Luciano Ligabue

[William Schryver]

On an entirely different note, I want to take this opportunity to assume the role as the official fan club representative in the United States for Luciano Ligabue, who is (on the basis of sheer numbers alone) the single biggest rock star in Europe, and probably the world. (He recently played to a paying audience of 180,000 fans at an outdoor venue in Reggio Emilia.)

My wife and I have both become virtually obsessed with him in the past few months, and listen to little else. I have an iTunes playlist with 75 different songs, none of which I seem capable of skipping over to get to the next (although I do frequently back up to listen to one over and over – lol!)

Anyway, I realize that xenophobic American artistic tastes dictate that our bands should be able to sell albums and tickets in the international market, but we’ll be damned if we’re going to go to the effort of appreciating any foreign bands in our country, unless they sing their songs in English.

Of course, it certainly helps that my wife and I both speak and understand Italian (having served in the same mission in Italy, and therfore retained a good measure of our fluency over the years).

Still, I’ve got to believe that anyone, armed with at least an English translation of the lyrics, is able to appreciate a band or artist singing in a foreign language. But maybe that’s not realistic.

In any event, I’m going to start this Luciano Ligabue thread here with the expectation that, at least, there will be some former Italian missionary types who wander by and can appreciate it. I’ll post one song at a time, along with my English translation (or, sometimes, my interpretation—there’s a difference, of course) of the lyrics.

Anyway, this first one is, I think, a great song. I’ve included links for both the acoustic version and a live-performance rock version. I’m not sure which I like best. (Incidentally, the drummer is American Michael Urbano, of Cracker and Smashmouth fame, and a good friend and former band-mate of my brother-in-law from Sacramento. I met Michael at the wedding of my bil and sil, and it was Michael that indirectly turned me on to Ligabue.)

Here’s the acoustic version of the studio album (he did a double album, with both acoustic and rock versions of every song on the album):

Here is a live performance of the rock version: La Verità È Una Scelta (Truth is a Choice)

Here are the Italian lyrics along with my English translation: La Verità È Una Scelta (Truth is a Choice)

[Mola Ram Suda Ram]

Not my cup of tea but hey thanks for the link. He is way suave.

[Calm]

My daughter is hooked on Korea music and will listen to any sound that appeals to her (plus she doesn't have to be concerned about content if she doesn't know the language, lol) so I get exposed to some interesting music she picks up in her wanderings across the internet. Will check this out and see if she already knows about it...as she usually does when I think I have come up with something she's not aware of....

[William Schryver]

Not my cup of tea but hey thanks for the link. He is way suave.

Hey Mola, don't be too quick to reject Ligabue just yet. He has a W I D E variety of musical styles he employs, from country blues to folk to pop rock to psychedelic to a mild Italian rap thing. I will be trying to highlight his various styles and artistic range on this thread. For my next installment, I recommend this YouTube video link to a song called Piccola Stella Senza Cielo (Little Star Without a Sky). It is the song that really introduced me to Ligabue and whetted my appetite for more.

The video is from a 2008 live performance at L'Arena di Verona -- the Roman-era (30 A.D.) arena in Verona. Ligabue and his band were accompanied by the world-renown 70-piece Orchestra dell'Arena di Verona for a 7 show run in September 2008, which is when this video was made.

As always, I recommend reading my English translation of the lyric, in order to better appreciate the song. They even rhyme in this instance--I've been singing the song in English and Italian. They can be found at this link: Piccola Stella Senza Cielo (Little Star Without a Sky)

Here is the link to the video itself: Piccola Stella Senza Cielo

More songs to come later ...

Edited August 23, 2011 by William Schryver

[Mola Ram Suda Ram]

Here is the link to the video itself: Piccola Stella Senza Cielo

More songs to come later ...

Thanks for the link. I think he has kind of a Neal Diamond type tone going on. Not that his songs are like Neal's just that he sounds like Neal. That to me is cool. I love Neal Diamond.

I enjoyed the composition too.

[cinepro]

My son just started his Italian class in high school, so I'll be getting him a bunch of these songs.

One of my family's favorite bands is the british band McFly. Those guys really know how to write (

) a pop song.

And certain

have their appeal as well... Edited August 23, 2011 by cinepro

[William Schryver]

My son just started his Italian class in high school, so I'll be getting him a bunch of these songs.

I'm actually surprised to hear that Italian is being offered in a high school--even one in southern California.

Don't get me wrong, that's great, if you ask me. I have an absolute passion for the Italian language. It is, in my opinion, the most beautiful-sounding language on earth.

Anyway, back to my Ligabue fan club duties ...

Ligabue is also a filmmaker. His 1998 film Radiofreccia won multiple of the Italian equivalent of the Academy Awards.

He has published a well-received novel, as well as a book of poetry, which I quite like, entitled Lettere d’Amore nel Frigo (Love Letters in the Fridge).

In this next installment of Ligabue music, I have a link to an almost Pink Floyd-esque song called Camera Con Vista Sul Deserto (Room With a Desert View). At the beginning of many songs during this “mostly acoustic” tour of theater-size venues, Ligabue would read a poem, as he does at the start of this song. Feel free to skip to 1:30 if you’d rather not listen to the beautiful sound of Italian words rolling off the lips of a native speaker. For those who choose to listen and desire to know what the words mean, I have provided a translation here: The Years We Were Distracted

I have done a rhyming English version of the lyrics to the song. They can be read here: Room With a Desert View

Finally, here is a link to a live, mostly acoustic version of the song: Camera Con Vista Sul Deserto

I like this song a lot. It evokes a very melancholy, alone in the desert kind of vibe.

Hopefully someone else will like it, too.

-WS

[cinepro]

I'm actually surprised to hear that Italian is being offered in a high school--even one in southern California.

And his teacher is the Gospel Doctrine teacher from our ward (who unsurprisingly served her mission in Italy).

[ERayR]

Not bad. I could listen for awhile. As has been stated he does have a Neil Diamond sound. As an aside I have a question. Why do they sell seats at a rock concert as nobody sits anyway?

Edited August 25, 2011 by ERayR

[Fly Fisherman]

He recently played to a paying audience of 180,000 fans at an outdoor venue in Reggio Emilia.)

I like it! Good stuff! Of course, it does help to understand the words. I served in Milano '87 to '89. In fact, I was in Reggio Emilia in '88 - (what an interesting experience - no ward or branch, only 4 members, and a city full of extremely friendly, but uninterested atheists and communists).

Thanks for posting.

[Calm]

I like it! Good stuff! Of course, it does help to understand the words. I served in Milano '87 to '89. In fact, I was in Reggio Emilia in '88 - (what an interesting experience - no ward or branch, only 4 members, and a city full of extremely friendly, but uninterested atheists and communists).

Thanks for posting.

Sometimes it's nice not to know the words. The voice then truly becomes just another instrument to listen to and it changes the experience into something different.

[William Schryver]

Today's installment:

Lyrics (with English translation): Atto di Fede (Act of Faith) - Italian Lyrics with English Translation