They are best known for their instrumental "Sleep Walk", which became a regional hit and eventually reached the top of the Billboard pop chart when it was released nationally in 1959.
At present, Santo is semi-retired and Johnny tours and records new material with his own band. Johnny is also the president of Aniraf, Inc., an international record company based in New York.
Santo and Johnny Farina were born in Brooklyn, New York; Santo on October 24, 1937 and Johnny on April 30, 1941. Their father was drafted into the Army while they were children and was stationed for some time in Oklahoma. After hearing a steel guitar on the radio, he wrote to his wife, "I'd like the boys to learn to play this instrument".
Upon returning from World War II, the boys' father found a music teacher who gave the boys steel guitar lessons. When Santo was a teenager, he was able to get a local music store to modify an acoustic guitar, allowing him to play it like a steel guitar.
Within two years, Santo was performing in amateur shows on a new Gibson six-string steel guitar and had started receiving lessons from a steel guitar teacher who had studied in Hawaii. By the age of fourteen, Santo was composing songs, and formed an instrumental trio with a guitarist and drummer. This trio appeared at local dances and parties, performing both original compositions and some Hawaiian standards. With money Santo made from these performances, he bought a Fender steel guitar, one with three necks, each with eight strings. This allowed him to experiment even further, and he tried different tunings until he found ones that appealed to him.
When Johnny reached the age of twelve, he began to play accompaniment to Santo on a standard electric guitar. The brothers soon formed a duo and became rather popular in school, eventually performing at events in the New York boroughs. They recorded a demo which they circulated to local New York record companies.
In 1958, Mike Dee & The Mello Tones (Santo Farina, steel guitar; Johnny Farina, guitar and their uncle Mike Dee, drums) recorded a self-penned instrumental which they called "Deep Sleep". Loosely inspired by the song "Softly, As In The Morning Sunrise" (Sigmund Romberg, 1929), it had the same chord progression but a simpler melody line.
"Deep Sleep" became "Sleep Walk" and in September 1959 it topped the American charts.
The brothers eventually came to the attention of a music publishing company and signed a song writer's contract and eventually a contract with Canadian-American Records. Their first release, "Sleep Walk", was composed by the two brothers. (The original single credits three Farinas, including an "A. Farina" for the composition. It's sometimes reported that their mother or sister helped, but this is apparently false.) It was recorded at Trinity Records in Manhattan. "Sleep Walk" entered Billboard's 'Top 40' on August 17, 1959. It rose to the No. 1 position for two weeks in September (the 21st and the 28th) and remained in the 'Top 40' list until November 9. It was the last instrumental to hit #1 in the 1950s and earned Santo & Johnny a gold record. The follow-up song "Tear Drop" was also a hit, though their LP Santo & Johnny was less successful in the United States.
After touring Europe, Mexico, and Australia, Santo & Johnny signed to an Italian record label and had several hits in Europe that included "Sleep Walk", "Love Story", "Maria Elena", "Ebb Tide", "Love is Blue", "Enchanted Sea", and others.[citation needed] In 1964, they released an album of The Beatles covers; "And I Love Her" hit #1 in Mexico and held the spot for 21 weeks. In 1973, Santo & Johnny recorded the theme to the movie The Godfather, which went to #1 in Italy and stayed at that spot for 21 weeks. They received a gold record in Italy and were inducted into the Italian Music Hall of Fame.
Johnny Farina currently operates the official Santo And Johnny worldwide website, which includes current tour dates, discography, biography, trivia and new merchandise Farina also currently operates the official Johnny MySpace page, which includes current tour dates, discography, biography, and audio samples from his new solo albums.
"Sleep Walk" continues to be popular due to consistent radio airplay as well as its usage in commercials, television shows, and movies. One of the first covers was by Betsy Brye (stage name of Bette Anne Steele) in 1959. While Santo & Johnny wrote lyrics for "Sleep Walk", they never recorded a lyrical version, but Betsy Brye's version included these lyrics. It has been also covered by The Shadows, Stray Cats, The Ventures, Jake Shimabukuro, Amos Garrett, Kenny Vance and the Planotones, Larry Carlton, Deftones, Chet Atkins, Danny Gatton, Leo Kottke, The Sir Douglas Quintet, Jonathan Richman, Larry Berwald, and Joe Satriani. Indie group Modest Mouse also covered the song with lyrics and entitled their version "Sleepwalkin'". A version by Brian Setzer received a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance of 1998. "Sleep Walk" was used throughout the 1992 Stephen King film, Sleepwalkers. "Sleep Walk" also plays a role in the 1995 Terry Gilliam sci-fi film, 12 Monkeys. It is also played in the end scene of "La Bamba" after protagonist Ritchie Valens dies. The song can also be heard in "Eddie and the Cruisers" as well as in the film "Hearts in Atlantis" starring Anthony Hopkins. Tim Kring's 'Heroes' which aired on NBC also featured "Sleep Walk" playing on a record in a diner, from the episode '1961'.
