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Francesco Guccini is one of the most admired of the Italian cantautori of the 1970s, part of a generation that changed the face and principles of Italian popular music. Among peers such as Fabrizio de André, Francesco De Gregori, Lucio Dalla, or Paolo Conte, Guccini stands out for his fiercely uncompromising stance, which has translated into a career of remarkable aesthetic and ideological coherence. A poetic, if rather fatalistic, observer of life with a keen eye for the locale of the Italian provinces, Guccini's songs are tales of existential anguish over the passing of time and the regret over missed opportunities, lost causes, and friends. In the context of Italian culture, however, Guccini's persona is arguably as significant as his music. He has come to represent a lone, incorruptible moral force even to younger audiences and colleagues who do not necessarily or readily identify with the cantautori genre. Born on June 14, 1940 -- four days after Italy entered World War Two -- Gu...