The Very Best of Italian Rock 2 : Famous Male Solo Singers (with videos)

The Best of Italian Rock 2 : Famous Male Solo Artists

The Italians love to sing and with their famous tradition in Opera that comes as no surprise. But outside of their native land not many Italian Rock singers are that well known.

This is unfortunate because there is plenty of good music to have come out of Italy over the years. So here is a selection of some of the best male solo artists that the country has produced.

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Luciano Ligabue

The best of the best from Italy as far as I'm concerned. A brilliant Rock artist.

Luciano is the Italian 'Springsteen' with a discography of great Rock songs and the adulation of many thousands of fans.

Famous in France as well as Italy he has never broke the international scene probably only because he doesn't sing in English.

No matter as songs like 'Ancora la Forza', 'Buonanotte all'Italia', ''Tutti Vogliono Viaggiare in Prima', 'Certi Notti', 'Balliamo sul Mondo', 'Questa é la mia Vita', 'Il Centro del Mundo' and many many more just speak for themselves.

Vasco Rossi

A true Rock star in his native country with 24 albums to his name so far and still going strong. The husky voice of Vasco Rossi sells out large arenas and even stadiums like the San Siro in Milan.

Vasco is typical of many Italian singers in that he combines many different styles of music and avoids being pigeon-holed.

This song 'Basta Poco' is a lively Rock song with a fantastic chorus. A really uplifting tune. Other songs to give a spin are 'Dillo Alla Luna', the power ballad 'Un Senso', also 'Eh...Giá', and the atmospheric 'Sto Pensando A Te' which is another magnificent ballad.

Claudio Baglioni

After struggling through the start of his career in the 1960's, Claudio first became popular in the 1970's and has remained at the top ever since.

Many of his tunes are lounge-style ballads evocative of the cool laid-back lifestyle of an Italian summer. Among his most famous are 'Et tu', 'Mille Giorni di Ye e di Me' and 'Avrai'

However, this song 'Un Po' d'Aiuto' is one of his more modern songs and one of the best. A fine example of Soft Rock with a catchy melody it shows how he has kept up with the times over the years. Another excellent Acoustic-Rock number is 'Strada Facendo' which is also worth a listen.

Zucchero Fornaciari

Perhaps the most famous Italian Rockstar in an international context Zucchero has sold millions of records all over the world.

With a substantial influence from Blues and Gospel music it is no surprise that he is a passionate singer.

His most famous tune outside of Italy would be his re-working of 'Senza la Donna', a duet with English singer Paul Young back in 1991.

Other big hits were 'Diamante' with Randy Crawford, 'Miserere' with Pavorotti, 'Baila Morena', 'Una Carezza' and 'É un Peccato Morir'.

Alessandro Raina

Alessandro started his solo career in the late 1990's although he has also appeared with band Giardino di Miró in 2003 and other collaborations such as with Amor Fou in 2007.

A former journalist Inspired by Indie and Electronic Rock he even dropped out of music to work in a fashion house for a while.

Songs to look out for are 'My Fragile Family' , 'Casador' and 'Em's Song'

Piero Pelú

Having gained fame with band Litfiba in the 1980's and 90's Piero split with the band in 1999 to embark on a solo career.

As this song 'Buongiorno Mattina' demonstrates he is definitely a straight down the middle Rock artist both in sound and visual style.

Other great tunes from Piero are 'Io Ci Saró', 'Amore Immaginato', 'Prendimi Cosi' and 'Vivere il Mio Tempo'

Ray Tarantino

Influenced by the likes of Bob Dylan and Pink Floyd Ray studied in England and then embarked on his musical career.

He toured extensively throughout Europe before releasing his debut album 'Recusant' in 2009. This was followed up by another album 'Give and Take' in 2011.

This song 'Five O'Clock in the Morning' is one of his best along with 'Finding Rhymes', 'Gypsy Acrobat' and 'I'll Be Back Someday'

Ivan Graziani

A performer since the early 1970's singer and guitarist Ivan Graziani was an exuberant rock n' roller.

With his music imbibed with a flair and a sense of humour he was a popular figure in Italian music. This song 'Monnalisa' exemplifies this spirit of fun.

