Campane tibetane - Tibetan Bells

Suoni lunghi di campane tibetane a valle Svegliavano al mattino i falegnami del paese; Temporali estivi con lenzuola appese Nell'aria qualche cosa si fermò E le crociere sul Tirreno Le gite lungo i fiumi Con i castagni in fiore Le rondini in primavera Intorno intorno ai campanili Dalle terrazze a mare E nei trimestri di scuola Nei mobili stile impero: tornerò ritornerò Nei soggiorni tavolini in radica di noce E canterani con i marmi dalle venature grigie Le bronchiti coi vapori e il Vicks Vaporoub Nell'aria qualche cosa si fermò Le scampagnate alle cascine, dei circoli ricreativi Partite nell'oratorio, attraversando la via Emilia Marinavamo la scuola, correndo dietro alle farfalle Entrando in punta di piedi Letti di ottone a baldacchino: non scorderò non scordero Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingles all the way. Don't let me be misunderstood. Campane tibetane © 1983 Franco Battiato "Campane tibetane," after the first couple lines, is filled mostly with images and references from Battiato's Sicilian childhood; not counting the inscrutable juxtaposition of "Jingle Bells" and Nina Simone's "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" at the end.

Long sounds of Tibetan bells in the valley awaken in the morning the carpenters of the land; summer storms with sheets hanging, in the air some things stand still. And the cruises on the Tyrrhenian Sea, the excursions along the rivers with the chestnuts in bloom, the swallows in spring ‘round and ‘round the bell towers by the terraces at the sea. And to the school trimesters, to the Imperial Style furniture: I’ll return, I’ll return. To the living rooms, tray tables in walnut and commodes with grey-grained marbles. Bronchitis with the vapors and Vicks VapoRub, in the air some things stand still. The outings to the farmhouse, some rec clubs, oratory matches, crossing Emilia Way. We played hooky, chasing after butterflies, entering on tiptoes, brass canopy beds: I’ll never forget. I'll never forget. Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way. Don't let me be misunderstood. English translation © 2020 Dennis Criteser Orizzonti perduti was released in 1983. Giusto Pio co-wrote most of the songs, and collaborated on all the arrangements. Many of the songs on the album contemplate a world that is either lost or in the process of being lost, with many references to Battiato's native Sicily. The album relies almost entirely on electronic instrumentation. Regarding the album's title, it's quite possible that Battiato had in mind the book Lost Horizon, or the film of the same name, which introduced the utopian Shangri-La in the mountains of Tibet.

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