Al Bano and Romina Power are an Italian-American pop music duo formed in 1975 by then-married couple Italian tenor Albano Carrisi and American singer Romina Power, the daughter of Hollywood actor Tyrone Power. They have recorded over 22 albums, which have sold in 150 million copies across six decades.[citation needed] Their best known international hits include "Felicità", "Sharazan", "Tu, soltanto tu (Mi hai fatto innamorare)", "Ci sarà", "Sempre sempre", and "Libertà!". They participated twice in Eurovision Song Contest in 1976 and 1985 and performed five times at Sanremo Music Festival, winning in 1984 with the song "Ci sarà". The couple also shot seven films, based on their songs, between 1967 and 1984. The two separated in 1999 and divorced in 2012, but reunited professionally in 2013.
Albano Carrisi met Romina Power, daughter of American actor Tyrone Power, during the filming of the movie Nel sole, named after one of his songs, in 1967. He had already released a number of solo recordings and she by then had appeared in several Italian films. The two married in 1970 in Cellino San Marco. Their debut single, "Storia di due innamorati", was released the same year by the labels La voce del padrone and Odeon, and went on to become a minor hit in Italy. The song appeared on Al Bano's solo album A cavallo di due stili. Power also released three solo albums between 1969 and 1974.
Al Bano & Romina Power in 1976
In 1975, the couple released their first album as a duo, Atto I (also known as Dialogo and Arena blanca, mar azul), which included popular song "Dialogo". They represented Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 1976 with the song "We'll Live It All Again", sung in Italian and English, and finished seventh.[1] They also recorded the song in Spanish and in French, as "Viviremos todo de nuevo" and "T'aimer encore une fois", respectively. The duo then made several recordings in French, including hits "Des nuits entières" and "Enlacés sur le sable" (French version of "Prima notte d'amore").
In 1981, they released the single "Sharazan", which went on to become their breakthrough international hit, and released a Spanish language album. In 1982, the duo broke Italian records by having four songs on the Italian hit parade at the same time.[citation needed] The same year, they participated in the Sanremo Music Festival with the song "Felicità", and finished second.[2][failed verification] The song became widely popular, selling in over 6 million copies and receiving "German Golden Globe 1982".[citation needed] It appeared on their next album, Felicità (released as Aria pura in some territories[3]), which was a chart success. The album was also recorded in Spanish and released as Felicidad. The duo would maintain the tradition of recording Spanish versions of their albums in the following years.
Al Bano and Romina released yet one more album in 1982, Che angelo sei, with another big hit "Tu, soltanto tu (Mi hai fatto innamorare)". Their 1983 compilation Amore mio was met with a great commercial success in German-speaking countries. In 1984, they won the Sanremo Music Festival with the song "Ci sarà" from their album Effetto amore, gathering over 2 million votes.[4] In 1985, they participated in the Eurovision Song Contest for the second and final time, with the song "Magic Oh Magic" and, again, took the seventh place.[5]
In 1986, Al Bano and Romina Power signed a contract with WEA and recorded the album Sempre sempre, which confirmed their international success. The song "Settembre" featured the voice of their baby daughter Cristel, while for "Lord Byron" they used recordings of Byron's poetry by Tyrone Power. In 1987, they participated in the Sanremo Festival with the song "Nostalgia canaglia" and came third.[6] The album Libertà! was released in the same year. The couple's daughter Ylenia sang a duet with Romina in "Abbi fede". In 1988, the couple released the album Fragile, and the following year, took part in Sanremo Music Festival with the song "Cara terra mia", placing at the third position.[6] The single was a minor chart hit in Italy.
In 1990, they released the album Fotografia di un momento, with the successful single "Donna per amore", followed by the Christmas album Weihnachten bei uns zu Hause released in Germany, which later appeared in Italy as Corriere di Natale. In 1991, Al Bano and Romina Power participated in the Sanremo Music Festival for the fifth and final time as a duo, this time around with the song "Oggi sposi", placing at the eighth position.[6] In the same year, they celebrated 25 years of their joint artistic career and released two greatest hits anthologies: Le più belle canzoni (in Italy) and Vincerai (in Europe). They also wrote an autobiography and released a video, both entitled Autoritratto dalla A alla R.
Their daughter Ylenia Carrisi disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 1994 in New Orleans, which prompted Al Bano and Romina to withdraw from touring in order to dedicate themselves to the search for their daughter. Her case remains unsolved.[7] In 1995, the couple released their last studio album together, Emozionale, followed by a video version, Una vita emozionale. In 1996, Al Bano participated solo in the Sanremo Music Festival, singing "È la mia vita", while Romina took part in the television mini-series The Return of Sandokan. Together, they released the compilation Ancora... Zugabe. In 1997, he released a solo album Concerto classico, and she published a book about her father, entitled Cercando mio padre in 1998.
In 1999, the couple separated. In an open letter to the weekly magazine Oggi, Al Bano explained the reasons for their break-up as related to the disappearance of their daughter.[8] The two reunited in 2013, reportedly only on a professional basis, for a concert performance in Moscow (their first live performance together in sixteen years). They continued to perform live as a duo in 2014 and 2015, including at Sanremo 2015.[9]
The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival, is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annual TV music competition in the world on a national level and it is also the basis and inspiration for the annual Eurovision Song Contest.
Salvatore "Toto" Cutugno was an Italian pop singer-songwriter and musician. He was best known for his worldwide hit song, "L'Italiano", released on his 1983 album of the same title. Cutugno also won the Eurovision Song Contest 1990 held in Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia, with the song "Insieme: 1992", for which he wrote both the lyrics and music. He has been described as "one of the most popular singers in Italy and a symbol of Italian melody abroad", as well as "one of the most popular Italian performers on a global scale" and "one of the most successful Italian songwriters of all time", selling over 100 million records worldwide.
