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Sì, lo so, con te dovrei cantare L'appassionata, l'appassionata, l'appassionata! Sì, lo so, dovrei sempre recitare La comme... la comme... la commedia! Io dovrei spagnolo diventar La chitarra mia "tocar" e in flamenco delirar! Vedi in me un grande "matador" Prediletto dal destin Come il grande... coso!... Dominguìn! Sì, lo so, tu non vuoi che ti chiami "amore" Ma "mi querida”, y mi querida, y mi querida! Sì, lo so, tu vuoi che io pianga e implori: "Alma e mi vi..., alma e mi vi..., alma e mi vida"! Vedi in me un fiero "matador" Che ti si inginocchierà quando il toro "materà" (alé, sputa giù!) Vedi in me l"hidalgo" che verrà Che per te s'impiccherà, se il tuo amore perderà!! Sì, lo so, con te dovrei cantare L'appassionata, l'appassionata, l'appassionata! Sì, lo so, dovrei sempre recitare La comme... la comme... la commedia! Ma non sai, io sono nato a Rho E di giorno vengo qua ma la notte dormo là! Sì, non lo sai, faccio il tifo per la Spal A tressette gioco al CRAL E lavoro da... oh-o-o-o-o-o (Olé!!) Ooo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-oo!!! (Olé!!) Ooo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-ooo-o!! (Olé!!) Olivetti! L'appassionata © 1966 Enzo Jannacci "L'appassionata" is a great example of the comedic/demented side of Enzo Jannacci. He dons the guise and bravura of the mythic passionate Spaniard, announcing with fanfare at the end of the song that he's really just a local guy who works for . . . Olivetti. Some references within the song: Dominguín refers to famous bullfighter Luis Miguel Dominguín; an hidalgo is a type of Spanish nobleman; Rho is a suburb of Milan; SPAL was an Italian soccer team; tressette is an Italian card game; |
Yes, I know, with you I should sing the Appassionata, the Appassionata, the Appassionnata! Yes, I know, I should always recite the comme . . . the comme . . . the commedia! I should Spanish become, my guitar to touch and in flamenco to rave! You see in me a great matador chosen by destiny, like the great . . . coso! . . . Dominguìn! Yes, I know, you don’t want me to call you “love,” but “mi querida,” and mi querida, and mi querida! Yes, I know, you want me to cry and implore: “Alma e mi vi . . . alma e mi vi . . . alma e mi vida”! (spirit and my life) You see in me a proud matador who will kneel down to you when the bull ‘materà’ (alé, he spits down!) You see in me the hidalgo who will come who will hang himself for you, if your love he will lose! Yes, I know, with you I should sing The Appassionata, the appassionata, the appassionata. Yes, I know, I should always recite The comme . . . the comme . . . the commedia! But you don’t know, I was born in Rho And by day I come here but at night I sleep there! Yes, you don’t know, I’m rooting for SPAL, in tressette I play at CRAL and I work at . . . oh-o-o-o-o-o (Olé!!) Ooo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-oo!!! (Olé!!) Ooo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-ooo-o!! (Olé!!) Olivetti! English translation © 2020 Dennis Criteser Sei minuti all'alba is Jannacci's second album, released in 1966. The title track was dedicated to Jannacci's father, who fought as a partisan in and around Milan. |
I began exploring Italian popular songs as part of learning Italian. Here are my translations for some of my favorite "canzoni" by Italian singers, songwriters, and bands whose work I admire. It's a work in progress that can serve as a curated introduction to Italian popular music, with an emphasis on the 1950s through the 1990s. If you speak Italian, send me a message if you see lyrics I've misunderstood.
