Daniele was born to a low class family, his father being a port worker. A self-taught guitarist, he began his career as a musician playing for other successful singers of 1970s.
His striking debut in the Italian music world was in 1977 with the album Terra mia, which proved to be a successful mix of Neapolitan tradition and Blues sounds. Daniele defined his music with the term "taramblu", which indicated a mix of tarantella, blues and rumba. Lyrics also attracted critical praise: written and sung in an intense Neapolitan, they contained a strong though bitter accusation against the social injustices of Naples, as well as Italian society in general, as well as melanchonic personal themes. Several of the later songs will be characterized by a free intermingling of English, American and Neapolitan language passages.
Daniele's talent was confirmed in the following Pino Daniele of 1979. He scored his greatest success in 1980, with Nero a metà ("Half-Black Skinned"), which was marked by some authorities as the hallmark for the re-birth of Neapolitan song. In that year Daniele opened Bob Marley's concert in the San Siro stadium of Milan. In 1981 Vai Mo was released. Widely praised in his albums was also the presence as session men of some of the most renowned musicians of the Neapolitan musical milieu, including James Senese, Enzo Avitabile, Tullio De Piscopo and Tony Esposito.
In 1982 Daniele gradually shifted to a personal and early version of world music: in Bella 'mbriana musicians such as Alphonso Johnson and Wayne Shorter appeared as guest players. in the following year Daniele held a concert in La Habana, and later formed a Latin-American band featuring Juan Pablo Torres, Adalberto Lara and Nanà Vasconcelos. In Musicante (1984)) the former King Crimson-member Mel Collins played. Daniele's skills in creating well balanced blends of Mediterranean, Blues, rock, music, salsa and Neapolitan melodies are well shown in his first live work, Live Sciò of 1984.
Later Daniele collaborated with bluesman Richie Evans to an album written and played in duo, Common Ground. His interests for Arabic music are emphasized in Bonne Soirée (1987), while the subsequent Schizzechea With Love (1988) was more Mediterranean-oriented. In the same year he started a collaboration with the Italian actor and director Massimo Troisi: Daniele completed the soundtracks for Troisi's films Le vie del Signore sono finite and Pensavo fosse amore invece era un calesse.
A certain loss of inspiration and a move to a more pop-oriened songwriting can be detected in his greatest commercial success, Mascalzone Latino (1989), a success confirmed by the following Un Uomo In Blues (1991) and Che Dio ti benedica. The latter contains two song produced by Chick Corea.
Non calpestare i fiori nel deserto, released Spring 1995, is an attempt to revive inspiratation through African and Ethnic influences, and sell more than 800,000 copies. The subsequent tournée was ended with a doubled date with Jazz guitarist Pat Metheny.
In 2002, after a collaboration with Eros Ramazzotti, Daniele sang in trio with two other famous Italian author-singers, Francesco De Gregori and Fiorella Mannoia. His latest album containing unpublished songs is Passi d'autore of 2004.
After the divorce from Dorina Giangrande, who had worked as chorister in Terra Mia and gave him two sons, Daniele was living with Fabiola Sciabbarasi. The two had a daughter, Sara, whom Daniele dedicated an eponymous song in the album Medina.
He passed away from a heart attack between January 4th and 5th of 2015
Rhum And Coca
Pino Daniele Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sento ancora il profumo,
Delle tue dita
Attraversare la mia vita
Come un treno in corsa
Nella borsa c'è fumo
Havana
E ho perso la mia libertà
Guardandoti negli occhi
Uscendo di scena cantando
Senorita
Ormai è finita
Io ritorno da solo
Nello stesso veleno
Lo stesso veleno
Manana
Domani andremo via
Uscire dal paese è un problema
Por nosotros
Rhum e coca tutta la sera
Senorita
Ormai è finita
Io ritorno da solo
Nello stesso veleno
Lo stesso veleno
(Grazie a kappabyte per questo testo)
The lyrics to Pino Daniele's song "Rhum and Coca" are a melancholic ode to a lost love in Havana. The singer reminisces about the scent of his lover's fingers crossing his life like a rushing train, while smoke lingers in his bags. He recalls losing his freedom after drinking a mojito with his lover, getting lost in her eyes, and performing on stage with her. However, things have come to an end, and he must return to his old ways of self-destructive behavior, drowning in the same poison as before. In the second half of the song, he talks about leaving the country and the struggles that come along with it, but he consoles himself with the thought of drinking rum and Coca-Cola all night long.
