Caterina Valente (born January 14, 1931 in Paris) is an Italian-born singer… Read Full Bio ↴Caterina Valente (born January 14, 1931 in Paris) is an Italian-born singer, dancer, and actress. She comes from an Italian artist family; her father Giuseppe was a well-known accordion player, her mother, Maria Valente, a musical clown. She had three siblings, of whom Silvio Francesco was also active in show business.

In 1952 she married juggler Erik van Aro (Gerd Eric Horst Scholz). He recognized her talent and accompanied her in her initial years of worldwide success, although they later divorced. In 1953, she made her first recordings with Kurt Edelhagen. Soon afterwards she achieved great success with songs like "Malagueña", "The Breeze and I", and "Dreh dich nicht um" with the Werner Müller orchestra. In 1955 she was featured on the "Colgate Comedy Hour" with Gordon MacRae. Between 1966 and 1972 she was a frequent guest on the Dean Martin Show. In 1972, she married the British pianist Roy Budd; they had a son, Alexander, but they divorced in 1979.

In Germany she was a major performer of Schlager music. There she recorded Cole Porter's "I love Paris" i.e. "Ganz Paris träumt von der Liebe", which sold more than 500,000 copies in (1954.) Like in other countries where she was popular, some in Germany mistakenly consider her a German singer.

Over the years, she has recorded or performed with many international stars, including Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Ella Fitzgerald, Woody Herman, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Buddy Rich, Sy Oliver, Claus Ogerman, and Chet Baker.

In 2001, she released a new album Girltalk with harpist Catherine Michel. She is also the mother of singer Eric van Aro, Jr.

Metà di me
Caterina Valente Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(Ooh-oo baby)
(Ooh-oo baby)

Metа di me, (ooh-oo baby)
L'ho vista andarsene con te, (baby)
Ma se non interessa piщ a te,
Riportala da me! (ooh-oo baby)

Metа di me, (ooh-oo)
Con un abbraccio ti lasciai,
Ma di qualcosa a cui non pensa mai,
Che te ne fai?

Metа di me, (ooh-oo baby)
Non un giochetto e tu lo sai, (baby)
Ragion per cui ti pregherei,
Se puoi, di dirmi dove sei. (ooh-oo baby)

Dopodichй, (ooh-oo)
Prova a considerare un po'
Che quando in giro per il mondo vai,
Porti con te metа di me.

Porti con te metа di me!
... (ooh-oo baby)
... (ooh-oo baby)
... (ooh-oo baby)

Metа di me, (ooh-oo)
Con un abbraccio ti lasciai
Ma di qualcosa a cui non pensa mai,
Che te ne fai?

Metа di me, (ooh-oo baby)
Non un giochetto e tu lo sai, (baby)
Ragion per cui ti pregherei,
Se puoi, di dirmi dove sei. (ooh-oo baby)

Dopodichй, (ooh-oo)
Prova a considerare un po'
Che quando in giro per il mondo vai,
Porti con te metа di me. (ooh-oo baby)

Porti con te metа di me! (ooh-oo baby)
Porti con te metа di te!

Overall Meaning

The song "Metà di me" by Caterina Valente tells the story of someone who sees their love interest leave with half of themselves, or their heart. The chorus repeats the phrase "Metà di me" which translates to "Half of me." The singer is pleading with their love interest to return the piece of them that they took when they left. The singer knows that their love interest may not find value in the half they took and urges them to return it. They ask their love interest to think about the fact that when they travel the world, they carry half of the singer with them.

The verses describe the singer's initial parting with their love interest. They left with a simple hug but didn't take the part of the singer that they left behind. The singer acknowledges that this may be an afterthought to their love interest but wants to emphasize the importance of the half they took. The chorus is repeated twice, almost like a mantra. The repetition emphasizes the weight of the situation and how much the singer wants their love interest to return the missing piece.

Overall, the song is a romantic plea from the singer to their love interest to come back with the piece of them that was taken away. The love interest may not realize the significance of what they took, but the singer makes it clear that it is essential to their sense of self.

Line by Line Meaning

Metа di me, (ooh-oo baby)
Half of me, oh baby

L'ho vista andarsene con te, (baby)
I saw her leave with you, baby

Ma se non interessa piщ a te,
But if she doesn't interest you anymore

Riportala da me! (ooh-oo baby)
Bring her back to me, oh baby

Con un abbraccio ti lasciai,
I left you with a hug

Ma di qualcosa a cui non pensa mai,
But of something she never thinks about

Che te ne fai?
What do you do with it?

Non un giochetto e tu lo sai, (baby)
Not a game and you know it, baby

Ragion per cui ti pregherei,
Reason why I would beg you

Se puoi, di dirmi dove sei. (ooh-oo baby)
If you can, to tell me where you are, oh baby

Prova a considerare un po'
Try to consider a little