He was the composer of Caruso (1986), which has been covered by numerous international artists. A version of Caruso sung by Luciano Pavarotti sold over 9 million copies and the song was a track on Andrea Bocelli's first international album Romanza which has sold over 16 million albums world wide thus far; the song is a tribute to the emblematic opera tenor Enrico Caruso.
He began to play the clarinet at an early age, in a jazz band in Rome. The singer-songwriter Gino Paoli noticed Dalla's vocal qualities and suggested he attempt a solo career as an Italian soul singer. In 1964, at age 21, Dalla recorded his first 45 rpm containing "Lei (non è per me)" and "Ma questa sera". However, Dalla's debut at the Cantagiro festival in 1965 was unsuccessful probably due to his appearance and to his music, which was considered too experimental for the time. His first album, 1999, was released the following year. His next album, Terra di Gaibola (from the name of a suburb of Bologna), was released in 1970 and contained some early Dalla classics.
His first hit was "4 Marzo 1943", which garnered some success at the Sanremo Festival. Regardless of its title, the song became popularly known as "Gesu bambino". Also successful was "Piazza grande", which Dalla would sing again at Sanremo.
At this point, Dalla made a decisive move in his career, starting a collaboration with the Bolognese poet Roberto Roversi. Roversi wrote the lyrics to Dalla's next three albums Il giorno aveva cinque teste (The Day Had Five Heads) (1973), Anidride solforosa (1975) and Automobili (Automobiles) (1976) Although these albums did not sell in large numbers, they were noted by critics for the unusual mix of Roversi's weird lyrics with Dalla's improvisatory, and sometimes experimental, compositional abilities.
The duo had already broken up by the time the concept album Automobili was released. Roversi, who had been against the album's release, chose the pseudonym "Norisso" when it was time to register the songs. The album, however, included one of Dalla's most popular songs, "Nuvolari", named after the famous 1930s Italian racer.
Affected by the end of the collaboration, Dalla decided to write the lyrics of his next albums himself. This decision proved to be surprisingly good, and he soon emerged as one of the most intelligent and musically cultured of the Italian singer-songwriters. The first album of this new phase was Com'è profondo il mare (1977), in which Dalla was accompanied by some members of the future pop band Stadio. The title track or "Quale allegria" are today ranked among the best Italian songs.
Dalla's poetic inspiration was confirmed by the following albums, all entitled Lucio Dalla or Dalla and all best-sellers. They contain classics like "Anna e Marco", "L'anno che verrà", "Futura", and "Cara".
In 1979, his popularity was confirmed by the success of the Banana Republic tour and album of 1979 together with singer-songwriter Francesco De Gregori, his band, and his friend Ron.
The hit single Attenti al Lupo (1990) gave him wider success in Europe.
He was invited for duetting on Pavarotti and friends, singing his own hit "Caruso" with Luciano Pavarotti.
He died from a heart attack in 1 March 2012 while on tour at Switzerland.
Mambo
Lucio Dalla Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dov'è quel cuore, dov'è
Datemi un coltello, un coltello per favore
Dov'è quel cuore bandito che ha tradito
Il mio povero cuore, lo ha smontato e finito
Dov'è
Tu reggimi la mano e poi dimmi se il suo cuore
È vicino o se è andato tontano
Il suo cuore si è seccato, è diventato una scopa
Dov'è se d'amore è proprio vero che non si muore, non si muore
Cosa faccio nudo per strada mentre piove
E c'è di più
Non dormo da una settimana
Per quel cuore di puttana
Sono andato al cinema e mi han mandato via
Perché piangevo forte e mangiavo la sua fotografia
E tu, e tu
Datemi un coltello, un coltello per favore
Dov'è quel cuore marziano
Se ne è andata sbattendo la porta e avevo in mezzo la mano
Dov'è la diva del muto
È una minaccia per tutti il suo cuore, il suo cuore ad imbuto
Dov'è, dov'è
Scende dal tram e si avvicina e fa due passi
Di mambo
Si sente molto furba e carina dice
Con te non ci rimango
Io col cuore in cantina, ma sono un uomo e dico
Vattene via
Leva il tuo sorriso dalla strada
E fai passare la mia malinconia
E porta via gli stracci, i tuoi fianchi e quella
Faccia da mambo
E la tua falsa allegria per trasformare in sorriso
Anche l'ultimo pianto
Tu, si, proprio tu, tu, si proprio tu, che non hai mai paura
Chiedi se qualcuno ti presta la faccia
Stai facendo una brutta figura
La mia regina del mambo
Se ci ripenso preferisco ritornare in cantina
Che avere te, ancora al mio fianco, tu, tu
The lyrics of Lucio Dalla's song Mambo are a lamentation over a lost love. In the first stanza, the singer desperately searches for the heart of his former lover, who has betrayed him and left him heartbroken. He even asks for a knife to cut open his own chest and check if his heart is still present. The desperation in the singer's voice reaches its peak in the last stanza when he begs his former lover to leave him alone with his pain. He prefers to stay alone in his cellar with his broken heart instead of having her fake happiness around him.
