Paolo Conte (; born 6 January 1937) is an Italian singer, pianist, songwriter and lawyer known for his distinctly grainy, resonant voice. His compositions fuse Italian and Mediterranean sounds with

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

boogie Boogie is a repetitive, swung note or shuffle rhythm,Burrows, Terry (1995). ''Play Country Guitar'', p.42. Dorling Kindersley Limited, London. . "groove" or pattern used in blues which was originally played on the piano in boogie-woogie mus ...

and elements of the French and Latin-American rhythms.

Career

Conte was born in

Asti Asti ( , , ; pms, Ast ) is a '' comune'' of 74,348 inhabitants (1-1-2021) located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and it is deeme ...

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. His parents were avid jazz fans and Conte and his younger brother Giorgio spent their formative years listening to a lot of early jazz and blues recordings. After obtaining a law degree at the University of Parma, Conte started working as an assistant solicitor with his father, simultaneously pursuing his musical studies. He learned to play the trombone, the vibraphone and the piano, and formed a jazz band with his brother on guitar. Conte's skill for composing music and original arrangements was noted by music producer Lilli Greco, who paired Conte with lyricist Vito Pallavicini. They wrote songs for

Adriano Celentano Adriano Celentano (; born 6 January 1938) is an Italian musician, singer, composer, actor, and filmmaker. He is dubbed "''il Molleggiato''" (the springy one) because of his dancing. Celentano's many albums frequently enjoyed both commercial and ...

Azzurro "Azzurro" is an Italian pop song composed by Paolo Conte and Vito Pallavicini. Its most famous version was recorded by Adriano Celentano in 1968. Background Conte and Pallavicini wrote "Azzurro" especially for Celentano. The song describes a l ...

", 1968),

Caterina Caselli Caterina Caselli (born 10 April 1946) is an Italian record producer, music executive, singer and bass player. Biography Caselli was born in Modena but grew up in Sassuolo. She started her music career by playing bass in local clubs. In 1966 s ...

("Insieme a te non ci sto più", 1968),

Fausto Leali Faustino (Fausto) Leali (born 29 October 1944, Nuvolento, Brescia, Italy) is an Italian pop singer. Early life Leali began his musical career as a singer in several bands in his native Brescia. His first guitar teacher was Tullio Romano, of th ...

("Deborah", 1968) and

Enzo Jannacci Vincenzo Jannacci (3 June 1935 – 29 March 2013), more commonly known as Enzo Jannacci (), was an Italian singer-songwriter, pianist, actor and comedian. He is regarded as one of the most important artists in the post-war Italian music scene. ...

("Messico e nuvole", 1970). In 1974 Conte recorded his first album, ''Paolo Conte''. The following year, he released another eponymous album. Following a series of well-received shows at Club Tenco in

Sanremo Sanremo (; lij, Sanrémmo(ro) or , ) or San Remo is a city and comune on the Mediterranean coast of Liguria, in northwestern Italy. Founded in Roman times, it has a population of 55,000, and is known as a tourist destination on the Italian Rivie ...

in 1976 and the commercial success of his third album, 'Un gelato al limon', Conte concentrated almost exclusively on his solo career. Some of Conte's most popular songs have been used as film soundtracks, including "Come Di" in '' I Am David'' (2003) and '' Mickey Blue Eyes'' (1999), "Via con me" in ''

French Kiss A French kiss, also known as cataglottism or a tongue kiss, is an amorous kiss in which the participants' tongues extend to touch each other's lips or tongue. A kiss with the tongue stimulates the partner's lips, tongue and mouth, which are se ...

'' (1995), '' Mostly Martha'' (2001) and ''

Welcome to Collinwood ''Welcome to Collinwood'' is a 2002 American caper comedy film written and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and starring William H. Macy, Isaiah Washington, Sam Rockwell, Michael Jeter (in his last movie, during his lifetime), Luis Guzmán, Pa ...

'' (2002). In addition, Conte's song "L’orchestrina" is featured during the end credits for episodes 3 and 4 of the television series ''

The New Pope ''The New Pope'' is a drama television series created and directed by Paolo Sorrentino for Sky Atlantic, HBO and Canal+. It is a continuation of the 2016 series ''The Young Pope'', originally announced as its second season. The nine-episode ser ...

'' (2020)''.'' In 1997 Conte won the

Nastro d'Argento for Best Score The ''Nastro d'Argento'' (Silver Ribbon) is a film award assigned each year, since 1946, by ''Sindacato Nazionale dei Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani'' ("Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists"), the association of Italian film critic ...

for the film ''

La freccia azzurra ''How the Toys Saved Christmas'' is a 1996 Italian animated film directed by Enzo D'Alò, based on a tale by Gianni Rodari. In the original version, the story took place during the Epiphany Eve, because in the Folklore of Italy the Befana is a ...

''.

Awards

On 24 March 1999, Conte was awarded the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, by President

Giorgio Napolitano Giorgio Napolitano (; born 29 June 1925) is an Italian politician who served as president of Italy from 2006 to 2015, the first Italian president to be re-elected to the presidency. Due to his dominant position in Italian politics, some critics ...

for his "outstanding cultural achievements". On 15 May 2001, France ordered Paolo Conte

Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

dans l'

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

. In 2015, Conte was awarded the Premio Galileo for contemporary music in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

. Conte has also received several honorary doctorates, including one from the

University of Macerata The University of Macerata ( it, Università degli Studi di Macerata) is a public university located in Macerata, Italy. It is one of the oldest universities in Europe that are still functioning.https://thefunkonme.com/top-10-oldest-universities ...

(1990).

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Paolo Conte'' (1974) * ''Paolo Conte'' (1975) * ''Un gelato al limon'' (1979) * ''Paris milonga'' (1981) * ''Appunti di viaggio'' (1982) *'' Paolo Conte'' (1984) * ''Aguaplano'' (1987, double album - the Japanese and German releases were issued as two separate albums, the second titled ''Jimmy Ballando'' in 1989) * ''Parole d'amore scritte a macchina'' (1990) * ''900'' (1992) * ''Una faccia in prestito'' (1995) * '' Razmataz'' (2000) * ''Elegia'' (2004) * ''Psiche'' (2008) * ''Nelson'' (2010) * ''Snob'' (2014) * ''Amazing Game'' (2016)

Live albums

* ''Concerti'' (1985) * ''Paolo Conte Live'' (1988) * ''Paolo Conte - Haris Alexiou'' (1990) * ''Tournée'' (1993) * ''Tournée 2'' (1998) * ''Paolo Conte Live Arena di Verona'' (2005) * ''Live in Caracalla – 50 Years of Azzurro'' (2018)

Greatest Hits albums

* ''Come Di'' (1986, French release) * ''Collezione'' (1988)Musicmeter
/ref> * ''Boogie'' (1990) * ''Wanda, stai seria con la faccia ma però'' (1992) * ''The Best of Paolo Conte'' (1996) * ''Reveries'' (2003) * ''Wonderful'' (2006) * ''Gong-oh'' (2011) * ''The Platinum Collection'' (2014)

References

External links

*
Paolo Conte's website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conte, Paolo 1937 births Living people Italian male singers Italian singer-songwriters Italian jazz pianists Italian male pianists 20th-century Italian musicians 21st-century Italian musicians People from Asti David di Donatello winners Nastro d'Argento winners 21st-century pianists 20th-century Italian male musicians 21st-century Italian male musicians Male jazz musicians Jazz vibraphonists