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.
Giorni
Renato Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Fremevi con me,
Dimenticando fuori, tutti i ma, tutti i se.
Chissà come mai,
Fra un solco e l'altro, mi hai perduto
Cambiato io no!
Disilluso ? Un po'.
Sarà colpa mia,
Da me accetterai
Soltanto un'altra favola, e non i miei guai
Ma dov'eri tu ?
Quando mi hanno sigillati il cuore.
E adesso il tendone blu
È un giorno che fu,
Che io dovrei dimenticare
Certo che mi rialzerò,
Ancora forte sarò
Se ancora al mio fianco ti vedrò
Giorni, difficili da dire
Giorni, da prendere e buttare
Giorni, ne ho buttati tanti anch'io
Aspettando paziente il giorno mio!
Giorni che non sono lontani
Applausi, ti amo, tu mi ami
Giorni di rose in cellophane
Giorni, giorni chi mai si scorderà!
Se resti con me,
Affronterai anche tu quei giorni.
Sconfiggi con me,
Il freddo di altri mille inverni
Perché d'ora in poi,
Sarà per dire, pane al pane.
Che amante sarai ?
Ti darò, mi darai ?
Giorni! È tempo di capire
Che sia ricominciare!
Se è vero, che sotto quel tendone blu
Sei cresciuto, e sei adesso, un uomo, tu!
E allora giorni!
Grazie a quei giorni se mai,
Siamo stati vicini, anche noi.
Che giorni!
Dio che giorni!!!
In Renato Zero's song Giorni, the singer reminisces about past joyful and wild nights spent under a blue circus tent in the company of someone special. The person he is addressing in the lyrics has disappeared from his life and he wonders if it's because he has changed or if it's because of romantic disillusionment. He longs for the person's return and hopes they will accompany him to face difficult days ahead, to overcome the coldness of future winters, and start anew.
The lyrics are rich in metaphors, and the circus tent represents a carefree time when everything seemed possible, and the color blue symbolizes the depth of feelings the singer had for his love interest. The song's title is a recurring refrain that highlights the theme of time passing by, days wasted in waiting, and the possibility of new beginnings. The singer's despair and hope are conveyed through a mixture of introspective soft tones and upbeat rhythm changes towards the end.
Line by Line Meaning
E c'eri anche tu, in quelle folli notti, sotto il tendone blu.
You were there too, in those crazy nights, under the blue tent.
Fremevi con me, Dimenticando fuori, tutti i ma, tutti i se.
You trembled with me, forgetting all of your doubts and insecurities.
Chissà come mai, Fra un solco e l'altro, mi hai perduto… Cambiato… io no! Disilluso ? Un po’.
Who knows how, between one furrow and the other, you lost me… I have not changed! Disillusioned? Maybe a little.
Sarà colpa mia, Se sono prigioniero, in una fotografia… Da me accetterai… Soltanto un'altra favola, e non i miei guai…
It is my fault that I am a prisoner in a photograph… You will only accept another fairy tale from me, instead of my troubles…
Ma dov'eri tu? Quando mi hanno sigillati il cuore.
But where were you when they sealed my heart?
E adesso il tendone blu… È un giorno che fu, Che io dovrei dimenticare… Certo che mi rialzerò, Ancora forte sarò… Se ancora al mio fianco ti vedrò…
And now the blue tent… is a day that has passed, which I should forget… Of course I will rise again, I will still be strong… If I still see you by my side…
Giorni, difficili da dire… Giorni, da prendere e buttare… Giorni, ne ho buttati tanti anch'io… Aspettando paziente il giorno mio!
Days, difficult to describe… Days, to take and throw away… I too have thrown away so many days… Waiting patiently for my own day!
Giorni che non sono lontani… Applausi, ti amo, tu mi ami… Giorni di rose in cellophane… Giorni, giorni…chi mai si scorderà!
Days that are not far away… Applause, I love you, you love me… Days of roses in cellophane… Days, days…who will ever forget them!
Se resti con me, Affronterai anche tu quei giorni. Sconfiggi con me, Il freddo di altri mille inverni… Perché d'ora in poi, Sarà per dire, pane al pane. Che amante sarai? Ti darò, mi darai? Giorni!
If you stay with me, you will also face those days. Conquer the cold of a thousand other winters with me… Because from now on, we will tell it like it is. What kind of lover will you be? Will you give to me as I give to you? Days!
È tempo di capire… Che sia ricominciare! Se è vero, che sotto quel tendone blu… Sei cresciuto, e sei adesso, un uomo, tu! E allora…giorni!
It's time to understand… That it's time to start again! If it's true, that under that blue tent… You have grown up, and now you are a man! And so…days!
Grazie a quei giorni…se mai, Siamo stati vicini, anche noi. Che giorni! Dio che giorni!!!
Thanks to those days…if ever, We were close too. What days! God, what days!!!
Contributed by Tyler R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.