Renato Fiacchini was born in Rome in the Via di Ripetta, next to the Via del Corso.
He quit his studies early to devote himself to his true passion, playing music and singing - though initially with little success. He replied to the criticisms (including the recurring insult Sei uno zero! - "You're a zero!") by assuming the alter-ego of Renato Zero. After several different jobs, including an appearance in an advertisement for ice-cream, he recorded his first singles in 1965: "Tu, sì", "Il deserto", "La solitudine", which were never issued. His first published single, "Non basta sai/In mezzo ai guai" (1967), sold a total of 20 copies.
In the late 1960s Zero's career was favoured by the glam-rock fashion, which he had somehow presaged with his sexual ambiguity and androgynous appearance. At the same time, this led him to be accused of cloning characters like David Bowie. In 1973 he issued his first LP, No! Mamma, no! (live), but with little success. The follow-up Invenzioni met the same fate.
Birth of the "Zerophilia"
It was not until 1976 that he scored his first hit with the single "Madame". "Madame" and the album including it, Trapezio, established a regular and loyal audience for Zero. This was to increase exponentially in the following years, until he could boast a huge following of die-hard fans that he dubbed "Sorcini" ("Little Mice").
The late 1970s were indeed years of great success for Zero's character, with the LPs Zerofobia ("Zerophobia", 1977), Zerolandia (1978) and Erozero (1979) topping the Italian charts. At this time Renato Zero was amongst the two or three most popular singers in Italy and his song "Il Carrozzone" was already regarded, also by critics, as one of the best Italian songs ever.
In 1979 Zero played himself in the movie "Ciao Nì" (his usual greeting to his fans, which can be roughly translated as "Hi pal!"). In Italy this film was to be more successful than the blockbuster "Superman".
The 1980s
In the 1980s he began to abandon make-up and greasepaint, but this did not rid Zero of his mania for grandeur: in the 1980 tour, for example, he entered the scene riding a white horse. In 1982 he began a collaboration with the opera director Renato Serio, who was to write the string arrangements for almost all of Zero's following LPs. In late 1983 he took part in RAI's Fantastico 3, then the most popular Italian TV show.
His career continued to be successful until 1984, with top-charts songs like "Amico" ("Friend") and "Spiagge" ("Beaches"). That year, however, his album Leoni si nasce and the tour of the same name, in which he appeared disguised as a lion and escorted by four aborigines, were commercial failures. The album Zero of 1987 marked the low point of his career: instead of playing in arenas and stadiums, Zero had to sing almost for free in the piazzas and discos of Italy's minor cities.
1990s and 2000s: the Comeback
In 1991 Renato Zero participated to the Sanremo Music Festival with "Spalle al muro", and from that moment on his career began to rise again. In 1993 he was nr.1 in the Italian charts with the LP Quando non sei più nessuno. The following year Imperfetto repeated this success. During his tour concerts would regularly sell out, and he returned to his famous dress changes during the spectacles, although in a less kitsch and more balanced style.
In 2004 his tour "Cattura il sogno/Il sogno continua" (Catch the dream/The dream continues) was awarded from Pollstar magazine as the most successful of the year in Italy and as well as one of the most successful worldwide (#30). The recording af the Roman concerts, held at Olimpico Stadium in June, was the best selled musical DVD of 2004. In 2005 he took part to the Italian stage of Live 8, in the Circo Massimo. In November his new album Il dono ("The Gift") topped the charts and maintained #1 until the end of the year. In December 2005 he performed in the Vatican with a song dedicated to Pope John Paul II. Renato Zero's most recent tour started in February 2006 and is entitled Zero movimento. During some concerts held at the time of the campaign for the April 2006 elections he declared himself against former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Fine favola
Renato Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Se vai via dal castello e da me
Perché il male che fai, lo fai a te.
Ti tradisci da sola
La tua favola cambia il suo re
Questo tu lo sai, però vai.