Other songs to check out are 'Pigro', 'Minu', 'Lugana Addio' and the ballad 'Signora Bionda dei Ciliegi' .

Sadly he died relatively young at the age of 51 in 1997.

Eros Ramazzotti

Although only really well-known within Italy and Spain, Eros has sang on duets with many famous international artists.

These include Cher, Tina Turner, Joe Cocker and Ricky Martin among others. His style is specialised in Pop ballads but also some Soft Rock with especially impassioned tunes.

This song 'Bucaneve' is a prime example of that style. A well-written ballad with an electric guitar adding some solid backing and with a wonderful solo.

Also worth noting are the upbeat acoustic number 'Parla Con Me', 'Cose Della Vita' with Tina Turner, 'Un'Emozione per Sempre' and his epic 'Musica É' an incredible song with Andreas Bocelli clocking in at over 9 minutes long.

Gianluca Grignani

The archetypal Rock musician and singer Gianluca was influenced by The Beatles and then The Police.

Beset by controversy over cocaine use and even a mystery disappearance that led to rumours of his death he has nevertheless kept producing great music.

Top of the crop are the beautiful 'La Mia Storia Tra le Dita', the popular ballad 'Cammina Nel Sole', 'Desinazione Paradiso' and this song 'Il Piú Fragile'.

Alex Britti

First and foremost Alex Britti is a Jazz guitarist but such is his talent and curiosity that he has ventured into Blues and Rock. He has even collaborated with Buddy Miles and Billy Preston in the past.

Songs like 'Solo una Volta' show his breezy side and a perfect song for the summer.

But you will find other styles present in his back-catalogue and his quirky touches without ever being overly experimental lend a fun quality to much of his music.

Check out other songs like 'Fiore', 'Milano', 'Festa' and the haunting 'Nomi' which are among his best.

Max Pezzali

Formerly the lead singer with the popular band The 883 who released nine albums mainly during the 1990's.

However Max went solo in 2001 and brought out his first album in 2004.

A big fan of Rock n' Roll and motorbikes, in particular Harley Davidsons he writes about friendships, relationships sometimes with wit and humour

Some of his most popular songs are 'Eccoti', 'Il Mio Secondo Tempo', 'Il Modo Insieme A Te' 'Ritorneró' and this song 'Lo Strano Percorso'

Biagio Antonacci

More leaning towards the Pop market and balladeering Biagio has still produced some marvellous Soft Rock tunes throughout his career since 1989.

He struggled at first but in 1992 the song 'Liberatemi' and the accompanying album of the same name saw him hit his form.

Since then songs like 'Iris', 'Tra le Cose Che Non Hai' the acoustic 'Quanto Tempo e Ancora', his vocal talents on 'Ti Ricordi Perché' and the cool, relaxing 'Se è Vero Che Ci Sei' have kept him at the top of his game.

Giuseppe Povia

Another artist on the soft side of the Rock spectrum the guitar playing Povia is very popular in Italy although courting controversy on social issues.

He is well know however for using music to help charities, he also appeared at Live 8 in Rome in 2005 and has written some terrific music.

Stand out tracks include 'I Bambino Fanno Ooh', 'Ti Asseggeró Piano' and the strange talk-through song 'Centravanto di Mestiere' which ends up with a superb guitar riff reminiscent of the style of Slash.

Jovanotti

If you are looking for something really eclectic then Jovanotti exemplifies the imaginative artist who is not afraid to experiment with vastly different musical styles.

Beginning with Hip-Hop, Rap and Disco he has since developed into Funk, Ska with even Classical and foreign influences thrown in for good measure.

He had a big hit in 2010 with the song 'Baciami Ancora', an acoustic number that comes from an Italian movie of the same name. Other songs to look up depending on your taste are the funky 'Gimme Five', the drum dominated dance track 'L'Ombelico del Mondo' based on African music, 'Tutto l'Amore Che Ho', the ballad 'A Te' and this rollin rocker 'Il Più Grande Spettacolo Dopo Il Big Bang'.

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Well there's just a few of my favourites but I'm sure there are others I've left out. For that I apologise. But here a few mentions in dispatches for other notable Italian Rock artists. Namely Edoardo Bennato, Pino Daniele, Ivano Fossati, Marco Massini and Enrico Ruggeri.

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