Santo & Johnny were inducted into The Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 2002.
Love
Santo & Johnny Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
誰より深く愛してる (愛してる)
You're my special love
ずっと探してた 運命はそこにあるよ oh
やっと見つけたよ 雑踏でたたずむキミを ha
止まってた刻が不意に 動き出す
互いの鼓動感じて そのまま 恋に落ちたよ
キミこそが special love
いつまでもそばで みつめていたいから
おいで愛しいひと
誰より深く愛してる (愛してる)
You're my special love
寒い夜だけど 触れ合う肩が温かい oh
胸に残る痛み ボクが消してあげるから ah
はにかむように笑って 大丈夫さ
何があってもふたりは ずっと 一緒さ
キミこそが special love
いつまでもそばで 笑顔がみたいから
おいで愛しいひと 見上げれば ほら
満点の (満点の) 星空さ
You're my special love
ボクらの住むこの世界は
ほんとうみたいな嘘で溢れてるけど
強く抱きしめた
この温もりだけは
永遠に (永遠に) ほんとうさ ha
キミこそが special love
いつまでもそばで (僕のそばに)
みつめていたいから (みつめていたいから)
おいで愛しいひと
誰より深く oh 愛してる (愛してる) 離さない
You're my special love
キミだけを 誰よりも
You're my special love (you're my special love)
The lyrics of "Love" by Santo & Johnny express a deep and special love for someone that has been searched for a long time. The singer reveals that they have finally found this special person amidst a crowded street, and they fell in love as they felt each other's heartbeat. The verses describe how the couple's love grows stronger each day, and they want to be together forever. The chorus repeats that the person is their special love and that they love them more deeply than anyone else. They wish to always be by their side and see them smile.
The song is sensual and emotional, describing a romantic and comforting relationship between two people. It celebrates the feeling of finding that special person who makes everything else feel right. The lyrics create a dreamy atmosphere, evoking a sense of warmth and security that comes with being in love.
The chorus is the highlight of the song as it repeats the phrase "You're my special love" in a captivating way that emphasizes the song's central theme. The overall message of the song is about finding love and holding on to it tightly, even in a world that may be full of lies and deceit. It reminds listeners of the power of true love and how it can bring joy and contentment in everyday life.
Line by Line Meaning
キミこそが special love
You are the one I deeply love and cherish. You are my special love.
誰より深く愛してる (愛してる)
I love you more deeply than anyone else (I love you).
ずっと探してた 運命はそこにあるよ oh
I've been searching for so long but destiny led me to you. Oh.
やっと見つけたよ 雑踏でたたずむキミを ha
Finally, I found you standing still in the midst of the crowd. Ha.
止まってた刻が不意に 動き出す
The moment we met, time that seemed to have stopped suddenly began to move again.
互いの鼓動感じて そのまま 恋に落ちたよ
Feeling each other's heartbeat, we fell in love just like that.
いつまでもそばで みつめていたいから
I want to look at you forever by my side, so...
おいで愛しいひと
Come to me, my beloved.
寒い夜だけど 触れ合う肩が温かい oh
Though it's a cold night, our shoulders touching each other feel warm. Oh.
胸に残る痛み ボクが消してあげるから ah
I will soothe the pain in your heart, ah, and make it go away.
はにかむように笑って 大丈夫さ
You shyly laugh, but it's okay.
何があってもふたりは ずっと 一緒さ
Whatever happens, we will always be together.
笑顔がみたいから
I want to see you smiling, so...
見上げれば ほら 満点の (満点の) 星空さ
Look up, see? A perfect, starry sky (starry sky) above us.
ボクらの住むこの世界は ほんとうみたいな嘘で溢れてるけど
The world we live in is overflowing with beautiful lies.
強く抱きしめた この温もりだけは
Holding on tight, this warmth is the only truth.
永遠に (永遠に) ほんとうさ ha
Forever (forever), this will be the truth. Ha.
誰より深く oh 愛してる (愛してる) 離さない
I love you deeper than anyone else (I love you) and I won't let you go.
キミだけを 誰よりも
Only you, more than anyone else.
You're my special love (you're my special love)
You're my special love, you're my special love.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Kenichi Takemoto, Kaoru Kurosawa
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind