Mambo Italiano (song)

Last updated
"Mambo Italiano"
Mambo Italiano - Rosemary Clooney and the Mellomen.jpg
Single by Rosemary Clooney and the Mellomen
B-side "We'll Be Together Again"
ReleasedOctober 11, 1954 (October 11, 1954)
Label Columbia
Songwriter(s) Bob Merrill, Frankie Laine, William S. Fischer
Producer(s) Buddy Cole, Paul Weston

"Mambo Italiano" is a popular song written by Bob Merrill in 1954 for the American singer Rosemary Clooney. The song became a hit for Clooney, reaching the top ten on record charts in the US and France and No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in early 1955. The song has shown enduring popularity, with several cover versions and appearances in numerous films.

Contents

Background

Merrill reportedly wrote it under a recording deadline, scribbling hastily on a paper napkin in an Italian restaurant in New York City, and then using the wall pay-phone to dictate the melody, rhythm and lyrics to the studio pianist, under the aegis of the conductor Mitch Miller, who produced the original record. [1] Alongside Merrill, 'Lidianni' and 'Gabba' are also listed as writers of the song, [2] [3] corresponding to the pseudonyms of the Italian lyricists Gian Carlo Testoni and Gaspare Abbate, respectively.

Merrill's song provides an obvious parody of genuine mambo music, cashing in on the 1954 mambo craze in New York, while at the same time allowing Miller to set up a vehicle for Clooney's vocal talents. [4] It is also a late example of an American novelty song in a tradition started during World War II by the Italian-American jazz singer Louis Prima, in which nonsense lyrics with an Italian-American sound are used in such a way as to present a stereotyped caricature of Italian-American people (who had been classed with "enemy alien" status and discouraged from speaking Italian) as likable, slightly brash, pleasure-loving folk. [5] Although Clooney's own family background was Irish-American, she could perform such "Italianized" material with an entirely convincing accent, which she had readily picked up from Italian-American musicians and their families. [5]

The nonsense lyrics [4] [6] were originally couched in English, mixed together with a comic jumble of Italian, Spanish, Neapolitan and gibberish (invented) words, including:

Chart history

Weekly charts

The song reached No. 8 on the U.S. Cash Box Top 50 Best Selling Records chart, in a tandem ranking of Don Cornell, Nick Noble, Kay Armen, and Roy Rogers & Dale Evans's versions, with Don Cornell and Nick Noble's versions marked as bestsellers. [7] The song also reached No. 7 on Billboard 's Honor Roll of Hits, with Don Cornell and Nick Noble's versions listed as best sellers. [8]

In Australia, the song charted regionally. It entered the Brisbane charts in January 1956, and reached No. 3. In Sydney, it charted twice: in January, when it reached No. 10 (in a 10-song Hit Parade), and again in March 1956 when it went to No. 4.

Chart (1954–55)Peak
position
France (IFOP) [9] 8
UK Singles Chart [10] 1
US Billboard Best Sellers in Stores [11] 10
US Billboard Most Played in Juke Boxes [11] 9
US Billboard Most Played by Jockeys [11] 13
US Cash Box [7] 8

Dean Martin version

It was successfully covered in 1955 by the popular Italian-American singer/actor Dean Martin. [12] In 2022, Martin's version was played briefly in a streaming commercial for Airbnb.

In 2006, German nu jazz and lounge music act Club des Belugas officially released a remix of the Dean Martin version on their album Apricoo Soul, with official authorization on behalf of Capitol Records/EMI and Martin's estate.

Carla Boni version

"Mambo Italiano" became popular in Italy when Carla Boni scored a major hit with her version in 1956. [12] [13] Also in 1956, [14] Renato Carosone, a singer and band leader from Naples, recorded a successful version that weaves in several fragments of Neapolitan song, of which he was a leading exponent. [2]

Shaft version

"Mambo Italiano"
Mambo Italiano Shaft cover.jpg
Single by Shaft
from the album Pick Up on This
Released2000
Length2:51 (radio edit)
Label Wonderboy
Songwriter(s) Bob Merrill, Frankie Laine, William S. Fischer
Producer(s) Al and El
Shaft singles chronology
"(Mucho Mambo) Sway"
(1999)		"Mambo Italiano"
(2000)		"Kiki Riri Boom"
(2001)

British electronic music duo Shaft covered the song and released it as a single in 2000. It was the follow-up to their 1999 hit, "(Mucho Mambo) Sway". This version reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart and peaked within the top 40 in Australia, Denmark, Iceland, Ireland, and Sweden. It was later included on the duo's 2001 album, Pick Up on This.

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2000)Peak
position
Australia (ARIA) [15] 17
Denmark (IFPI) [16] 8
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [17] 41
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [18] 5
Ireland (IRMA) [19] 33
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [20] 22
Scotland (OCC) [21] 14
UK Singles (OCC) [22] 12

Year-end charts

Chart (2000)Position
Australia (ARIA) [23] 86
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [24] 9

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [25] Gold35,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Other versions

Cover versions of the song made in other languages include a French translation made by the Turkish polyglot singer Darío Moreno. [12] Other covers in various genres from around the world include a salsa setting by the Italian musician Massimo Scalici; a V-pop version by the Vietnamese group Hồ Quang Hiếu; a Mandarin version by Hong Kong singer Paula Tsui; an instrumental by the Swedish electric guitarist Mattias Eklundh; a Latin ska number by Federico Fosati and Dinamo from Mallorca. [26] Bette Midler remade "Mambo italiano" for her 2002 album Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook . Patrizio Buanne released a cover on his album Patrizio in 2009. Dean Martin's daughter, Deana Martin released a cover on her 2006 album Memories Are Made of This. The "Mambo Italiano" tune features at the start of Lady Gaga's 2011 song "Americano". [26] Gaga later performed "Mambo Italiano" during her Jazz & Piano residency in Las Vegas. [27] Iggy Azalea samples the song in her 2019 single "Lola". [28]

Usage in film

In the 1955 Italian comedy film Scandal in Sorrento (Pane, amore e...), Sophia Loren dances to an instrumental arrangement of the tune, opposite Vittorio De Sica in a simplified imitation of mambo dancing. [29]

The song was also used in the beginning credits of the 1988 mob comedy Married to the Mob starring Alec Baldwin, during a dancing scene in the 1996 film Big Night , and in the 1999 comedy Mickey Blue Eyes starring Hugh Grant and James Caan.

In 2023, the song featured prominently in Kaurismäki's film Fallen Leaves , and as the travelling music and final credits in Book Club: The Next Chapter .

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosemary Clooney</span> American singer and actress (1928–2002)

Rosemary Clooney was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me", "Mambo Italiano", "Tenderly", "Half as Much", "Hey There", "This Ole House", and "Sway". She also had success as a jazz vocalist. Clooney's career languished in the 1960s, partly because of problems related to depression and drug addiction, but revived in 1977, when her White Christmas co-star Bing Crosby asked her to appear with him at a show marking his 50th anniversary in show business. She continued recording until her death in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pérez Prado</span> Cuban bandleader and mambo musician

Dámaso Pérez Prado was a Cuban bandleader, pianist, composer and arranger who popularized the mambo in the 1950s. His big band adaptation of the danzón-mambo proved to be a worldwide success with hits such as "Mambo No. 5", earning him the nickname "King of the Mambo". In 1955, Prado and his orchestra topped the charts in the US and UK with a mambo cover of Louiguy's "Cherry Pink ". He frequently made brief appearances in films, primarily of the rumberas genre, and his music was featured in films such as La Dolce Vita.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renato Carosone</span> Italian musician

Renato Carosone was an Italian musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Can't Help Falling in Love</span> 1961 single by Elvis Presley

"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley for the album Blue Hawaii (1961). It was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss and published by Gladys Music, Inc. The melody is based on "Plaisir d'amour", a popular French love song composed in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini. The song was initially written from the perspective of a woman as "Can't Help Falling in Love with Him", which explains the first and third line ending on "in" and "sin" rather than words rhyming with "you".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dancing in the Moonlight</span> 1970 single by Boffalongo

"Dancing in the Moonlight" is a song written by Sherman Kelly, originally recorded in 1970 by Kelly's band Boffalongo, and then a hit single by King Harvest in 1972, reaching number 5 in Canada and number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2000, a cover by English band Toploader became a worldwide hit and achieved multi-platinum status in the United Kingdom. A version by Swedish EDM duo Jubël, released in 2018, was a hit in Europe.

