Claudio Villa: byname of Claudio Pica (1 January 1926 - Padova, February 7,… Read Full Bio ↴Claudio Villa: byname of Claudio Pica (1 January 1926 - Padova, February 7, 1987), born and living in the proletarian (now touristic) Trastevere quarter of Rome, in via della Lungara and via Angelo Tittoni, then with success moving to a via Folco Portinari flat, in the Monteverde nuovo middle class quarter.
He was an actor and Italian Tenor, who specialised in romantic-melodic “musica leggera”, reaching a sort of The Voice status in Italy as “il reuccio (della canzone)” - the small king, so called also because of his sanguine character. While Nilla Pizzi was the Queen.
But the baby-boomer generation disliked more and more his genre, style and virtuosisms (the long acute Grand Finale - e.g., notable in “Granada” -, bringing a stereotype operatic flavour into traditional pop or easy listening “musica leggera”). Sharp age divisions therefore emerged, so as to make music tastes become an identitarian, Weltanschaung space of generational divide, at the time of ‘50s rock (with Little Tony, Italy’s Elvis), then the ‘60s new pop (many thousands of cave bands, also in Italy). All this was not so specially Italian, of course; but, because of his so long career, Claudio became a target symbol (for the ritual “parricide”); he was gradually ghettoed into an ageing but always faithful audience (no empty space at his concerts). On the other hand, he basically sticked to his 1950s repertoire and style.
Together with Domenico Modugno, he holds the record for the most wins at the Sanremo Music Festival, where he won the competition in 1955 (Buongiorno tristezza), 1957 (Corde della mia chitarra), 1962 (Addio ... addio) and 1967 (Non pensare a me). He won the RAI-TV Canzonissima competition in 1964 with " ‘O sole mio", and in 1966 with "Granada".
His debut was as a follower of the folk singer Carlo Buti (Florence 1902-1963, “the Golden Voice of Italy”); in 1947 he records his first 78 giri record (a rarity now) and in 1952 he is the main actor in the movie “Serenata amara” dir. by Pino Mercanti - followed by about 30 movies, where he is often singing as well; he most loved the Mario Valli character, an artist in “Granada Addio” (1966) dir. by Marino Girolami.
In the 1950s, together with his archi-rival Luciano Tajoli, he interpreted even many songs that will almost disappear afterward: "Il Ponte", "La luna nel rio" (Who threw the moon in the river, who threw it ...) and "Fontane Romane". Among Claudio Villa’s classics, one shoud also mention: 1948 Scalinatella, 1949 Fontana di Trevi and Signorinella, 1950 Luna Rossa, the 1951 Neapolitan suite (Voce 'e notte - Core 'ngrato - 'Na sera 'e maggio - Anema e core - Malafemmena - Munasterio 'e Santa Chiara - Marechiaro), 1951 I’ te vurria vasà, 1952 Vola colomba and Vecchio scarpone, 1955 Arrivederci Roma, 1956 Guaglione, 1957 Corde della mia chitarra, Lazzarella, La vie en rose, and Ave Maria di Schubert, 1958 Nel blu dipinto di blu (Modugno’s Volare), 1960 Romantica and Marina, 1969 Strangers in the night, 1974 Michelle and La Paloma, 1980 Dove sta Zazà and Tamurriata nera, 1982 El Condor pasa, 1985 Nessun dorma, and Caro amore (Concerto per Aranjuez).
In 1973 he interprets unforgettably on TV some “stornelli a dispetto” in duet with the great folksinger Gabriella Ferri, his great admirer and friend. After different labels, he ended up recording with Cetra (later on becoming Fonit-Cetra).
His death in 1987 by heart attack was announced live on Italian television by Pippo Baudo, during the last night of the Sanremo Music Festival of 1987.
He recorded across 4 decades over 3000 songs, and sold over 45 million records.

Qui Sotto Il Cielo Di Capri
Claudio Villa Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Qui
Sotto il cielo di Capri
Com'è bello sognar
Mentre mormora il mar

Qui
Fra spalliere di rose
E di glicini in fior

Paradiso è l'amor

Qui la vita un'azzurra leggenda vi pare
Tu dimentichi tutto il soffrire
Se dall'onde, nel chiaro lunar
Ti fai cullare

Qui
Sotto il cielo di Capri
Voglio vivere e amar
Tutto il mondo scordar

Qui la vita un'azzurra leggenda vi pare
Tu dimentichi tutto il soffrire
Se dall'onde, nel chiaro lunar
Ti fai cullare

Qui
Sotto il cielo di Capri
Voglio vivere e amar
Tutto il mondo scordar

E resto qui
Sotto il cielo di Capri

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Claudio Villa's song "Qui sotto il cielo di Capri" evoke a sense of wonder and freedom under the beautiful sky of Capri. The opening lines invite the listener to dream and escape from the daily noise, while the sound of the sea in the background adds to the relaxing atmosphere. The next lines paint a picture of a garden filled with roses and wisteria, where love is in full bloom - a paradise on Earth. The singer declares Capri a place of legend where life seems more vibrant and worth living, as if suffering disappears in the clear moonlight waves that gently rock the soul.

Throughout the song, the refrain "Qui sotto il cielo di Capri" serves as an anchor, repeating the idea that there is a special place where one can forget the world's problems and simply live and love. The lyrics convey a sense of nostalgia and longing for a simpler past, or maybe a hope for a future where such a place could exist. One could interpret the song as a call to escape from the mundane reality and seek refuge in the beauty of nature and love.

Line by Line Meaning

Qui
Here

Sotto il cielo di Capri
Under the sky of Capri

Com'è bello sognar
How beautiful it is to dream

Mentre mormora il mar
While the sea murmurs

Qui
Here

Fra spalliere di rose
Among the trellises of roses

E di glicini in fior
And of blooming wisteria

Paradiso è l'amor
Love is paradise

Qui la vita un'azzurra leggenda vi pare
Here life seems like a blue legend

Tu dimentichi tutto il soffrire
You forget all the suffering

Se dall'onde, nel chiaro lunar
If, from the waves, in the bright moonlight