Author: Donato Zoppo

From the late Sixties until his death in 1998, Lucio Battisti revolutionised Italian song. He opened it to the most diverse foreign influences, experimented with every aspect in progressive solitude until he eventually fell silent. This enthralling read tells the whole story of Battisti and comes packed with anecdotes, interviews, timelines and quotes.

Read the story of how Battisti’s music and Mogol’s lyrics accompanied the private life of Italians, becoming the soundtrack to a people’s sentimental education, and how Battisti built up to his hermetic phase, where his music, combined with the lyrics by Pasquale Panella, showed how restless and unique he was in his artistic search.

The book tells about the even excessively enigmatic, fleeting and withdrawn figure of Battisti – a singer who held very few concerts and turned down interviews and TV appearances, letting his art speak for him.

60 years of stories told through records. Which was the first concept album in the history of rock? Who invented Sergeant Pepper? How did the idea for The Wall come about? What happened to works of rock after we entered the digital age? And how have they survived the playlist culture?

The book has been designed like a compelling tale to answer this and countless other questions. From jukeboxes to Spotify, from LPs to MP3s, the evolution of concept albums goes in step with the ever-evolving technology of the music industry. Here, you will find detailed studies and learn everything about the history of concept albums and of veritable works of rock.