"Mambo No. 5" is an instrumental mambo and jazz dance song originally composed and recorded by Cuban musician Dámaso Pérez Prado in 1949 and released the next year.

"This Ole House" is an American popular song written by Stuart Hamblen, and published in 1954. Rosemary Clooney's version reached the top of the popular music charts in both the US and the UK in 1954. The song again topped the UK chart in 1981 in a recording by Shakin' Stevens.

"¿Quién será?" is a bolero-mambo song written by Mexican composers Luis Demetrio and Pablo Beltrán Ruiz. Beltrán recorded the song for the first time with his orchestra in 1953. Pedro Infante, for whom the song was written, recorded it in 1954.

"You'll Never Know", sometimes referred to as "You'll Never Know (Just How Much I Love You)" in later years, is a popular song with music written by Harry Warren and the lyrics by Mack Gordon. The song is based on a poem written by a young Oklahoma war bride named Dorothy Fern Norris.

"Come On-a My House" is a song performed by Rosemary Clooney and originally released in 1951. It was written by Ross Bagdasarian and his cousin, Armenian-American Pulitzer Prize-winning author William Saroyan, while driving across New Mexico in the summer of 1939. The melody is based on an Armenian folk song. The lyrics reference traditional Armenian customs of inviting over relatives and friends and providing them with a generously overflowing table of fruits, nuts, seeds, and other foods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People (Barbra Streisand song)</span> 1964 single by Barbra Streisand

"People" is a song composed by Jule Styne with lyrics by Bob Merrill for the 1964 Broadway musical Funny Girl starring Barbra Streisand, who introduced the song. The song was released as a single in 1964 with "I Am Woman", a solo version of "You Are Woman, I Am Man", also from Funny Girl.

Shaft are an English electronic music production duo, known for their covers and remixes of "(Mucho Mambo) Sway" and "Mambo Italiano". The former entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart in August 1999, then reached number one on New Zealand's Recorded Music NZ chart in December. They followed this with the release of "Mambo Italiano", which peaked at number twelve on the UK Singles Chart but ultimately did not replicate the success of the previous single. They went on to tour the world and win a gold disc for best performing group. Since then, they have recorded more songs such as "Kiri Riri Boom" and "Shake Seniora".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cruisin' (Smokey Robinson song)</span> 1979 single by Smokey Robinson

"Cruisin'" is a 1979 single written, produced, and performed by American singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson for Motown Records' Tamla label. One of Robinson's most successful singles outside of his work with the Miracles, "Cruisin'" hit number one on the U.S. Cash Box Top 100 and was also a Billboard Hot 100 hit, peaking at number four the week of February 2, 1980. It was a top-five hit on the Soul chart as well.

"Round and Round" is a popular song by Joe Shapiro and Lou Stallman published in 1956. A version of the song was recorded by Perry Como for RCA Victor on January 15, 1957 and was a big hit that year.

<i>Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook</i> 2003 studio album by Bette Midler

Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook is a 2003 studio album by the American singer Bette Midler, produced by Barry Manilow, their first collaboration in over two decades. The album was Midler's first for Columbia Records.

<i>Demi-Centennial</i> 1995 studio album by Rosemary Clooney

Demi-Centennial is a 1995 studio album by American jazz singer Rosemary Clooney.

"Tu vuò fà l'americano" is a Neapolitan language song by Italian singer Renato Carosone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">We No Speak Americano</span> 2010 single by Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP

"We No Speak Americano" is a song by Australian band Yolanda Be Cool and producer DCUP. It was released on the independent Australian label Sweat It Out on 27 February 2010. The song samples the 1956 Italian song "Tu Vuò Fà L'Americano" in the Neapolitan language by Renato Carosone, written by Carosone and Nicola Salerno. "We No Speak Americano" became a hit in Europe, Australia, and South America as well as a top 40 hit in the U.S. and Canada. It also won the 2010 ARIA award for "Best Dance Release." The song had sold over 1 million digital copies in the United States as of 10 April 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guaglione</span> 1956 Neapolitan song

"Guaglione" is a Neapolitan song with music by Giuseppe Fanciulli and words by Nicola "Nisa" Salerno. This original version of the song was the winning song at the IV Festival di Napoli which was broadcast on radio in 1956. Guaglione is Neapolitan for "boy", but as slang can mean "street urchin", "corner boy", etc. The word guaglione has appeared as "wallyo" in New York immigrant slang.

