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Al Bano | |
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 Al Bano in 2014 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Al Bano |
| Born | Albano Antonio Carrisi (1943-05-20)20 May 1943 (age 82) Cellino San Marco, Kingdom of Italy |
| Origin | Milan, Italy |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupations |
|
| Instrument | Vocals (tenor) |
| Years active | 1965–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | www |
Albano Antonio Carrisi (Italian:[alˈbaːnokarˈriːzi]; born 20 May 1943), better known asAl Bano, is an Italian singer and actor. Having sold over 25 million records globally and career spanning seven decades,[1] he is one of the most recognisable Italian singers in the world. He has gained worldwide notability due to his four and a half octavevocal range[2] as well as his personal andprofessional association withRomina Power, daughter of Hollywood actorTyrone Power, lasting until the 1990s. Carrisi is acclaimed for singing with operatic affinity inpop,rock anditalo disco repertoires with extensivehead voice and minimal usage offalsettovocal register.[3] As of 2023,[update] he has participated in 15 editions of theSanremo Music Festival, tying the record for most participations withAnna Oxa,Milva,Peppino di Capri andToto Cutugno; this includes a victory in1984 duetting with Power. He additionally took part in theSanremo Giovani selection in1965.[4]
In 2016, he was awardedAlbanian citizenship owing to his close ties with the country and a forename referring to the land.[5]
Carrisi was born in the town ofCellino San Marco in theprovince of Brindisi,Apulia, where he still lives. His mother Iolanda Ottino named him Albano because, when he was born, his father Carmelo Carrisi wasfighting in Albania for theRoyal Italian Army duringWorld War II. He has one brother, Franco Carrisi (known asKocis).
Having moved toMilan for work, he was noticed by a producer. He made his debut in 1966 both as a singer, at the Festival delle Rose, and on television.He won theUn disco per l'estate, an Italian song contest, with "Pensando a te" in 1968. He recorded some major hits such as "La siepe" and "Nel sole" at that time. "Nel sole" sold 600,000 copies in Italy within three months of release in 1967, and eventually over one million copies, and was awarded agold disc in July 1968.[6]
Soon afterwards, he started a musical collaboration withRomina Power (daughter of the American actorTyrone Power), whom he married in 1970. After their marriage, they recorded "Storia di due innamorati". They sang as the duoAl Bano & Romina Power for almost thirty years; their work has been especially popular in Italy, Austria, France, Spain, Bulgaria,Romania, Greece, Russia and Germany. They released "Dialogo" in 1975 and took part in theEurovision Song Contest 1976 with the song "We'll Live It All Again" ("Noi lo rivivremo di nuovo"). They sang "Sharazan" in 1981 and the following year they took part in theSanremo Music Festival with the song "Felicità", which came second.[7] They won first prize in 1984 singing "Ci sarà" and again took part in theEurovision Song Contest 1985 with "Magic Oh Magic". Both their Eurovision entries placed 7th.[8][9] Other hits of 1987 include: "Nostalgia canaglia" (awarded 3rd prize atFestival di Sanremo '87) and "Libertà". Those successful songs were followed by "Cara terra mia", which came in third once more at the1989 Sanremo Music Festival, and "Oggi sposi" which placed 8th at the1991 Sanremo Music Festival.
Al Bano returned to his solo career in 1996 with "È la mia vita" which was followed by "Verso il sole" in 1997 and "Ancora in volo" in 1999 (that year, his duo – and his marriage – with Romina broke up). He also played in "Herşeye Rağmen" ("Nonetheless" in Turkish) music video of Sima (full name was Sima Sarıkaya), a Turkish singer in 1997.[10] In 2000, Al Bano returned to the Eurovision stage, providing backing vocals for the Swiss entry (performed in Italian) "La vita cos'è?" performed by Jane Bogaert. This song placed 20th out of 24 in the contest. On 16 October 2001, Carrisi was nominatedGoodwill Ambassador of theFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).[11]
In 2005, he starred in the Italianreality showL'isola dei Famosi (Italian version ofCelebrity Survivor) with his daughter, Romina Carrisi. Al Bano returned toSanremo Music Festival in 2007, where he sang "Nel perdono" which came in second place.
Al Bano still tours all over the world. He is a constant on Italian television and has a large number of fans who follow his career very closely. To date Al Bano has sold 165 million albums around the world. Al Bano has visited Albania a number of times. He was there for a concert in 1989 and has been enjoying great popularity there.[citation needed]
In June 2016 Al Bano was grantedAlbanian citizenship due to his close ties with the country and career successes in Albania.[5]
In March 2019 Al Bano was included in the blacklist of the Ukrainian website "Myrotvorets" and theUkrainian government banned him from enteringUkraine because of his support of the2014 Russian annexation of Crimea.[12][13]
In April 2020 Al Bano released a dual-language song in Italian and English praising the natural beauty of Latvia.Terra d'Ambra e di Emozioni / Land of Amber was written and composed by Charles Goodger with Italian lyrics by Alberto Zeppieri. The Latvian Tourist Board used it in a promotional video.
Al Bano grew up listening toopera for which he had a great passion. He has released several opera albums and is a tenor. In 1997, he released an opera solo album 1997 entitledConcerto Classico, which went double platinum in a short time. Songs he sang on that album include "Una furtiva lagrima", "Va, pensiero", "La nostra serenata", "E lucevan le stelle", and "Ave Maria".[a]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Nel sole | Carlo Carrera | Leading role |
| 1968 | L'oro del mondo | Carlo Carrera | |
| 1969 | Il ragazzo che sorride | Giorgio | |
| Il suo nome è Donna Rosa | Andrea | ||
| Pensando a te | Carlo | ||
| 1970 | Mezzanotte d'amore | Andrea | |
| Angeli senza paradiso | Franz Schubert | ||
| 1984 | Champagne in paradiso | Marco Allegri | |
| 1985 | I promessi sposi | Renzo Tramaglino | |
| 2016 | Poveri ma ricchi | Himself | Cameo appearance |
| Quo Vado? |
On 26 July 1970, Al Bano marriedRomina Power (daughter of the American actorTyrone Power), who had already started to share her musical career with him, and remained his stage partner for about 30 years.
Carrisi and Power separated in 1999.[14] Their divorce was finalized in 2012.[15] They have a son, Yari (1973), and three daughters:Ylenia Maria Solle (1970 – went missing inNew Orleans in 1994), Cristel Chiara (1985; starred in theReality TV showLa Fattoria, an Italian version ofThe Farm) and Romina Iolanda (1987). He has one daughter and one son from girlfriend and showgirlLoredana Lecciso, Jasmine Caterina (2001) and Albano Giovanni (2002).
In the summer of 2013, Al Bano and Romina Power reunited, reportedly only on a professional basis and for one final time, for a concert performance in Moscow.[16][17] They later performed as guests at theSanremo Festival 2015. They also performed together in Atlantic City, USA, in April 2015, and following that, in Los Angeles.
On 30 May 2015, Al Bano produced a show at theArena di Verona, before a sold-out audience of 11,000, in which he starred with Romina Power. The show, featuring Tyrone Power Jr. and other special guests was transmitted by the Italian national TV networkRAI, and was watched in over eight countries by 51,000,000 viewers around the globe, a 37 ratings share.[18]
| Preceded by | Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976 (asAl Bano and Romina Power) | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 (asAl Bano and Romina Power) | Succeeded by |
