Category Archives: Italian songs

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Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola – An Italian Musical

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Add Another Place at the Table

I’m a huge fan of musical theater, grew up singing along with The Music Man, Camelot and Oliver. The first show I saw on stage was You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, in what must have been a local or travelling production, in San Francisco, when we were on home leave in 1969. I knew all these shows by heart, and by now know (and have seen) many more – most recently, Spamalot.

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Italian songs

Learn Italian in Song: Una Donna per Amico

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A Woman for a Friend

The late, great Lucio Battisti again, with lyrics by Mogol. This song was played as the Italian athletes entered the stadium during the opening ceremonies of the Torino Winter Olympics.

The title means “A Woman for a Friend,” but you need to pay attention to the subtleties: amico is the masculine form of the noun (a female friend should be amica), so title seems to say that the singer chose a woman rather than a man as his best buddy. The song is about the consequences of that choice.

Continue reading Learn Italian in Song: Una Donna per Amico →

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Italian language, Italian songs

Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola: Consolazione

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All this God-inspired romance is interrupted by the arrival of a travelling prostitute named Consolazione –

Consolation

– with that name, she could be a denizen of Dogpatch! – who distracts all the men from their wives, apparently because it’s their last chance for an extramarital fling.
Uomini, eccomi! Men, here I am!
E’ arrivata Consolazione Consolation has arrived.
Consolazione di nome e di fatto “Consolation” by name and in fact
Per consolarvi ho certi argomenti I have certain ways to console you
Prova per credere Try it to believe it
Facciamo un patto Let’s make a deal:
Se dopo voi non restate contenti If afterwards you aren’t content,
Sulla parola di Consolazione vi rimborso la consumazione! On the word of Consolation, your money back!
Mando il mondo in visibilio, tutti chiedono di me I cause the world to …, everyone asks for me
L’avventura a domicilio “Adventure at home”
L’ho inventata e sai perché I invented it, and you know why
È una vera vocazione It’s a true vocation
A nessuno dico no I don’t say no to anyone
E se vuoi consolazione and if you want consolation
Me la chiedi You ask me –
Te la do* and I give it.
Se per colpa degli eventi If because of [by fault of] events
sei più triste di un cipresso you are sadder than a cypress
e la sera tu ti senti And in the evening you feel
malinconico e depresso melancholy and depressed
se per questa depressione If because of this depression
il morale tuo sta giù Your morale is down
tu vieni da tu vieni da Consolazione You come to, you come to Consolation
e lei te lo ritira su! And she’ll pull it back up for you!
Un due tre One, two, three
UOMINI Prima a me MEN: Me first!
Quattro cinque sei Four, five, six
UOMINI Comincia da me MEN: Start with me
sei sette otto, chi è senza biglietto Six, seven, eight. Who doesn’t have a ticket?
UOMINI io io io! MEN: Me me me!
Si faccia pure sotto**, sotto sopra in qualsiasi posizione Step right up [it’s done below], below, above, in any position
L’importante è non dire mai di no The important thing is never to say no
E se vuoi Consolazione and if you want Consolation
UOMINI La vogliamo MEN: We want it/her!
Aho ve la do! Oh, and I’ll give it to you!
dialog: Toto’ asks what she’s selling.

“This!” she says, showing her breasts.

“I only see a pair of zinne,” he responds.

“What did you expect me to have – four?”
Mi vuoi esotica o nostrana Do you want me exotic or local
turca greca russa o indù Turk, Greek, Russian or Hindu
Preferisci l’egiziana Do you prefer the Egyptian
Faccio tutto, scegli tu! I do everything, you choose!
E per te Consolazione egiziana diverrà And for you Consolation will become Egyptian
Tutankà tutankà tutankamera veniteme a trovà! Tutan[khamen]… [everything in the room] – come up and see me!
UOMINI Consolazione Consolaziò-ò-ò men: Consolation
Tu sei l’ultima occasione You’re the last chance/last sale
Non possiamo dire no We can’t say no
Voglio la Consolazione I want Consolation!
La volete? You want it?
UOMINI Si! Yes!
Io ve la dooooooooo, siiii I’ll give it to you, yes!
UOMINI
Consolazione consolazione, dammi tutto tutto dammi consolazione!		 Consolation, give me everything, give me consolation.

* Te la do – “I’ll give it to you” – to give “it” is used as a euphemism for a woman to give sex.

God, however, has something up his sleeve to take care of this little setback. Toto, the (unmarried) village idiot, has been hanging about the sidelines of this scene, too dense to know what to do with a woman. God suddenly gives him the necessary knowledge, and he shoulders aside the other villagers to reach Consolation, who takes one look at his, er, talents, and closes the door on everyone else, leaving them to go back to their wives.

next: Notte Per Non Dormire 2

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Italian songs

Learn Italian in Song: 7000 Caffé

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written, recorded and copyrighted by Alex Britti Alex Britti - '3' (Sanremo 2003) - 7000 Caffé

Here’s another great by Alex Britti – go out and buy his music! Sadly, his own brilliantly original music video has been removed from YouTube, but here’s a version with another fave of mine, Neri Per Caso.
7000 caffé, 7000 coffees
li ho gia’ presi percha’© I’ve already drunk them because
sono stanco di stare al volante I’m tired of being at the wheel
e vorrei arrivare entro sera da te And I would like to arrive [at your home] by this evening
che aspetti me nel castello lassu’¹ Who are waiting for me in the castle up there
con la treccia gia’ sciolta With your braid already undone
affacciata al balcone vestita di blu Looking out from the balcony, dressed in blue
7000 caffé 7000 coffees
é l’effetto che ho is the effect I have
quando arrivo al portone When I arrive at the entry
e ti vedo gridare con gli occhi il mio nome percio’ And I see you call out my name with your eyes [therefore]*
vieni verso di me e io pazzo di te You come towards me, and me crazy for you,
in un attimo ci diamo il bacio piu’dolce, piu’dolce che c’é in a moment we give each other the sweetest, the sweetest kiss there is
Ritornello: Chorus:
Ho bisogno di te perche sei bella e poi I need you because you’re beautiful, and then
Ho bisogno di te come l’acqua il caffé I need you like [water needs coffee / coffee needs water]**
come un mondo che gira e che, amore, se non vuoi, Like a world that turns and that, love, if you don’t want
non finira’ mai Will never end.
Ad esempio lo sai l’altra sera ero a casa For example, you know, the other evening I was at home
cercavo da bere ma il frigo era vuoto I was looking [for something] to drink but the fridge was empty
perché non ho fatto la spesa Because I didn’t do the [grocery] shopping
tu non ci crederai – indovina che c’é You won’t believe it – guess what?
ho trovato una tazza con l’ultimo dei 7000 caffé I found a cup with the last of the 7000 coffees
Ora sto qui da solo e non dormo e non volo Now I’m here alone and I don’t sleep and I don’t fly
mentre tu sei lontana While you’re far away
ripenso a una scena di te senza velo I think again of a scene of you “without veils” [nude]
non so bene cos’é, forse i troppi caffé I don’t know what it is, maybe too many coffees
ma stanotte non riesco a dormire But tonight I can’t sleep
e l’amore lo faccio da me. And I’ll make love by myself.
* This word doesn’t seem to fit here – I suspect he just threw it in to fit the rhyme.** The meaning here is (probably deliberately) ambiguous.
if you find this useful and want more, let me know!

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