Sorrenti was born in
Naples to Francesco, a painter and singer, and Gwendalin Thomas a Welsh traditional singer. Both he and his younger sister Jenny spent much of their childhood in
Aberystwyth,
Wales. As a result, he is fluent in both
Italian and
English and has sung in both languages throughout his career. Sorrenti's career began in the early 1970s; he released his first album,
Aria, in 1972, followed by ''Come un vecchio incensiere all'alba di un villaggio deserto'' in 1973, both consisting mostly of
progressive rock and
experimental tracks. In 1976, Alan Sorrenti shifted genre and released tracks more reminiscent of the
dance genre. In late 1979 he scored a major European hit with the single "
Tu sei l'unica donna per me", since then covered in a number of different languages. Alan represented Italy in the
1980 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "
Non so che darei". He finished sixth in the contest but the track became one of that year's bestselling entries in Continental Europe and Scandinavia after the winner
Johnny Logan's "
What's Another Year". In 2006, Sorrenti participated in the
festival O' Scià on the
Lampedusa island. Alan's younger sister
Jenny Sorrenti is also a recording artist and has released two albums with her progressive folk/rock band
Saint Just, as well as several solo albums. == Discography ==