Segreto Amore

Recording information: Studio Forum, Roma.
Photographer: Fabio Lovino.
This compilation of Renato Zero's love songs was released in Italy in late November 2010, as the cult artist was enjoying a very productive and commercially successful spell. Most of these tracks are culled from Zero's albums of the 1990s, with only two tracks representing the first 22 years of a career that harks back to 1970. But for the exception of "Cercami" and "Dimmi Chi Dorme Accanto a Me," both taken from 1998's Amore Dopo Amore, there are no singles present, but rather album tracks and fan favorites. For the uninitiated, the going can get a bit monotonous, as most selections are winding, atmospheric ballads, all dealing with basically two subjects: love and sex. The album's main attraction, however, are its two new songs, the much publicized "Segreto Amore" in which the always controversial Zero, after just having turned 60, reassesses his sexuality, and "Roma," the last in a long line of song tributes to the Eternal City. For fans only. ~ Mariano Prunes