L'arsura, ti spinge via
La gioventù, è così,
Realtà che non immagini.
Consigli miei
Non ne vuoi più
Convinta come sei
Di farcela anche da te.
Ti abbandoni da sola
Anche se sei convinta di no
Troppo presto però
Ma fai tu.
La vita mia sarà di chi
Vorrà saperne di più
Ti mancherà il tuo Messia
Ma indietro non si torna mai.
Castelli qui
Non vedrai più
Ma aquile, che scendono dove sei tu.
Ti abbandoni da sola
Firma prima qui sotto l'addio
Fine favola
Il re non sarò più io
In Renato Zero's song Fine favola, the lyrics speak to someone who is leaving a castle and him behind. The singer believes that the person is abandoning herself because the harm she is doing is only to herself. Her fairytale is changing kings, and although she knows this, she persists in leaving. The singer believes the girl is leaving because of the heat and because of her youth. He thinks that she will find a new reality and a new king that she cannot even imagine. The singer advises her, but she refuses to accept any more advice. Even though she thinks she can make it alone, the singer believes she is abandoning herself. Yet he tells her that his life will belong to someone who wants to know more. She will miss him, but he knows that he cannot go back to being her Messiah. The song ends with the girl signing a goodbye, and the singer says that he won't be the king of her fairytale anymore.
The lyrics suggest that the girl is going through a phase of self-discovery and is probably following her dreams. She is leaving the castle and the singer behind, probably because she wants to find a new life for herself. The singer advises her against leaving, but it seems that she is determined to go. Renato Zero's Fine favola teaches us that it is essential to pursue our dreams, even if it means leaving behind the familiar and comfortable things we are used to. The song also emphasizes the idea that people have different paths to follow and different ways of achieving their goals.
Line by Line Meaning
Ti abbandoni da sola
You abandon yourself alone
Se vai via dal castello e da me
If you leave the castle and me
Perché il male che fai, lo fai a te.
Because the harm you do, you do to yourself.
Ti tradisci da sola
You betray yourself alone.
La tua favola cambia il suo re
Your fairytale changes its king.
Questo tu lo sai, però vai.
You know this, yet you go.
L'arsura, ti spinge via
The dry spell pushes you away.
La gioventù, è così,
Youth is like that,
Un nuovo re ti mostrerà
A new king will show you
Realtà che non immagini.
A reality you cannot imagine.
Consigli miei
My advice
Non ne vuoi più
You no longer want it.
Convinta come sei
Convinced as you are
Di farcela anche da te.
Of making it on your own.
Anche se sei convinta di no
Even if you are convinced otherwise
Troppo presto però
Still too soon
Ma fai tu.
But you do it.
La vita mia sarà di chi
My life will be for those who
Vorrà saperne di più
Want to know more.
Ti mancherà il tuo Messia
You will miss your Messiah
Ma indietro non si torna mai.
But one can never go back.
Castelli qui
Castles here
Non vedrai più
You will not see anymore
Ma aquile, che scendono dove sei tu.
But eagles that descend where you are.
Firma prima qui sotto l'addio
Sign here below the farewell
Fine favola
End of the fairytale
Il re non sarò più io
I will not be the king anymore.
Contributed by Natalie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Zeroeden
SPLENDIDA... TESTO INCREDIBILEEE
erdrago05
Splendida.
pirottino
bella davvero.
Riccardo Moretti
Splendido capolavoro con le parole di Franco Califano
antonella chimera
Meravigliosa..
Annalisa
💖
Franco Evangelista
Bisognerebbe far sapere che questi testo è di Califano! Perché si vuol sempre nascondere tutto ciò che ha fatto il Califfo!!!!!
maxredsson
Le poesie di Franco Califano andrebbero fatte studiare ai ragazzi nelle scuole.
Stefano Mantovani
capolavoro anche nel 2018! concordate? www.stefanomantovani.it
Franco Evangelista
Ma, forse nessuno sa'che er testo e 'der Califfo!!!