By Elio e le Storie Tese, who also did Fossi Figo. This song was a huge hit when it first came out in 1996, with its punning, ironic references to topics such as Mani Pulite and various hospital scandals. (Pity not much has changed since… )
I don’t know if cachi (persimmons) has any special significance, unless it’s a pun on caca (poop).
Continue reading Learn Italian in Song: La Terra dei CachiThis is one of the first songs someone requested me to translate when I started this “service” on the site. Sorry it’s taken me so long to get around to it. I don’t actually know the song, so may be missing some sfumature (shades of meaning).
The phrase ti voglio bene is ambiguous, as I explained earlier.
Our friend Aldo – formerly a DJ, now a priest and Augustinian friar – introduced me to the fun, silly music of Italy’s 1960s with a wonderful compilation disc he made for us (I Favolosi Anni 60 – “The Fabulous 60s”) that immediately became a family favorite. This is just one of the great songs he included, one of the first big hits for the fabulous Mina. You may have heard it recently in the Disney movie Luca.
Tintarella (“a little color”) is a cutesy word for suntan.
Continue reading Learn Italian in Song: Tintarella di LunaThere’s not much to this song: apparently, the singer wants to relive last year’s summer fling. But it’s also a profound statement of traditional Italian vacation habits: the same sea, the same beach, practically the same ombrellone (beach umbrella – which you rent, along with the lounge chairs and a patch of sand to call your own, by the day, week, or month), year after year after year.
Continue reading Learn Italian in Song: Stessa Spiaggia, Stesso MareSomeone asked me to translate this a while ago, but I confess I don’t understand it much…
Continue reading Learn Italian in Song: Sparring Partner
