Born in 1956 in Massa, Italy, Roberto Zanetti studied piano at the age of 14. Had his first hit in 1978: Souvenir, with the band Santarosa, which sold 200,000 copies in Italy.  In 1983 he launched his own group, Taxi (with Zucchero "Sugar" Fornaciari) and released the single To Miami.  He had chosen the Savage alias based on the comic character Doc Savage and composed one of the most popular Italo-Disco slow tracks: Don't Cry Tonight.