What is the meaning of the song 'Caruso'?

Question:I don't mean the literal translation, I mean the meaning of the lyrics. What exactly does the song Caruso talk about. What are the morals that it has to teach?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I don't mean the literal translation, I mean the meaning of the lyrics. What exactly does the song Caruso talk about. What are the morals that it has to teach?

If you are referring to the song "Caruso" written by Lucio Dalla and is interpreted by Andrea Bocelli, Luciano Pavarotti, Josh Groban, Lara Fabian et al.....well, it is subject to many interpretations. This is my understanding of it. I don't think it tells you of any moral lessons. It simply tells about the pains and longings of a man who is about to die while he is looking in the eyes of a girl who was very dear to him.

This song is mainly a way of romanticizing Enrico Caruso's last days in Sorrento and Napoli. Let me give you a brief background about Caruso. Enrico Caruso as everyone knows is a great legend in Italian Lyric Opera, and was one of the greatest and sought after singers during very late 19th century and early 20th century. He lived a very difficult and rather unhappy life having many challenges and problems with Italian Opera houses. He gained more fame and success in the US. He was born to a very poor family in Naples . He was often attached and had several love affairs with prominent women in the performing arts who were already married. These love affairs ended tragically. With Ada Giachetti (his most passionate and longest love affair) who was already married, he had two sons, but in the end she left him for their driver. Then he met a woman 20 years his junior just a few years before he died. With her he had a daughter called Gloria, whom Lucio Dalla described in this song "Caruso". (Guardó negli occhi la ragazza quegli occhi verdi come il mare
Poi all'improvviso uscí una lacrima e lui credette di affogare
Te voglio bene assai ma tanto tanto bene sai)

People said that Caruso was not really inlove with Dorothy Benjamin. Later Caruso admitted his real intentions in marrying her saying, "Because I want somebody who is completely my own." Sorrento is a beautiful coastal city not far from Napoli or Naples. In the song it says "Surriento", it's the Neapolitan dialect meaning Sorrento. It's where he spent many days in convalescence before he finally died at Vesuvio Hotel in Naples.

In my opinion, the song Caruso is Lucio Dalla's way of romanticizing the last days of Enrico as I have described in the last paragraphs. What is not clear to me is whether he is talking to his daughter or to his wife while he (Caruso) was saying, "Ti voglio bene assai ma tanto bene sai". In Italian one can say "Ti voglio bene" to a mother, son, sister, but you can also say this to your beloved, however one must know that it's not the same as "Ti amo" which can be said exclusively to the beloved person, whether your wife, husband, girlfriend, boyfriend, etc.

If indeed Caruso said "ti voglio bene" to Dorothy (as the song suggest) it means that his affections for her is more like that of a father than that of a husband.