating the Giro d’Italia.

The CD, The Giro: Music Inspired by the Giro d’Italia, is the first in a series that will celebrate the world’s great bike races, and is promised to be “an eclectic mix of hand-picked contemporary and catalogue tracks that look to capture the excitement and colour of one of Italy’s greatest sporting occasions.”

Among the 21 tracks, you’ll find pieces by classical opera composers Verdi and Puccini, legendary Italian singer songwriters Paolo Conte and Lucio Battisti and British dance duo Coldcut, with each chosen “to capture the atmosphere and essence of the Giro d'Italia.”

Those are interspersed with sounds of fans and the caravan recorded at the Giro itself, and there’s also a commentary from the man who voiced the 1974 film, The Greatest Show On Earth, which followed Eddy Merckx on his way to winning his fifth and final Giro.

Cover artwork includes photos from Daniel Sharp, and the CD, which costs £12, can be ordered via the Rapha website, or bought at Rapha Cycle Club on London's Clerkenwell Road.