Romina Francesca Power is an American actress and singer born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of Tyrone Power and actress Linda Christian. With ex-husband Albano Carrisi, she formed the music duo Al Bano & Romina Power, which gained popularity in many parts of the world during the 1980s.
Albano Antonio Carrisi, better known as Al Bano, is an Italian tenor and actor. Having sold over 25 million records globally and career spanning seven decades, he is one of the most recognisable Italian singers in the world. He has gained worldwide notability due to his four and a half octave vocal range as well as his personal and professional association with Romina Power, daughter of Hollywood actor Tyrone Power, lasting until the 1990s. Carrisi is acclaimed for singing with operatic affinity in pop, rock and italo disco repertoires with extensive head voice and minimal usage of falsetto vocal register. As of 2023, he has participated in 15 editions of the Sanremo Music Festival, tying the record for most participations with Anna Oxa, Milva, Peppino di Capri and Toto Cutugno; this includes a victory in 1984 duetting with Power. He additionally took part in the Sanremo Giovani selection in 1965.
Negramaro is an Italian pop band formed in 1999 and successful since 2005. Their name stems from Negroamaro, a wine produced in their native district, Salento in Apulia.
Anna Hoxha, known professionally as Anna Oxa, is an Italian singer, actress and television presenter. She has received mainstream popularity and recognition within Italy due to her numerous participations in the Sanremo Music Festival.
"We'll Live It All Again" was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976, performed in Italian and English by Al Bano and Romina Power. This was the country's first entry not to be sung entirely in Italian, and one of only three between the country's debut and its 1998–2010 hiatus. Bano and Power also recorded the song in Spanish and French, entitled "Viviremos todo de nuevo" and "T'aimer encore une fois" respectively. The latter was a chart hit in France. In 1982, they re-recorded "We'll Live It All Again" for their Spanish language album Felicidad, then with new lyrics and retitled "Vivirlo otra vez".
"Per Lucia" was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1983, performed in Italian by Riccardo Fogli.
Raffaele Riefoli is an Italian singer-songwriter who is better known as simply Raf.
Maria Chiara Fraschetta, better known by her stage name Nina Zilli, is an Italian singer-songwriter. After releasing her debut single "50mila", she achieved commercial success with the album Sempre lontano, released after participating in the newcomers' section of the Sanremo Music Festival 2010. During the Sanremo Music Festival 2012, Zilli was chosen to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan, where she placed 9th with the song "L'amore è femmina ", included in her second studio album. Zilli returned to the Sanremo Music Festival in 2015, and competed with the song "Sola" from her upcoming album, Frasi&Fumo. She was also a judge of Italia's Got Talent from 2015 to 2017.
The discography of the Sanremo Music Festival winners includes all the winning singles of the annual Festival della Canzone Italiana, an Italian song contest better known as the Sanremo Music Festival, held in the Ligurian city of the same name since 1951 and broadcast by RAI. As of 2023, the Festival has awarded 73 songs, but from 1953 to 1955, from 1957 to 1971, in 1990 and in 1991, each entry was performed by two different acts, resulting in two different releases for each winning song, for a total of 93 singles.
The musicarello is a film subgenre which emerged in Italy and which is characterised by the presence in main roles of young singers, already famous among their peers, and their new record album. In the films there are almost always tender and chaste love stories accompanied by the desire to have fun and dance without thoughts. Musicarelli reflect the desire and need for emancipation of young Italians, highlighting some generational frictions. The genre began in the late 1950s, and had its peak of production in the 1960s.
"Nel sole" is a song composed by Al Bano, Pino Massara and Vito Pallavicini, and performed by Al Bano. The song marked his first commercial success, and launched his career as a singer. The single peaked at first place four weeks on the Italian hit parade and sold about one million and half copies. The song named a film, Nel sole, directed by Aldo Grimaldi and starred by the same Al Bano and his then-wife Romina Power.
Champagne in paradiso is a 1984 Italian musicarello comedy film directed by Aldo Grimaldi and starring Al Bano and Romina Power. It is the last film of the couple.
The Sanremo Music Festival 1984, officially the 34th Italian Song Festival, was the 34th annual Sanremo Music Festival, held at the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo, province of Imperia, between 2 and 4 February 1984 and broadcast by Rai 1.
"Felicità" is a song by Italian-American duo Al Bano and Romina Power, released in 1982. It was an international commercial success and remains arguably their best-known song.
Felicità is a studio album by Italian duo Al Bano and Romina Power, released in 1982 by Baby Records. The album was an international commercial success and included two of their biggest hits, "Felicità" and "Sharazan".
"Ci sarà" is a song by Italian duo Al Bano and Romina Power, released in 1984. It was met with an international commercial success and remains one of their best-known hits.
Cristiano Minellono is an Italian songwriter and actor. He is also known as Popi Minellono.
Italy participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Occidentali's Karma", written by Francesco Gabbani, Filippo Gabbani, Luca Chiaravalli and Fabio Ilacqua. The song was performed by Francesco Gabbani. Italian broadcaster Radiotelevisione italiana (RAI) announced in October 2016 that the winning performer(s) of the Big Artists section of the Sanremo Music Festival 2017 would earn the right to represent the nation at the Eurovision Song Contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. The selected performer would also be given the right to choose their own song to compete with at Eurovision. In February 2017, Francesco Gabbani emerged as the winner of Sanremo with the song "Occidentali's Karma". The artist accepted the invitation to represent Italy at Eurovision and decided that "Occidentali's Karma" would be his contest entry.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
