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.
Il grande mare
Renato Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
La mia estate e tu
Vivila così
Falla tua di più.
C'è un'estate che
Non ritorna mai
Fu la nostra incoscienza non so
Un tatuaggio però
Dell'estate mia
Fanne ciò che vuoi
Ti potrà innamorare
Degli amori tuoi
Fa che il cielo sia
Come allora blu
E poi lasciati andare.
Il grande mare
Che ci commuove
E che ci fa soffrire è là
(coro) mare mare mare
Se non torniamo
Se con coraggio non lo navighiamo, chissà!
(coro) mare mare
Segna i volti questo sale
L'incertezza fa più male
Quante barche non salpano più
Si affacciasse la stanchezza
La rinuncia l'amarezza
Metti il cuore in salvo, pensa a te
Mare c'è, li per te, Mare c'è immenso è.
Hai scordato già
Che eravamo là
Sulla sabbia il tuo nome ed il mio
Giuravamo che fosse amore.
La mia estate no
Non buttarla via
Non vorrai imprigionarla
In una fotografia.
Sembrerà un addio
Poi di nuovo qui, tu ed io
Siamo gente di mare.
Il grande mare
Che ci divide e ci fa ritrovare
Vedrai
(coro) mare mare mare
Mai più naufragi
Con l'esperienza più maturi e saggi
Anche noi
(coro) mare mare.
Riscopriamo l'avventura
Superiamo ogni paura
E la nave in porto tornerà,
Qualcuno è ancora lì sul ponte
Lo sguardo fisso all'orizzonte
Aspetta un'onda gli riporti te
Mare c'è, lì per te, Mare c'è. Immenso è
The lyrics of Renato Zero’s “Il Grande Mare” is about the memories of a past summer spent by the sea, and the singer wishes to relive that carefree time again with his loved one. The song begins with the singer offering the listener his summer, and the exhortation to live it however they please. He reminds the listener that there is a summer that never comes back and describes it as the time of their youth and innocence, but there is still a tattoo that remains from that time.
The song then talks about the beauty and immensity of the sea, which can both move and hurt us. The sea is a metaphor for life, with its uncertainties and risks, and the singer reminds the listener that they need to have the courage to sail it. The song highlights the difficult emotions that come with navigating through life such as uncertainty, fatigue, and resignation. The singer encourages the listener to put their heart first and to embrace the adventure and overcome their fears.
In the end, the singer wants to celebrate love and the memories that the couple have shared together under starry nights and blue skies by the sea. The sea represents both life’s challenges and also the limitless possibilities it holds.
Line by Line Meaning
Ti regalerò
I will give you
La mia estate e tu
My summer and you
Vivila così
Live it like this
Falla tua di più.
Make it yours, and more
C'è un'estate che
There is a summer that
Non ritorna mai
Never returns
Fu la nostra incoscienza non so
It was our ignorance, I don't know
Un tatuaggio però
But a tattoo remains
Rimane.
Remains.
Dell'estate mia
Of my summer
Fanne ciò che vuoi
Make it what you want
Ti potrà innamorare
It might make you fall in love
Degli amori tuoi
With your own loves
Fa che il cielo sia
Make the sky
Come allora blu
Blue like back then
E poi lasciati andare.
And then let yourself go.
Il grande mare
The great sea
Che ci commuove
That moves us
E che ci fa soffrire è là
And makes us suffer is there
(coro) mare mare mare
(chorus) sea sea sea
Se non torniamo
If we don't come back
Se con coraggio non lo navighiamo, chissà!
If we don't navigate it with courage, who knows!
(coro) mare mare
(chorus) sea sea
Segna i volti questo sale
This salt marks our faces
L'incertezza fa più male
Uncertainty hurts more
Quante barche non salpano più
How many boats don't sail anymore
Si affacciasse la stanchezza
If tiredness shows up
La rinuncia l'amarezza
Renunciation and bitterness
Metti il cuore in salvo, pensa a te
Protect your heart, think of yourself
Mare c'è, li per te, Mare c'è immenso è.
The sea is there for you, the sea is immense.
Hai scordato già
Have you already forgotten
Che eravamo là
That we were there
Sulla sabbia il tuo nome ed il mio
On the sand, your name and mine
Giuravamo che fosse amore.
We swore it was love.
La mia estate no
My summer, no
Non buttarla via
Don't throw it away
Non vorrai imprigionarla
You won't want to imprison it
In una fotografia.
In a photograph.
Sembrerà un addio
It will seem like a farewell
Poi di nuovo qui, tu ed io
Then, again here, you and I
Siamo gente di mare.
We are people of the sea.
Il grande mare
The great sea
Che ci divide e ci fa ritrovare
That divides us and makes us find each other
Vedrai
You will see
(coro) mare mare mare
(chorus) sea sea sea
Mai più naufragi
Never again shipwrecks
Con l'esperienza più maturi e saggi
With more experience, mature and wise
Anche noi
Us too
(coro) mare mare.
(chorus) sea sea.
Riscopriamo l'avventura
Let's rediscover the adventure
Superiamo ogni paura
Let's overcome every fear
E la nave in porto tornerà,
And the ship will return to port,
Qualcuno è ancora lì sul ponte
Someone is still on the deck
Lo sguardo fisso all'orizzonte
Staring at the horizon
Aspetta un'onda gli riporti te
Waiting for a wave to bring you back
Mare c'è, lì per te, Mare c'è. Immenso è
The sea is there for you, the sea is immense.
Contributed by Samuel B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.