Cutugno, Toto

• Cutugno, Salvatore

Italian pop singer/songwriter Toto Cutugno was born in the Tuscan hill town of Fosdinovo during World War II. The family later moved to the port city of La Spezia in Liguria where his Sicilian father, who played the trumpet, worked as a naval marshal. The young boy taught himself to play the drums and, at age 13, he also learned the accordion. Later would come piano, saxophone, melodica and acoustic guitar. He formed a band, Toto & Tati, and wrote his own songs. In 1974, he joined the group Albatross, which had success in France, and soon he was co-writing for singers Joe Dassin and Dalida. Other stars followed, such as Mireille Mathieu and Johnny Halliday in France as well as celebrities in Italy. Starting in 1976, his songs frequently distinguished themselves at Italy's popular Sanremo Music festival, winning a first in 1980 with “Solo noi.” In 1983, his song “L’Italiano,” took fifth at Sanremo, but became an international hit. He won the Eurovision song contest in 1990 for “Insieme 1992,” which promoted European unity and the coming European Union. The 1991 contest was presented in Rome by Cutugno and Gigliola Cinquetti, the 1964 winner (and only other Italian winner). He won second at Sanremo yet again in 2005 and continued to record songs, some of the more recent ones being “Un falco chiuso in gabbia” (2008) and “I miei Sanremo “ (2010). He has had over 100 million sales worldwide.