“They jabbed each other, they challenged each other, and underneath they even loved each other. But underneath the jokes and self-serving feuds, it was clear that a new generational awareness was emerging. The heroes of that Renaissance were savoring the exciting and risky taste of power that their role suddenly brought them. Never before had such a large population entrusted a generation of songwriters with the task of capturing a collective feeling. “

1979-1980-1981, the years of De André, Dalla, Vasco, Battisti, De Gregori, Pino Daniele, Battiato, Guccini, Rino Gaetano and many Others.

This story begins on August 27, 1979, the day Sardinian bandits kidnapped Fabrizio De André and Dori Ghezzi, and ends on September 21, 1981, with the release of Franco Battiato’s most famous album “La voce del padrone.” It covers little more than two years, but explodes with concentrated intensity. During this truly astonishing golden age for Italian music, the most exceptional and talented songwriters lived the crucial moments of their careers in the context of Italian history.

The story unfolds like a diary of events, in a fast-paced chronological cadence that weaves the lives and musical stories of nine protagonists: Fabrizio De André, Lucio Dalla, Vasco Rossi, Lucio Battisti, Francesco De Gregori, Pino Daniele, Franco Battiato, Francesco Guccini and Rino Gaetano. Over the years, these stories also intersect with other important artists of songwriting such as Gianna Nannini, Edoardo Bennato, Paolo Conte, Giorgio Gaber, Roberto Vecchioni, Antonello Venditti and others. Above all, these stories are inextricable from the most significant events in Italian history: we find a country fresh from the shock of the assassination of Prime Minister Aldo Moro, undergoing a profound transformation, torn between the end of the terrorist Years of Lead, and the beginnings of the roaring eighties.

The Sky Burned with Stars is like a hit playlist that soundtracks an intense and unforgettable time in history. These were years full of love and death, happiness and pain, in which the songs seemed to be the most authentic and powerful novels of their time, filled with vital passion, collective feeling, and civic consciousness. This could only be called a renaissance of Italian music, with songs so powerful that they have left a deep mark that still remains today.

GINO CASTALDO is one of Italy’s most respected music critics, his words and images have narrated the history of the biggest names in Italian and international music for over forty years

Do you want to know more about the author and keynote speaker Gino Castaldo?
Visit his page!