After Guy Mitchell caught his set at one club, Jerry Vale began recording demonstration discs for Columbia. When A&R supremo Mitch Miller heard his excellent voice, however, he signed Vale to his own contract. Vale first hit the charts in 1953 with "You Can Never Give Me Back My Heart" (arranged by Percy Faith), and continued during the mid '50s with "Two Purple Shadows," "I Live Each Day," and his biggest hit, "You Don't Know Me." Though his first explicitly Italian recording, "Innamorata (Sweetheart)," finally appeared in 1956, it wasn't until 1962 that Vale convinced the notoriously conservative Miller to record a full album of Italian songs. "I Have But One Heart" proved a big seller and was followed one year later by "Arrivederci, Roma" and a continental LP, "The Language of Love," both of which placed even higher than the first on the album charts.
Though the mid '60s were a trying time for traditional pop singers, Vale continued to be successful, with singles like "Have You Looked Into Your Heart" and "For Mama," and Top 40 LPs like "There Goes My Heart" and "It's Magic." Even after his albums began failing to make the charts in the early '70s, Vale remained a popular name in clubs and on television throughout the '70s and '80s. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
O Sole Mio
Jerry Vale Lyrics
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N'aria serena doppo na tempesta
Pe'll'aria fresca pare gia' na festa
Che bella cosa na jurnata'e sole
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
'O sole o sole mio
Luceno'e llastre d'a fenesta toia
'Na lavannara canta e se ne vanta
E pe'tramente torce, spanne e canta
Luceno'e llastre d'a fenesta toia
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
'O sole o sole mio
Sta nfronte a te sta nfronte a te
Quanno fa notte e'sole se ne scenne
Me vene quase'na malincunia
Soto a fenesta toi restarria
Quando fa notte e'o sole se ne scenne
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
'O sole o sole mio
Sta nfronte a te sta nfronte a te
In the first verse of Jerry Vale's song, O Sole Mio, he describes the beauty of a sunny day. He mentions the clear, fresh air that follows a storm, and how the day seems like a celebration. The phrase "Che bella cosa na jurnata'e sole" translates to "What a beautiful thing is a sunny day". However, in the second verse, Jerry Vale sings about another sun that is even more beautiful, and that is the one that is in front of the person he is singing to. The phrase "Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'/'O sole mio sta nfronte a te" can be translated to mean "But another sun that's brighter still: It's my own sun that's in your face". He goes on to describe how the sun shines on his love's window and how a washerwoman sings and brags about her laundry work, and she shines like the sun too.
Line by Line Meaning
Che bella corsa e' na jurnata'e'sole
What a beautiful enveloping of a sunny day
N'aria serena doppo na tempesta
With clear and calm air after a storm
Pe'll'aria fresca pare gia' na festa
For the fresh air brings the feeling of a celebration
Che bella cosa na jurnata'e sole
What a lovely thing is a day with the sun
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
But there's another sun more beautiful, oh yeah
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
My sun arises before you
'O sole o sole mio
Oh, my sun, my own sun
Sta nfronte a te sta nfronte a te
It's before you, it's before you
Luceno'e llastre d'a fenesta toia
The windowpanes shine bright in your window
'Na lavannara canta e se ne vanta
A washerwoman sings and boasts
E pe'tramente torce, spanne e canta
And spins and wrings, lifting up her voice
Luceno'e llastre d'a fenesta toia
The windowpanes shine bright in your window
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
But there's another sun more beautiful, oh yeah
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
My sun arises before you
'O sole o sole mio
Oh, my sun, my own sun
Sta nfronte a te sta nfronte a te
It's before you, it's before you
Quanno fa notte e'sole se ne scenne
When night falls and the sun sets
Me vene quase'na malincunia
I feel almost melancholy
Soto a fenesta toi restarria
I would stay beneath your window
Quando fa notte e'o sole se ne scenne
When night falls and the sun sets
Ma n'atu sole cchiu' bello, oi ne'
But there's another sun more beautiful, oh yeah
'O sole mio sta nfronte a te
My sun arises before you
'O sole o sole mio
Oh, my sun, my own sun
Sta nfronte a te sta nfronte a te
It's before you, it's before you
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Tratore
Written by: Eduardo Di Capua, Afredo Mazzucchi, Giovanni Capurro
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind