Selecting coverversions for Anno Domenico, the
Volare year, isn't an easy task. Hearing the same song over and over again should come with a health warning. There's some hundreds lined up for re-listening and then I always like to find out some more about the artist and before I know it another few hours of my life have been whiled away on the world wide web trying to read languages I don't speak and decypher scripts I can't read . But I often end up concluding that most of the great and interesting
Volares are made in America. Crooners, Moviestars and Blonde Bombshells with gorgeous picture sleeves do it for me all the time and so here's another one from that category.
And it's by an American singer who has some more Eurocovers to her name, so that's a bonus for all to be enjoyed.
Jane Morgan
Jane Morgan is an American singer born in 1924 whose first big hit was
Fascination in 1957. The song, originally a French toujour-vert from 1932, featured in the Billy Wilder movie
Love In The Afternoon (with Audrey Hepburn, Gary Cooper, Maurice Chevalier) and became a top 10 hit for Jane Morgan in the U.S.. The follow up hit The Day The Rains Came (Gilbert Becauds
Le Jour Où La Pluie Viendra) ended just outside the top 20 in the States but was a #1 hit in the U.K.
Her fondness for reworking French classics is no surprise as her career started out in France where she toured and worked for four years prior to her American breakthrough.
The 1958 LP
The Day The Rains Came (KAPP records KL - 1105) includes Jane Morgans version of
Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare). A adequate version laced with sugary violins, sung in Italian and English.
The 2nd Eurocover Jane Morgan recorded was an English version of
Romantica, the Italian entry from 1960 (6th place, originally by Renato Rascel). A much better effort than
Volare with a wonderful orchestral arrangement. She even took the song to the UK charts (39/5) (UK single: London HLR 9120). It has also appeared on various Jane Morgan LP's.
Udo Jürgens'
Walk Away (
Warum Nur Warum, Austria 1964, 6th) (Extensively featured in
this Eurocovers post) was the third Euro-classic on Morgans repertoire. The song was released on her 1969 LP
Traces Of Love (RCA 4171).
But it's a less known song which is my top favourite from the Jane Morgan Eurocovers collection.
My Poor Heart Feels Like Breaking
The opening line of the debut entry for Ireland in 1965,
Walking The Streets In The Rain by Butch Moore (what's in a name). It describes the sentiment of the indeed heartbreaking tale about rain and tears and streets very well.
The Streets became a blueprint for many Irish entries to follow and it's one of the saddest songs in anyones Eurovision collection.
The song ended 6th in Eurovision and was an Irish #1 for the original singer, but it has only been covered a few times.
Jane Morgans version with the appropriate rain-droppy violin intro was released in 1965 on the EP
Maybe (Epic 9008, Portuguese edition pictured above) and on her LP
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (Epic LN 24247). In the UK it was a b-side to the
Maybe single (Columbia).
There have been several compilation CDs with Jane Morgans hits, but I haven't found a CD with any of the Eurovision covers.
Source: An extensive Jane Morgan biography is
here at E-notes.
2008: Anno Domenico is a tribute to Domenico Modugno's Eurovision classic
Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare) which conquered the world 50 years ago. Eurocovers highlights half a century of remarkable coverversions of the Italian evergreen. Other American Volares already featured are by Doo-wop stars
The Platters, gay basher
Anita Bryant, James Dean love interest
Pier Angeli, Box Tops hero
Alex Chilton, Disco Crooner
Al Martino, soul singer
Jesse Belvin and from last year Jazz Legend
Ella Fitzgerald.
And with
this search link you'll get all the Volare posts.
Aurelio Fierro (1923 - 2005) sings Volare with his signature high voice. (pictured right)
Selecting coverversions for Anno Domenico, the Volare year, isn't an easy task. Hearing the same song over and over again should come with a health warning. There's some hundreds lined up for re-listening and then I always like to find out some more about the artist and before I know it another few hours of my life have been whiled away on the world wide web trying to read languages I don't speak and decypher scripts I can't read . But I often end up concluding that most of the great and interesting Volares are made in America. Crooners, Moviestars and Blonde Bombshells with gorgeous picture sleeves do it for me all the time and so here's another one from that category.
Jane Morgan
The 1958 LP The Day The Rains Came (KAPP records KL - 1105) includes Jane Morgans version of Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare). A adequate version laced with sugary violins, sung in Italian and English.
Udo Jürgens' Walk Away (Warum Nur Warum, Austria 1964, 6th) (Extensively featured in this Eurocovers post) was the third Euro-classic on Morgans repertoire. The song was released on her 1969 LP Traces Of Love (RCA 4171).
Blog Tip - Merci Cherie
Patricia Lewis, Queen of South African Eurovision premiered some songs of her forthcoming CD in a live show. The songs included Hero (Sweden 2008), Empty Room (Swedens # 2 in the national selection of 2008) both in English. But the prize song has to be Ek Sal Altyd Vir Jou Lewe, which is an Afrikaans version of Live Forever, Magnificent Magnus Carlssons 2007 Swedish preselection song that didn't make it to Eurovision but was one of the biggest Melodifestivalen hits of the year.
For Real, the cool ska punk Eurovision entry by Athena (for Turkey, 4th in 2004) has received the dubious honour of being covered by Jochem van Gelder, Dutch kiddy TV host. His version is called Kamelentrein (Camel train). As kids are considered stupid but rich by the music industry it's lame and nothing is left of the greatness of the original.
Rendez-Vous in Belgium
With the Euro 2008 well underway, (we're talking football here, or soccer if you must) here's a second bunch of coverversions of Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare), revamped to celebrate Football.
In 2006 the World Cup was in Germany and another Volare was made, also titled Finale. DJ Schnippes surely listened to the Gipsy Kings for his version,. A new version is made and it's currently in the German top 100. Germany made it to the semi final in 2006, losing to eventual (now crushed) winners Italy.
After Eurovision there's another event that enjoys some popularity in the European communities this year, the European Cup Football, Euro 2008. Similarities enough: It attracts colourful fans waving flags and what have you, there's joke entries, Diva's and Drama Queens and whole hordes of people migrate across Europe to catch their favorites in action.
1990 Oranje Sjampagne 
Ljubim Te Pesmama (I love you in my songs) by Belgrade born Extra Nena was the last Eurovision entry for Yugoslavia.
Two artists covered Yugoslavia's swan song. (as far as I know)
Eurovision star Siw Malmkvist recorded Ljubim Te Pesmama in German and in Swedish.
ANNO DOMENICO meets BELGRADE WEEKS
Đorđe Marjanović is a Serbian pop singer, who was and is one of the most popular singers in Yugoslavia. Đorđe was also very popular in the USSR where he released many of his songs (On Melodia of course).
I know of two Eurocovers Đorđe Marjanović recorded in Serbian, both are Italian entries from the early 60's.
In the 60's Đorđe Marjanović participated in the Yugoslavian National Finals with at least 5 songs, representing TV Beograd (Serbian TV) except.
