The Ballad of San Crispino

The mayor, who is named for the village’s patron saint, Crispino, has hidden from everyone to escape the pressure to donate his stock of lumber to the ark-building effort. The whole village searches for him.

Non si trova, non si trova, dove sara’,	He can’t be found, where might he be?
l’ho cercato nel granaio e li’ non ci sta.	I looked in the granary, he’s not there
Non si trova, non si trova, dove sara’,	He can’t be found, where might he be?
nella falegnameria lui non ci sta.	He’s not in the lumberyard
Ho guardato dappertutto, giu’ in cantina, su in soffitta,	I looked everywhere, down in the basement, up in the attic
la legnaia, il magazzino ma vi giuro, neanche l’ombra di Crispino.	the woodyard, the warehouse, but I swear to you, not even the shadow of Crispino
Fino al bosco siamo andati e non s’é trovato niente.	All the way to the woods we went, and didn’t find anything
Noi in montagna siamo stati. Noi alla foce del torrente.	We’ve been on the mountain, we at the source of the river
Ma dov’é, no, non si trova, ma dov’é.	But where is he, no, he can’t be found, but where is he?
San Crispino, San Crispino te ne supplico,	San Crispino, I beg you
fammi ritrovare il Sindaco,	Let me find the mayor
lui che é indegnamente omonimo d’un gran Santo come te.	He who is the unworthy namesake of a great saint like you
San Crispino ma chi é?	But who is San Crispino?
Non conosce San Crispino? Non conosci San Crispino?	She doesn’t know San Crispino? You don’t know San Crispino?
Non conosce San Crispino, ma com’e’?	She doesn’t know San Crispino, but how?
Devi saper che tanti anni fa ci fu un’orribile siccita’:	You must know that many years ago there was a horrible drought
secchi li fiumi, secco il torrente,	the rivers were dry, the stream was dry
secchi li prati e le campagne;	the fields and meadows were dry
e a tutta quanta la povera gente je se seccavano	and all the poor people were drying up
l’occhi pe’ piagne e potevano solo prega’ pe’ fa fini’ sta siccita’.	their eyes from crying and they could only pray for an end to the drought
Daje e daje la gente pregava ma inutilmente	[? and ?] the people prayed, but uselessly
non sapeva che la’¬ vicino miracolevolissimevolmente c’era Crispino.	they didn’t know that there nearby miraculously was Crispino
Devi sape’ che a quel tempo la’ questo Crispino viveva qua,	You must know that at that time this Crispino lived here
fuori alla grotta lui stava da un mese	He had been outside the cave for a month
trova na brocca d’acqua gelata, ne beve un sorso,	I found a pitcher of icy water, he drank a sip
poi corre al paese e la fa vede alla gente assetata;	then ran to the town and showed the thirsty people
e tutti quanti lo vonno assalta’, ma lui risponde con soavita’:	and everyone wanted to jump on him but he responded suavely:
“Chi sta in fila s’attacca alla brocca,	“Whoever stands in line can drink from the pitcher,
a chi spinge un calcione in bocca”.	whoever pushes gets a kick in the mouth”
E bevettero in abbondanza con grandissima esultanza,	They drank abundantly with great exultance
si riempirono la panza, ma che bel miracolo.	they filled their bellies, what a beautiful miracle
E Crispino da quell’istante diventa’² miracolante	And Crispino from that moment became miraculous
che col dito rabdomante rinfrescava l’ugola.	who with his magic finger refreshed the throat
Ti preghiamo San Crispino tu che hai l’occhio tanto fino,	We pray to you San Crispino you who have a fine eye
tu che hai il fiuto d’un volpino, ritrova il Sindaco.	You who have the nose of a fox, find the mayor
Ma dov’é, ma dov’é! Non si trova, non si trova!	But where is he, no, he can’t be found, but where is he?
Ma dov’é, ma dov’é! Neanche l’ombra di Crispino, ma dov’é!	But where is he, where is he? Not even the shadow of Crispino
Crispino, Crispino, San Crispino!	Crispino, Crispino, San Crispino!
The mayor is found inside the statue of the saint, where he has been hiding all this time, betrayed by his desperate need to pee.

next: Peccato che sia Peccato (ripresa)

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