The son of an Italian father and a French mother, Vasori was initially instructed in music by his mother in piano and voicing/harmony at seven years old, and later, when he was thirteen he began to attend the Paris Conservatoire. At twenty he was professionally touring, accompanying singers on piano, and at 26 years old he started as an orchestra conductor.
Vasori took his stage name in 1956 from the newly introduced twin-jet Caravelle from Caravelle Aerospatiale. This plane was the first jet created for the short-haul market. The first Caravelle entered service for Air France on May 9, 1959. He made it more Italianate in honor of his father's origins, changing the last letter: “Caravelli et son Violons Magiques/& his Magnificent Strings”.
In 1959 with the help of the French jazz musician Ray Ventura, he obtained a contract to form his own orchestra oriented to popular music. He signed a contract with the French record label Versailles. His first album Dance Party was recorded. Under licenses these early recordings were released internationally (20th Century Records in the USA, Ariel in Argentina, Fermata in Brasil, and Discophon in Spain). In 1962, he composed Et Satan conduit le bal original soundtrack under his real name, French film starred by young Catherine Deneuve. In 1963, he composed "Accroche-toi Caroline!" which was used by the BBC as the theme to the Vision On television series.
The Versailles label was acquired by Columbia Records in 1964. The wider distribution of their product led to gold records in France, Japan, Israel and South America. In Brazil his first released CBS album was titled Voyage Musical, in Argentina Merci Cherie.
With his orchestra he also made recordings with Maurice Chevalier and Charles Trenet (La mer/Beyond the sea) among other singers. In 1970 he composed the music for the film L'Homme Qui Vient De La Nuit, starred by Ivan Rebroff, and in the same period recorded an album in USA. His first Japan Live Concert is recorded in 1972 by CBS.
In 1973, one of his own compositions was included in the Frank Sinatra album Ol' Blue Eyes Is Back: “Laisse moi le temps” / “Let Me Try Again”, original French lyrics by Michel Jourdan, English lyrics by Paul Anka. This song was previously presented in competition at the Festival Internacional de la Canción de Viña del Mar, Chile, by singer Romuald representing France and obtaining the second prize (a Chile song was the winner), although it was considered the best song by critics and people. Making a delayed justice, a few years ago, it was proclaimed the Best Song in the history of this Festival, in its 41st Anniversary, something unusual for a non-first prize in any song contest. This song was also covered by Raymond Lefevre.
In 1978, he composed and recorded the title song of "Goldorak et les 2 Mazingers", for the Japan anime/cartoon. In 1981 he toured the Soviet Union with his orchestra performing in Riga and Moscow with great success (all concerts were sold out). The summer of following year, he returned to the country, this time to make a record for the Melodiya label with Russians musicians and female singers (in his style without lyrics). This record In Moscow included 12 tracks, the majority written by young pop Russian composers, with a couple of traditional tunes. Two of the pieces were recorded in Paris with his own orchestra. In 1983 Caravelli plays Seiko Matsuda was recorded in Japan.
In the middle 1980s, in order to update his sound he used rhythm arrangements by his son Patrick Vasori (born c.1950) using musicians such as Gilles Gambus and Serge Planchon, who also played keyboards with the orchestra. In November and December 2006, he recorded an album titled A New Day Has Come with his Grand Orchestre in Brussels, Belgium, for Reader's Digest.
Japan being a country in which he has a following, Caravelli is one of the few Western artists who have been invited to conduct the Japanese TV Network's NHK Orchestra, In November 200,1 he was touring Japan with an orchestra composed of 32 musicians (tour N° 7 ), invited by the Sony Foundation (the previous tour was in 1996). At this time, Sony Music Japan assembled a 2-CD set Caravelli plays Michel Polnareff and ABBA, being the first (Polnareff) a selection from 1960 and 1970 albums (including his cover of "Love Me, Please Love Me") and the second (ABBA) a selection from 1970's recordings. In December 2003, he toured Japan again; the six concerts were sold out.
He died on 1 April 2019, at the age of 88.
