You Want to Act American
Renato Carosone
Learn Italian in Song: Tuo Bacio é Come Un Rock
Your Kiss is Like a Rock [Song]
Another song in a rather silly vein by Adriano Celentano.
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Learn Italian in Song: La Terra dei Cachi
The Land of Persimmons
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).
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Learn Italian in Song: Ti Voglio Bene
I Love You/I Wish You Well
This 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.
Learn Italian in Song: Tintarella di Luna
Moon Tan
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.
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