The lyrics evoke a sense of longing, pain, and nostalgia for a love that has passed. The singer feels trapped in his own self-destructive habits, unable to move on from the past. He mourns the loss of his lover but is resigned to the fact that he must return to his old ways. The song's emotional depth is further accentuated by the melancholic melody and the use of traditional Latin American instruments.
Line by Line Meaning
Havana
I still smell the scent of your fingers crossing my life like a speeding train, with smoke in my bag.
Sento ancora il profumo,
I still smell the scent,
Delle tue dita
Of your fingers,
Attraversare la mia vita
Crossing my life,
Come un treno in corsa
Like a speeding train,
Nella borsa c'è fumo
With smoke in my bag.
Havana
I drank half a mojito and lost my freedom looking into your eyes, leaving the scene singing.
Ho bevuto un mojito a metà
I drank half a mojito,
E ho perso la mia libertà
And lost my freedom,
Guardandoti negli occhi
Looking into your eyes,
Uscendo di scena cantando
Leaving the scene singing.
Senorita
It's over now, I'm returning alone with the same poison.
Ormai è finita
It's over now,
Io ritorno da solo
I'm returning alone,
Nello stesso veleno
With the same poison.
Lo stesso veleno
The same poison.
Manana
Tomorrow we'll leave. Leaving the country is a problem. For us, rum and coke all night long.
Domani andremo via
Tomorrow we'll leave,
Uscire dal paese è un problema
Leaving the country is a problem,
Por nosotros
For us,
Rhum e coca tutta la sera
Rum and coke all night long.
Senorita
It's over now, I'm returning alone with the same poison.
Ormai è finita
It's over now,
Io ritorno da solo
I'm returning alone,
Nello stesso veleno
With the same poison.
Lo stesso veleno
The same poison.
Contributed by Jordyn S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@MokaMoka-sh1jk
Pino, un artiste immense, avec une voix merveilleuse, que j'aime beaucoup, mi piace molto molto, parti trop tôt, tu resteras à jamais dans nos cœurs et dans nos mémoires, tous ceux qui t'aimaient ne t'oublieront pas, et tu étais napolitain comme mon père chéri, Armando. Riposa in pace.
@jamiroflavio
mi ricordo che c'era praticamente solo questa canzone in radio quell'anno, ma lui quando era in vita metteva chiunque in secondo piano anche se faceva poco come in questo disco
@lucianamongiello5433
Questa canzone mi rimase in testa nell'estate 2007 :) ... Ciao Pino !
@valiuvalium8360
colonna sonora di tanti miei momenti felici, tristi e malinconici... grande pinu'...le tue canzoni sono in me e in tanti..
@danielebobbalestrieri5371
grande zio pino sto crescendo con le tue canzoni che riescono a rispercchiarmi e trasmetto tante emozioni
@antoniodefelice7105
Pino come Santana immenso
@michelecatinari8761
Gli va dato merito di essere passato parecchio in radio con un brano scritto sulla scala minore armonica di SI
@paologigante3358
Ciao Pino!! Mi ricordo ancora quando mi hai detto " Paolo portami fuori,ho un cerchio alla testa non voglio vedere nessuno".Grazie !!
@francescopirozzi794
GRANDE PINO!!!!! LO STESSO VELENO LO STESSO VELENO!!!!! RUM E COCA TUTTA LA SERAAAA!!!!!!!°
@DJPIAMAW
SEI E RESTERAI UN GRANDE