Begin The Beguine
Caravelli Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It brings back the sound of music so tender
It brings back a night of tropical splendor
It brings back a memory ever green
I'm with you once more under the stars
And down by the shore an orchestra's playing
And even the palms seem to be swaying
To live it again is past all endeavor
Except when that tune clutches my heart
And there we are, swearing to love forever
And promising never, never to part
What moments divine, what rapture serene
Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted
And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted
I know but too well what they mean
So don't let them begin the beguine
Let the love that was once a fire remain an ember
Let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember
When they begin the beguine
Oh yes, let them begin the beguine, please make them play
Till the stars that were there before return above you
Till you whisper to me once more, "Darling, I love you"
Then we suddenly know what heaven we're in
When they begin the, begin the, begin the beguine
When they begin the, begin the, begin the beguine
When they begin the beguine
The song "Begin the Beguine" by Caravelli talks about how hearing the beguine style of music immediately brings back memories of a night of tropical beauty and music that was once shared with a loved one. The singer talks about being with their significant other once more under the stars while listening to an orchestra play by the shore. The moment is so divine and rapturous that they swear to love each other forever and never part.
The lyrics also touch on the pain of lost love and missed opportunities. The singer notes that when they hear people curse the chance that was wasted, they know exactly what those people mean, as they too have experienced the pain of a lost love. However, the singer still yearns for that moment of bliss once again and begs for the beguine music to be played again so they can return to that heavenly moment in time with their loved one.
Overall, "Begin the Beguine" is a romantic ballad that explores the emotions of love, loss, and the intense desire to live a moment of pure bliss again.
Line by Line Meaning
When they begin the beguine
When the music starts, it evokes memories and feelings of a past love.
It brings back the sound of music so tender
The music is soft and gentle, and it reminds me of the past.
It brings back a night of tropical splendor
The music reminds me of a night spent in a tropical paradise.
It brings back a memory ever green
The memory is fresh and always present, as if it just happened.
I'm with you once more under the stars
I am transported back to a time when I was with my past love under the stars.
And down by the shore an orchestra's playing
An orchestra is playing music on the shore, adding to the romantic atmosphere.
And even the palms seem to be swaying
The tropical landscape is so perfect, even the palm trees are moving in time with the music.
To live it again is past all endeavor
To relive that moment is impossible, even though I wish I could.
Except when that tune clutches my heart
The only time I feel like I am reliving the past is when I hear this particular tune.
And there we are, swearing to love forever
In my memory, we were together forever, and we made promises to each other that we would always love one another.
And promising never, never to part
We declared to each other that we would never be separated.
What moments divine, what rapture serene
The memories of our time together are precious and magical.
Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted
Unfortunately, reality set in, and our happiness was destroyed.
And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted
When I hear others talk about a missed opportunity, I know exactly how they feel.
I know but too well what they mean
I can relate to their feelings, because I experienced the same thing.
So don't let them begin the beguine
I beg the musicians not to play that song, because it brings up painful memories for me.
Let the love that was once a fire remain an ember
Let the intense love we once felt be transformed into a smoldering ember.
Let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember
Let it rest, like a desire that is no longer alive, but only a memory.
Oh yes, let them begin the beguine, please make them play
Despite my requests, I am drawn to the song and want to hear it again.
Till the stars that were there before return above you
Until the circumstances from the past return, we can only imagine and remember them.
Till you whisper to me once more, "Darling, I love you"
Until I hear those words from my past love once again, I can only imagine them.
Then we suddenly know what heaven we're in
When we finally hear those words, we will know that we have been transported to a heavenly place.
When they begin the, begin the, begin the beguine
When the music starts, our emotions and memories are stirred up once again.
When they begin the beguine
The start of the song triggers a flood of memories and emotions from a past love.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Memory Lane Music Group (Domestic)
Written by: COLE PORTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Javier Augusto de la Fuente Iturrizaga
Una "joya" musical de todos los tiempos. Data de los lejanos años 30 del gran Cole Porter. Infaltable en el repertorio de muchas orquestas famosas.
Carmen Fallas
Demasiado linda. Me da mucha nostalgia
muralidhar c
smooth and flowing like a river.love it
German Gonzales
Recuerdos de mis Padres...nostalgia
robert534ge
J’aime cette douce musique rythmée!
Romeo Priority
Una BELLA MELODIA !!!
agn1743
Smooth arrangement of a classic song...
Joao Paulo
magnifica!
José Luis Guevara
Excelente
Stella Carletti
Que musica hermosa x favorrrrr