56	57	58	59
60	61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69
70	71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79
80	81	82	83	84	85	86	87	88	89
90	91	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99
00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21

Italy: a country synonymous with great music. They take their music seriously there, and it shows in the songs they've entered (including a five minute epic in 1957 that inspired the introduction of the time rule). Throughout the '60s, Italy gave us powerful, rousing swirls of emotion, wrapped up in martial rhythms and replete with arm gestures. It was very much their golden age. Italy knew a good thing when they saw it, and this extended to their choice of performers: this list contains only six artists, with two entries for Gigliola Cinquetti, two for Claudio Villa, and three for the Rupert Pupkin of Eurovision: Domenico Modugno.

The '70s proved more of a mixed bag for Italy, and a perceived lack of home interest led to two temporary withdrawls from the contest in the 1980s, followed by two lengthier exits in the 1990s. Italy were absent from Eurovision for the whole of the '00s, and were only lured back in 2011 by the promise of protection from the horror of the semi-finals. So it is that Italy are now part of the "Big Five". Ten years later and they even overcame the curse of that, being only the second of the semi-final-proof nations to bag a victory.

	1pt	1964	AV: 4th Eur: 1st
	Gigliola Cinquetti - "Non ho l'età"
	Italy's first contest winner is moody and undeniably beautiful, with some fetching bass-kicks and a martial chorus. It was so overwhelmingly affecting on the night that the ensuing audience applause demanded a second curtain-call for singer Gigliola Cinquetti. The BBC even gave an unscheduled repeat of the number the following afternoon. Such reactions were over the top, but it's pleasant enough.
	2pts	1990	AV: unplaced Eur: 1st
	Toto Cutugno - "Insieme: 1992"
	Italy won the contest in 1990 with a shameless anthem to European economic unity that happened by chance to also fit events in Germany. Toto Cutugno's "Insieme: 1992" anticipates the signing of the Maastricht treaty, the formation of the European Union and the creation of the single market, which is a silly thing to sing a song about. It is the regular repetition of the English lyric "Unite unite Europe!" coupled to a lightly emotional and vaguely rousing pop-rock ballad that doubtless captured the judges' sentimental hearts. Others of a more cynical bent (i.e. us) might find it a bit disturbing, but there can be no doubting that this is a memorable and somewhat effective song. The singer, however, is still wanted for crimes against Eurovision presentation that he committed in 1991.
	3pts	1962	AV: 8th Eur: 9th
	Claudio Villa - "Addio, addio"
	There's something of the Shatner about Claudio Villa as he emotes with his hands to great effect. He begs us to listen to him, but as emphatic as his performance may be, all the gesturing comes over a little empty. A somewhat typical Italian entry but not an especially good one.
	4pts	1961	AV: 2nd Eur: =5th
	Betty Curtis - "Al di là"
	In 1961, Italy captured a winning formula (though didn't win with it) in the form of the sing-along-able 'la-la-la'-ing of the passionate and building "Al di là". If anything, they didn't make enough of what could have been a truly anthemic chorus. Instead the whole thing seems a little bottom-heavy, saving too much of the best till last.
	5pts	1977	AV: unplaced Eur: 13th
	Mia Martini - "Libera"
	A somewhat squealy performance, this, and far from the best of the class of '77, but it's repetitious enough to get lodged in the brain, and wilder than most Italian entries.
	6pts	1967	AV: 6th Eur: 11th
	Claudio Villa - "Non andare più lontano"
	For the second time, Italy employed the tenor Claudio Villa. This ravishing entry builds brilliantly, and in a much more balanced and impressive way than the almost digital "Al di là".
	7pts	1959	AV: 5th Eur: =6th
	Domenico Modugno - "Piove (Ciao, ciao bambina)"
	The first of three entries in this chart for Domenico Modugno (all three of his Eurovision performances, in fact). This is effectively a windy rehash of the previous year's Italian entry (the next entry in this list), but with some precipitous strings thrown in for good measure.
	8pts	1958	AV: 5th Eur: 18th
	Domenico Modugno - "Nel blu dipinto di blu"
	1958 is notable mainly for the presence of the internationally successful song "Volare", here disguised under its original name: "Nel blu dipinto di blu", and being conducted by Semprini.
	10pts	1966	AV: 5th Eur: =17th
	Domenico Modugno - "Dio, come ti amo"
	Domenico Modugno returned to represent Italy again in 1966, and delivered by far the best of his three songs. This is an eerie, moody thing with steel guitars, a creepy organ and an impassioned, rousing chorus, redolent of somebody in a fugue state wandering in the Tower Ballroom and remembering a past life. It is a hauntingly beautiful song and only misses out on the top spot in this list by virtue of a tie-breaker. Europe placed it last. Last. Italy's worst ever result. If ever there were an illustration of Europe's wrong-headedness, and a good reason for Italy's subsequent disinterest in the competition, it was that sorry fact.
	12pts	1974	AV: 1st Eur: 2nd
	Gigliola Cinquetti - "Si"
	Ten years after her Eurovision victory, Cinquetti returned with this weird and rather beautifully haunted song (cf. "Dio, come ti amo"). A minor verse flits about the place and develops into a lovely, swaying chorus with lush backing vocals, which rattles against the rafters before entering a paranoid and frenetic second verse and going on to a delicious torch-waving finalé. Europe placed it second to a certain song by ABBA, which has gained it some trivia status, as has the fact that Italian television chose not to broadcast their own entry lest its affirmative theme interfere with the outcome of an abortion referendum.