"Beautiful Brown Eyes" is a country song written by Alton Delmore, originally inspired by his oldest daughter. One of the best known versions of the song was originally arranged by Fiddlin' Arthur Smith & Alton Delmore of The Delmore Brothers in 1951. An award was presented to Alton Delmore for "Beautiful Brown Eyes" in 1951.

References

  1. ↑ Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 17. ISBN   978-0-85112-250-2.
  2. 1 2 Scuderi, Antonio (2010). "Okay Napulitan!: Social Change and Cultural Identity in the Songs of Renato Carosone". Italica. 87 (4): 619–636. JSTOR   23070816. ...in the American song, "Mambo Italiano," [Carosone] inserts fragments of various Neapolitan standards, including "Simmo a Napoli paisà" (Siamo a Napoli paesano), "Dicitencello vuje" (Diteglielo voi), "Marechiaro," and "O sole mio."
  3. ↑ "Search results for: 'mambo italiano merrill lidianna gabba'". www.canzoneitaliana.it. Portale della canzone italiana. Archived from the original on 18 July 2019.
  4. 1 2 Crossland, Ken; Macfarlane, Malcolm (2013). Late Life Jazz: The Life and Career of Rosemary Clooney. Oxford University Press USA. pp. 28, 62–63. ISBN   978-0-19-979857-5.
  5. 1 2 Carnevale, Nancy C. (2003). ""No Italian Spoken for the Duration of the War": Language, Italian-American Identity, and Cultural Pluralism in the World War II Years". Journal of American Ethnic History. 22 (3): 3–33. doi:10.2307/27501314. JSTOR   27501314. S2CID   254481419.
  6. ↑ "Rosemary Clooney - Mambo Italiano lyrics". lyricstranslate.com. Archived from the original on 18 July 2019.
  7. 1 2 "Cash Box Top 50 Best Selling Records", Cash Box , October 1, 1955. p. 28. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Honor Roll of Hits", Billboard , September 17, 1955. p. 36. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. 1954-10-12. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  10. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 39–40. ISBN   978-1-904994-10-7.
  11. 1 2 3 Whitburn, Joel (2000) The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, Billboard Publications, Inc. p. 137.
  12. 1 2 3 Guaitamacchi, Ezio (2011). "Rosemary Clooney – Mambo italiano". 1000 canzoni che ci hanno cambiato la vita (in Italian). Rizzoli. p. 31. ISBN   978-88-586-1742-7.
  13. ↑ "Addio Carla Boni, regina del Mambo italiano (obituary)". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). October 17, 2009. Retrieved March 22, 2017.
  14. ↑ Deregibus, Enrico (2010). "Renato Carosone". Dizionario completo della Canzone Italiana (in Italian). Giunti Editore. p. 97. ISBN   978-88-09-75625-0 . Retrieved March 23, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Shaft – Mambo Italiano". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 19. May 6, 2000. p. 13. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 22. May 27, 2000. p. 15. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 20 (15.7–22.7 2000)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). July 14, 2000. p. 10. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  19. ↑ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Shaft". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Shaft – Mambo Italiano". Singles Top 100. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  21. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  23. ↑ "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2000". ARIA . Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  24. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 100". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). January 5, 2001. p. 10. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  25. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2000 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  26. 1 2 Wright, Joseph (July 15, 2015). "Five Good Covers: Mambo Italiano (Rosemary Clooney)". Cover Me. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  27. ↑ Katsilometes, John (October 15, 2021). "Lady Gaga — and Stefani — jazz it up in Strip return". Las Vegas Review-Journal . Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  28. ↑ "Iggy Azalea & Alice Chater Sample A 1950s Classic On "Lola"". Genius.
  29. ↑ Uffreduzzi, Elisa (2017). "Mambo and Maggiorate: Italian Female Stardom in the 1950s". In Virginia Picchietti, Laura A. Salsini (ed.). Writing and Performing Female Identity in Italian Culture. Springer. p. 71. ISBN   978-3-319-40835-4.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.