San Remo Greatest Hits - Caravelli

Quando, Quando, Quando

San Remo Greatest Hits
Caravelli And His Magnificent Strings
Produced by Ettore Stratta
Cover Photo: Len Steckler
Columbia CL 2713
1967

From the back cover: As of 1967, the San Remo Song Festival had launched 345 songs performed by some 300 singers, instrumentalists and groups from four continents. In style, San Remo songs have ranged from Neapolitan schmaltzy to Romanesque neo-rock. But, no matter what the tempo or rhythm or mood, they somehow always managed to sound Italian. They have the characteristic Latin romanticism and sensuality that stir pulses from Venice to Vermont, from Rome to Nome, from Genoa to Georgia.

Caravelli, our maestro and arranger, was born in Venice in 1930. He studied in Italy until 1947 and then moved to France to continue his musical education at the Paris Conservatory. He worked as an accompanist for many leading singers, traveling about half a million miles before settling down to a recording career in 1959 and creating a string of best-selling instrumental albums in France.

Signor Caravelli's program is a neat but heady mixture of old and new. The earliest of the San Remo Festival songs covered in this collection is perhaps the most famous – Volare (Nel blu dip into di blu), written by San Remo's most illustrious composer, Domenico Modugno. Volare won first prize in 1958. A year later, Modugno repeated his triumph with Ciao, Ciao Bambina (Piove). Modugno songs have been featured just about every year since, and in 1966, he was represented by still another first-place winner, Duo, come ti amo!, known in this country under the title "Oh, How Much I Love You."

Two other San Remo winners of past years which are familiar to international listeners are Al di la, which took the first prize in 1961, and Quando, quango, quango, which won no prize but enjoyed enormous success after its introduction at the Festival in 1962.

Can I Trust You (lo ti daro di piu)
The River (Le colline sono in fiore)
You Don't Have To Say You Love Me (lo che non vivo senza te)
Don't Cry (Una casa in cima al mondo)
Volare (Nel blu dipinto di blu)
Al Di La
Quando, Quando, Quando
Ciao, Ciao, Bambina (Piove)
Time Alone Will Tell (Non pensare a me)
You And I And The Roses (lo, tu e le rose)
Oh, How Much I Love You (Dio, come to amo!)