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.

Napoli Napoli
Caterina Valente Lyrics

In Napoli beside the sea
It happened on a night like this
In Napoli our hearts were free
And we surrendered to a kiss

There 'neath the stars I saw heaven in her eyes
There 'neath the stars I knew this was paradise
All through the night in sweet delight
We shared the tenderness of love
But with the dawn my love was gone

Just like the fading stars above
My lonely heart cries out please come back to me
Beside the sea in dear old Napoli

There 'neath the stars I saw heaven in her eyes
There 'neath the stars I knew this was paradise
All through the night in sweet delight
We shared the tenderness of love
But with the dawn my love was gone
Just like the fading stars above
My lonely heart cries out please come back to me
Beside the sea in dear old Napoli

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

Written by: CARMEL MCCOURT, MERVIN AFRICA

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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