"Mamma" is a popular song composed in 1940 by Cesare Andrea Bixio with Italian lyrics by Bixio Cherubini under the title "Mamma son tanto felice" (Mum, I am so happy).- Wikipedia
Written in 1940, music by Cesare Andrea Bixio, lyrics by Bixio himself and Bruno Cherubini. In 1941, a film, directed by Guido Brignone, starring Beniamino Gigli, in the role of a famous tenor who returns from the States with his American wife, just in time the meet his old mother (starring Emma Grammatica), who can finally die in peace. It well represented the American dream of the Italian immigrants, and the nostalgia for the homeland, and their mother at home, alone.
At a time when the war was about to lead to disaster Mussolini and the mothers of the regime, Mamma was not only entertainment, but a product at the dawn of an industry, which inherited the musicality of Naples, the tradition of the variety theater and café chantant, a bridge between the past and the future.
Mamma became a hit song in the States in the voice of Italian-American Connie Francis (aka Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero, born in Newark, 12 December 1938). An event clearly points out this emotional power of the song: one day, while Connie Francis was performing in Las Vegas, sitting in the front row with her musicians was Elvis Presley, who suddenly broke into tears - he had recently lost his mother - and fled leaving the room. Then he sent two dozen red roses to Francis to apologize.
One of the most "Italian" songs, celebrating an identity built on the mother figure, Mamma became an international, "global" hymn in all languages, "Mom", "Mutter", "Mama", "Maman"... emotional, maybe for the explosion of the music at the refrain, maybe because this "magical" name touches the secret chords in every heart.
Among the most famous interpreters of the song were tenor Beniamino Gigli, Claudio Villa, Andrea Bocelli, and Luciano Pavarotti, who recorded an album all devoted to Bixio's songs. italyheritage.com
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Tu Vuo' Fa' L'Americano - Hetty & the Jazzato Band
"Tu vuò fà l'americano" ("You Want to Be American" ) is a Neapolitan language song by Italian singer Renato Carosone.
Carosone wrote the song in collaboration with Nicola "Nisa" Salerno in 1956. Combining swing and jazz, it became one of his best-known songs. Commissioned by Ricordi director Rapetti for a radio contest, the music was composed by Carosone in a very short time after reading Nisa's lyrics; he immediately believed the song would become a great success.
Carosone's original version of the song was performed by him in the film Totò, Peppino e le fanatiche (directed by Mario Mattoli, 1958). The song was featured in the 1960 Melville Shavelson film It Started in Naples, in which it was sung by Sophia Loren. It was also performed by Rosario Fiorello in the 1999 film The Talented Mr. Ripley.
The lyrics are about an Italian who affects a contemporary American lifestyle, drinking whisky and soda, dancing to rock 'n roll,...
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This arrangement inspired by....Toto Cutugno
Here are some different versions that were hits around the world.....
Brazilian singer José Augusto recorded the song in Portuguese as "Faz de Conta".
Vietnamese singer Đàm Vĩnh Hưng recorded his version in Vietnamese as "Say Tình" in 2001
Austrian-Italian singer Patrizio Buanne recorded his version in album "The Italian" in 2005.
In 1983, Finnish singer Kari Tapio recorded a cover titled "Olen suomalainen" ("I am a Finn" ), which became a hit in Finland.
Also in 1983, a Dutch version titled "Als ik maar bij jou ben" ("As long as I'm with you" ) was a moderate hit for palingsound group Canyon from Volendam.
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"Venus" is a song by Dutch rock band Shocking Blue, initially released as a single in the Netherlands in the summer of 1969. Written by Robbie van Leeuwen, the song topped the charts in nine countries.
The song has been covered dozens of times by many artists. In 1986, English girl group Bananarama covered "Venus" for their third studio album, True Confessions, with the single reaching number one in six countries. The composition has been featured in numerous films, television shows and commercials.
The song was written by Robbie van Leeuwen, Shocking Blue's guitarist, sitarist and background vocalist. Van Leeuwen wrote new lyrics set to music based on "The Banjo Song" by Tim Rose and the Big 3, which is in turn lyrically a modification of the 19th century song "Oh! Susanna" by Stephen Foster. Influences from other songs include the opening guitar riff that is similar to The Who's "Pinball Wizard".
The song was recorded on a two-track machine in Soundpush Studio in Blaricum, the Netherlands....