The song is very emotional, but it also has a playful and ironic tone. It is a perfect example of the Italian musical genre known as canzone, which mixes poetry and music, emotions and humor. The language is poetic, full of metaphors and unusual expressions, such as "il suo cuore ad imbuto" (her funnel-shaped heart) or "la tua falsa allegria per trasformare in sorriso anche l'ultimo pianto" (your false happiness that turns even the last tear into a smile).
Line by Line Meaning
Dov'è, dov'è?
Where is it? Where is it?
Dov'è quel cuore, dov'è
Where is that heart, where is it?
Datemi un coltello, un coltello per favore
Give me a knife, a knife please
Dov'è quel cuore bandito che ha tradito
Where is that outlawed heart that betrayed
Il mio povero cuore, lo ha smontato e finito
It dismantled and finished my poor heart
Dov'è
Where is it?
Tu reggimi la mano e poi dimmi se il suo cuore
Hold my hand and then tell me if its heart
È vicino o se è andato tontano
Is nearby or has gone astray
Se ingiro per l'Europa, occhi neri
If I tour Europe, with black eyes
Il suo cuore si è seccato, è diventato una scopa
Its heart has dried up, becoming a broom
Dov'è se d'amore è proprio vero che non si muore, non si muore
Where is it, if it's true that one does not die from love, does not die
Cosa faccio nudo per strada mentre piove
What do I do naked on the street while it's raining
E c'è di più
And there's more
Non dormo da una settimana
I haven't slept for a week
Per quel cuore di puttana
Because of that heart of a whore
Sono andato al cinema e mi han mandato via
I went to the cinema and they kicked me out
Perché piangevo forte e mangiavo la sua fotografia
Because I was crying loudly and eating her photograph
E tu, e tu
And you, and you
Datemi un coltello, un coltello per favore
Give me a knife, a knife please
Dov'è quel cuore marziano
Where is that martian heart
Se ne è andata sbattendo la porta e avevo in mezzo la mano
She left slamming the door and I had my hand in the middle
Dov'è la diva del muto
Where is the silent film star
È una minaccia per tutti il suo cuore, il suo cuore ad imbuto
Her heart, a funnel, is a threat to everyone
Dov'è, dov'è
Where is it? Where is it?
Scende dal tram e si avvicina e fa due passi
She gets off the tram and comes closer and takes two steps
Di mambo
In mambo
Si sente molto furba e carina dice
She feels very smart and cute, she says
Con te non ci rimango
I won't stay with you
Io col cuore in cantina, ma sono un uomo e dico
Me, with my heart in the basement, but I'm a man and I say
Vattene via
Go away
Leva il tuo sorriso dalla strada
Remove your smile from the street
E fai passare la mia malinconia
And let my melancholy pass
E porta via gli stracci, i tuoi fianchi e quella
And take away the rags, your hips and that
Faccia da mambo
Face of mambo
E la tua falsa allegria per trasformare in sorriso
And your false cheerfulness to turn into a smile
Anche l'ultimo pianto
Even the last tear
Tu, si, proprio tu, tu, si proprio tu, che non hai mai paura
You, yes, you, you, yes, you, who are never afraid
Chiedi se qualcuno ti presta la faccia
Ask if someone will lend you their face
Stai facendo una brutta figura
You're making a bad impression
La mia regina del mambo
My queen of mambo
Se ci ripenso preferisco ritornare in cantina
If I think about it again, I prefer to go back to the basement
Che avere te, ancora al mio fianco, tu, tu
Than to have you, still by my side, you, you
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LUCIO DALLA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind